Red Dead Redemption 3 tease has fans pretty torn

Rockstar may be too tied up getting GTA 6 out the door on time, but that hasn’t stopped fans from speculating about where Red Dead Redemption 3 could go.

Considering how popular and successful Red Dead Redemption 2 was, many believe that it’s a matter of when, not if, the studio will release a third entry.

Although we’re still years away from learning more about where the next game could go, Rockstar Games fans now believe that a tease for Red Dead Redemption 3 was hiding in plain sight all along.

In a post on the Red Dead Redemption Reddit page titled “The prequel, to the prequel”, one fan reckons the next game could focus on the early years of the Van Der Linde gang.

The image related to the post is a photo that can be found in-game of Arthur, Dutch, and Hosea when they were younger.

“Red Dead Redemption 3. Playing as Arthur, or maybe even Dutch and Hosea too, the age they are in the picture,” the post reads. “I think that would be cool.”

“Would be cool as hell, but it wouldn’t fit the theme of the series,” wrote a comment underneath the post. “Neither Dutch or Hosea had a redemption arc.”

Another commenter underneath posted how it could work, however. They write: “If it did center around one of them, I think it should be Dutch.

“Go from seeing him as the ultimate outlaw and corrupted in Red Dead 1, to the confused and lost leader in Red Dead 2, to the lovable protagonist in Red Dead 3. If they can make it so we truly love Dutch, then replaying the others after will become a sadder and sadder story.”

This post reminds me why I like the ending of Star Wars: The Phantom Menace so much.

It ends on such a hopeful note for the character Anakin Skywalker, despite us all knowing where he’s eventually heading. It's a use of dramatic irony that I think really fits well in Star Wars, and could also fit here.

If Red Dead Redemption 3 was to be another prequel focused on the Van Der Linde gang, having it end on a positive beat for Dutch creates a huge sense of dread, knowing where his story leads.

The “Redemption” in the title would be used in an ironic sense.

“I feel we're due for a new series in the Red Dead franchise,” wrote another comment. “Redemption takes place at the end of the wild west era. Would love to see a series in the prime of it all.”

Regardless of where Red Dead Redemption 3 goes, or Red Dead 4, or whatever you want to call it—we’re probably going to be waiting a while until we see it.