Feature: 6 Things to Look for in Red Dead Redemption 2's Story Trailer

Red Dead Redemption 2’s new story trailer is out, and it’s a bit of a humdinger. In it we get our first look at protagonist Arthur Morgan, a mercenary member of the Van der Linde gang. We thought it’d be fun to run through the trailer and pick out some bits you may have missed, so let’s get stuck right in, shall we?

It’s a prequel

We all fully expected Red Dead Redemption 2 to be a prequel, but now it’s confirmed. The trailer introduces a younger-looking Dutch, who you may recall having a few more crow’s feet in the original PlayStation 3 game. This opens up the possibility of a John Marston cameo, but obviously that’s something that Rockstar will want to keep under its hat if it happens.

Arthur Morgan is the star

The trailer gives us our first look at Red Dead Redemption 2’s protagonist, Arthur Morgan. He appears to be some kind of dislikeable debt collector, perhaps hired as a mercenary by Dutch van der Linde to gather money for the gang. Unsurprisingly, it sounds like there’s a big bounty on this guy’s head, and you’re probably going to spend a lot of time shielding him from the authorities.

There’s a bow and arrow

Amazingly, there never was a bow and arrow in the original Red Dead Redemption, but the sequel makes a point of focusing on Morgan notching up an arrow and tightening the string. This is an important addition, not just because of scuffles, but also because…

Wildlife appears to play a big part

Yes, once again it looks like you’ll encounter many animals as you explore the outback. The trailer alone teases alligators and bears, but we’re sure you’ll be stumbling upon even more wild creatures as you traipse the old west.

It was captured on a PS4

Sony claims that the trailer was captured entirely on the PS4. This makes sense, of course, given that it’s the chief marketing partner for the game. There’s no mention of whether the PS4 Pro was used, so we’re going to assume this was captured on a standard model. The platform holder’s also reiterated that “PlayStation owners will get additional benefits, including first access to select online content”.

The logo has changed

One subtle thing: Red Dead Redemption 2 has a new logo. Originally it used traditional numbers, but now it’s switched to Roman numerals. What could be the reasoning for that? Honestly, we haven’t got the foggiest, but it’s just something that we noticed.

Have you spotted anything else in the Red Dead Redemption 2 trailer at all? Turn on detective vision in the comments section below.