Madness is spending several minutes taming Arthur Morgan’s in-game mane when you’ve got an untended neckbeard making you look like more of a hillbilly than the cast of Red Dead Redemption 2 combined. I’ve never been one to invest significant time into character customisation, but Rockstar’s latest has me deliberating over every last strand of facial hair. Morgan may be a murderer, but he deserves the best a man can get – even if Gillette razors weren’t quite invented yet.
The thing I appreciate about grooming in the Western is that you have to make hard decisions. Many of you who’ve been following the game will know that Arthur’s hair grows as in-game time passes, and it can take a little while to turn truly feral. There are elixirs you can buy from local retailers which speed up the rate of hair growth, but I like to keep things natural and wait for the gunslinger’s fuzz to form.
When it takes several in-game weeks to cultivate some brilliant bristles, though, you have to make them count. Unlike other games, Red Dead Redemption 2 doesn’t let you take a trip to the barbers and pick whatever style you like – instead it forces you to grow your stubble out, and then provides you with designs based on how much bush you have to work with. Want some big mutton chops? You’re going to need impressive sideburns to begin.
The same is true of Arthur’s hairstyle. You not only have to select a style, but you also have to get it trimmed to the right length. Leave it for a period of in-game time and it will become unkempt, so it’s important to get regular cuts in order to maintain the style. Heck, you can even purchase a greasy wax-like product named Pomade to help you slick it back and keep it in place – but it obviously has a shelf-life, and too much time in the saloon will see it rub out.
The thing is, I’m obsessed with ensuring that Morgan always looks well turned out. I’ve been going out of my way to take regular trips to the barbers, maintaining the character’s short back and sides. As I’ve progressed through the story, I’ve also been preening the character’s facial hair; I started out with a nice, curated five-o-clock shadow, but now I’ve settled upon a regal moustache. It took me ages to grow his beard enough to get the right look.
It’s gotten to the point where my Arthur is now so well maintained that he frankly looks out of place. In cut-scenes where John Marston’s greasy locks are glued to his battle-hardened face, here’s Morgan with a bowler hat and a pinstripe shirt – it doesn’t even make sense. But I can’t stop preening the protagonist; I simply won’t allow him to look dishevelled, even if the unkempt look clearly suits the character.
Have you been investing additional effort into ensuring Arthur Morgan looks the part? Are you a fan of Red Dead Redemption 2’s grooming system? Have a shave in the comments section below.
Comments 33
I hogtied everyone on a farm, took them all into the stables, looted their homes and then executed them all one at a time with head shots from point blank range with the double barrel shotgun I'd found in their store house.
So yeah I think I'm playing the game a bit differently to you.
@kyleforrester87 You maniac, you! Should we call someone?
@get2sammyb I usually maintain the moral high ground in these kind of games, but I figured screw it. I'm being an absolute b@stard.
@get2sammyb you need to make a video for this article
@kyleforrester87 this morning I stopped the O'Driscolls from robbing a train so that I could do it myself, all survivors were tied up and put on the tracks before I used the train as a getaway vehicle over their bodies 😁
I'm in chapter 4 and haven't touched my hair or beard.
@carlos82 YOU PEOPLE NEED HELP.
@carlos82 @kyleforrester87
I love being away from camp for weeks with Arthur and when he returns to camp all filthy and looking like a hermit, Susan will make him get a wash.
There's a pic of Arthur with a fully grown beard somebody has posted on the Push Square community page and it's one the most impressive game beards I've ever seen.
@kyleforrester87 I feel bad for just shooting a poor farmer's pig for the hide so my trapper buddy out in the sticks can craft me a nice new vest!
i have high honour and my Arthur is a good mannered character so keeping him in tip top shape is part of that, my character looks similar to your picture
That's actually a pretty cool detail. My hair takes a really long time to grow. It would probably take me two years to grow a respectable mutton chops.
I wouldn't be surprised if people were obsessed over Arthur's appearance. Since I'm a little stickler with customizing characters just right, I'd probably go nuts over this too.
"The thing I appreciate about grooming in the Western is that you have to make hard decisions"
True, it makes you think carefully whether to shave or not to shave because you know it'll take time growing back. A new bar has been set in the hair growing game Master Geralt. And the level of customisation with the clothing is also so damn good. Browsing through those sketchy looking catalogues in the shops are a joy. There's not really anything to hate in this game, the controls aren't no problem for me, it's realism.
My Arthur has some kind of chocolate coating on him, maybe he needs a second bath...
@JoeBlogs very true, that's why I'm taking it out on everyone I meet out in the west, I started off trying to be honourable too. Maybe growing a beard will calm me down a bit
@get2sammyb @Quintumply look at it this way. This game is letting @carlos82 and @kyleforrester87 live out their fantasies of Wild West murder, instead of perpetrating it on the rest of us in real life. So, on behalf of the gaming community at large, I say to Rockstar a heartfelt 'Thank You!'
I've been growing my hair and beard since starting on release date, with occasional trips to the Barber to try some stuff to see how I was getting on. I hit level 10 last night and it was at that point that I upgraded Arthur's tent specifically To fast travel to the barbers without further delay. Happy to report I'm delighted with my 'English' with level 10 mutton chops.
I then spent the next hour putting together a brand new outfit to compliment my sculpted fuzz.
I have no idea what's going on in the story 😐
@TheArt I agree about the controls. I don't think it would feel as good if Arthur controlled liked Nathan Drake or Geralt.
My fiancee was laughing at me because when I was playing the game I was keeping to the day/night cycle to make sure Arthur got his proper sleep to maintain his cores, and then every morning I was picking him a new outfit out. If I spent sixty hours playing the game I bet ten was spent in wardrobe, and messing around with comedy moustaches.
I've just found an old pirate hat so I'm well gonna grow out that beard.
@ApostateMage Geralt's walking and running animations were fine but his jogging animation though, it was horribly robotic by this gen's standards. Not to mention atrocious Roach.
Because of this article now I wanna give Arthur a specific look. Here's my models!
Obviously the Good should be easier considering Arthur's face, but I'd love to become the Ugly!
@andreoni79 Hahaha. Clint's really working that poncho! He's got the Victoria Secret lingerie hip-thrust down pat!
@PaperyWhiteBoy The real photo is even better! Leone could have named the movie "The Touchy, the Bad and the Ugly"!
And the Ugly is way more ugly in his "rude" version!
I’ve been making regular trips to the barbers but always only for a trim, I have my Arthur have a bald cut and a stubble, makes him stand out from the rest of the main characters and NPCs. I’m keeping his original outfit on for now despite owning probably every outfit in the game.
My Arthur has a handlebar moustache and is regularly trimmed so that he has no five o'clock shadow. I dress him with a thin tie black vest and the flat rimmed black hat ( I forget it's name). He may be a mass murder but he is a sophisticated one.
@Neolit my turning point was going to talk to a stranger at a campfire, he threatened me so I turned to leave but he shot me. I defended myself and for some reason lost honour, then a passer by accused me of murder and things got messy. From that point onwards I don't trust anyone 😉
Pomade all the way for my Arthur, it saves on the barber trips.
I've been playing mostly as a very well-behaved cowboy. But you know, sometimes even the most upstanding moral citizen needs to blow off some steam by hitching a ride on the rain and trying to lasso innocent people off the platform when the train passes a station.
No I like more realism. Shave , trim all when in camp or barber but let it grow when exploring/ hunting (and I do that a lot). Im more into crafting clothes though.
@andreoni79 Ha. I never noticed it before. Somehow the graphic makes it more pronounced, though I'm sure that's an optical illusion more than anything.
Personally I'd go for High Plains Drifter Clint. Or maybe Every Which Way But Loose...🤔
Haha. I haven't used the barber yet (well, I sat down in one, flicked through the styles and decided I like my Arthur how he is). I regularly shave at camp though (all to level 2, sometimes moustache to 1).
The customisation is really good. I'm still early in the story but I think Arthur is already my favourite Rockstar protagonist.
I really hope the character creator for the online in this is a lot better than GTA.
I'm trying to grow out the mutton chops and have a Sam Elliot stache.
I've also been thinking of creating a forum thread on wild RDR2 stuff that happens. I mean, this game has some amazing things that can happen Arthur. Like when I aimed my gun at a goat and then ignored it, it knocked me on my butt and I hear, "Well, that sure was a sight to see." This game!
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