Red Dead Redemption: Every Villain Ranked From Worst To Best

Roundabout the time of RDR2's descent into Beaver Hollow and the narrative introduction of Annesburg, there is a tonal shift that carries on throughout the game all the way to the Epilogue. The eerie sense of ever-present danger lingers over the player like a bad omen, and I would put money down that it all starts with the introduction of The Murfree Brood.

Roaming gangs aren't new in Red Dead, and to some the occupants of Murfree Country might be just that. But the depravity and horror these cave and forest dwelling monsters inflict on others is so abhorrent, they could be in the main villains of their own game. Best described as an Old West version of The Hills Have Eyes; the Murfree Brood are what keep you awake at night, and put the players on edge when they are trotting their horse through misty Roanoke Ridge.

First introduced narratively into RDR2 just before Chapter 6; Arthur and Charles are sent by Dutch to clear out a cave that could serve as the new hidey hole for the gang. The cruel horrors the game alludes to with the Murfree Brood goes unsaid, but once the player runs into them once, they'll find whispers of their evil everywhere.

Startling ambushes on the trails, robbing bewildered travellers or setting fire to captured victims; the Brood are more like maniacal serial killers than any semblance of outlaws. And that, makes them all the more terrifying.