Why Red Dead Redemption’s Real Ending Isn’t Your Choice

There are two instances where the original Red Dead Redemption feels like it’s coming to a close, but its true ending finally occurs when Jack Marston avenges his father by killing former BOI agent Edgar Ross, an action the player has no choice but to execute. Although Rockstar excels in character driven narratives, the developer frequently gives the player some agency in how smaller story arcs play out. This is, however, not the case when an older Jack Marston ends Red Dead Redemption with a final duel. Rockstar seemed intent on delivering a certain message in the game’s final moments, and the player is forced into complicity as Jack makes a decision with foreshadowed and potentially tragic consequences.

Being born into the Van der Linde Gang prior to the events of Red Dead Redemption 2 seems to have predestined Jack for a fraught life. Only four years after his birth, the notorious band of outlaws would dissolve surrounding events that lead to the death of Arthur Morgan, whom Jack affectionately though of as an uncle. Despite the unideal circumstances for raising a child, John Marston and Abigail Roberts were determined to create a better life for their son. In the time that passed between RDR2‘s ending and epilogue, the family continued its nomadic lifestyle before ultimately returning to the West Elizabeth territory and eventually settling on a plot of land known as Beecher’s Hope. Although his early childhood was likely traumatic, including multiple kidnappings involving himself and his mother, Jack may have lived a fairly normal, early 20th century homestead life from 1907 to 1911.

The events of Red Dead Redemption begin with yet another kidnapping incident when Jack and Abigail are held hostage by the Bureau of Investigation agents Edgar Ross and Archer Fordham. This would be the second encounter Jack has with Ross, who interrupted a fishing excursion with Arthur during RDR2. Jack’s days in the custody of the BOI are not depicted, but he’s well on his way to becoming the saddest character Rockstar ever made with the imminent death of his father, and subsequent journey of revenge. Jack would eventually repay the favor of an interrupted day of leisure  when he tracks down a retired Ross enjoying a duck hunt with his brother.

Red Dead Redemption’s Ending Is Jack Marston’s Destiny

The Red Dead Redemption saga makes it abundantly clear that the life of an outlaw is not easily left. The Van der Linde Gang’s way of life is quickly becoming infeasible even before the turn of the century, and the outlaws are ill equipped for assimilation into everyday life. Jack Marston was born into an obsolete life style, and from an early age was surrounded by violence and faced with repeated tragedy. Just like most of the other characters in RDR, Jack wasn’t meant to have a happy ending. Although his parents made a concerted effort to provide him opportunity, the Bureau of Investigation – which turned out to be just as violent and despicable as the doomed Van der Linde Gang – saw to it that Jack would become jaded toward civilized authority.

Just before Red Dead Redemption‘s final title card, after Edgar Ross’ body starts floating down the river, Jack takes a final, solemn look at the pistol he just used before holstering it and turning away. Players can’t choose to spare Ross like they could Javier Escuella because Jack’s failure to escape the violence of his forebears is a poignant inevitability. Jack was on the verge of finally having a productive family life before it was grievously ripped away from him by the United States government. Although he lacked a formal education, Jack was smart enough to know the slaying of a former BOI agent will almost certainly incur the wrath of the agency. Letting the past die would have likely been a better alternative, but Red Dead Redemption doesn’t give players the option because Jack Marston was, in the end, destined to a life of violent crime through no fault of his own.

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