Rockstar Games co-founder Dan Houser recently sat down to an interview and talked about how the ending of Red Dead Redemption was negatively received by players. While the game was hugely praised overall, Red Dead Redemption‘s ending made story decisions that were extremely rare in gaming at the time, leading to frustration among some fans.
Endgame spoilers for Red Dead Redemption and Red Dead Redemption 2 follow.
While nothing has quite been able to keep up with the remarkable popularity of the Grand Theft Auto franchise, Red Dead Redemption has built up a respectable fanbase of its own. While many fans were disappointed that Red Dead Redemption 2 never received DLC or a story expansion, many have spent hundreds, if not thousands, of hours exploring the old west across the series’ three single-player games.
Rockstar Games Co-Founder Talks Red Dead’s Ending
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Image via Rockstar/Take-Two Interactive -
Image via Rockstar Games -
Image via Rockstar Games
In a recent chat with IGN, Rockstar Games co-founder Dan Houser talked about the development of Red Dead Redemption and how fans reacted to the ending of the game. Houser explained that the death of John Marston and the decision to give the player control of Jack Marston in his stead was controversial, to say the least, and that fans were “livid” about the decision. He expressed that he was surprised by how angry the fans were, but that initially, he took it as a good thing, “because it means you’ve really engaged in the story.” While he still thinks it was the right choice to make, he added that in comparison to traditional art and stories, games “can’t live without a player,” and that he understands some players felt let down by the ending.
Rearrange the covers into the correct US release order.
Rearrange the covers into the correct US release order.
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Houser also reflected on the development period where the team made the decision to kill off John Marston at the end. He talked it over with the game’s lead designer, Christian Cantamessa, and the two agreed that the idea was a good one, but also that it would pose significant technical issues and risks. Open-world games typically let players go back and explore and continue sidequests after the main story is complete, so having a time skip and switching protagonists raised questions as to how players could finish those side stories. While the team concluded that they had the resources to make it happen, and ultimately followed that path, they were scared about the risks of taking that route.
Ultimately, it’s clear that Rockstar decided that the extra effort was worth it, and liked how the story ended, as Red Dead Redemption 2 followed a similar path. The game, which is set prior to the events of Red Dead Redemption, sees protagonist Arthur Morgan die, and players are then given control of John Marston. The decision not only meant closing out Arthur’s story with a tremendously emotional and dramatic moment, but also allowed the game to bridge some of the gap of time between the events of the two games.
While Red Dead Redemption and Grand Theft Auto are substantially different games despite coming from the same developer and being open-world titles, the two often influence one another. Houser mentioned that the team had actually wanted to make a similar decision with the ending of GTA games, but the technical difficulties involved have proven to be insurmountable in prior releases. It’s yet to be seen if something significant will happen to one of the protagonists of GTA 6 when it finally launches.
- Released
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May 18, 2010
- ESRB
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M For Mature 17+ Due To Blood, Intense Violence, Nudity, Strong Language, Strong Sexual Content, Use of Drugs
- Developer(s)
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Rockstar San Diego
