Summary
When it comes to ensemble casts in gaming, it’s hard to beatRed Dead Redemption 2’s Van Der Linde Gang. Helmed by thecharismatic rogue-turned-villain Dutch Van Der Linde, the outlaw crew is a powerful and meaningful representation of the fabled Wild West setting. The narrative ofRed Dead Redemption 2is one of friendship, duty, honor, betrayal, and disillusionment, and it is inextricable from the rich and diverse tapestry that is the Van Der Linde Gang.
For years,Red Dead Redemptionplayers were left to wonder about the glory days of the Van Der Linde Gang, as the organization plays a significant role in the first game. InRed Dead Redemption 2, a more complete and intriguing picture of the gang is formed, with the game digging deep into each individual member, presenting them as complex and believable people. At the same time, not all gang members are equally memorable, interesting, likable, or critical to the overall story of the game.
While the following tier list takes likability into account, other criteria, such as overall narrative significance, usefulness in the camp, depth, and memorability will also be considered; the list isn’t intended torankRed Dead Redemption 2charactersby charm or moral fiber alone.
S Tier
Arthur Morgan
It would be impossible to fully capture what makes Arthur Morgan such a great character with any sort of brevity, but suffice it to say that the hero ofRed Dead Redemption 2will likely go down as one of the best video game protagonists of all time. Arthur, brought to life by Roger Clarke’s incredible and nuanced performance, is not a good man, but his raw humanity, surprising sensitivity, and complex inner struggles are what make him far more than just a brutal or amoral criminal.Arthur Morgan is not only the bestRed Dead Redemption 2character, but quite possibly the best character ever penned by Rockstar’s writers, which is saying something.
Dutch Van Der Linde
The patriarch of the Van Der Linde Gang, Dutch is something of a secondary protagonist inRed Dead Redemption 2. Like Arthur, he’s somewhat ethically compromised, choosing to look at the world through a morally flexible lens while leveraging his intelligence and unparalleled charisma to achieve questionable ends. Dutch does become an antagonist throughout the game, but he isn’t psychopathic or outright evil. Rather, he is a man whose talents can cause great destruction if not reeled in and channeled properly, making him easily susceptible to not only outside forces, but his own whims and psychic frailties.
Hosea Matthews
One ofRed Dead Redemption 2’s rare cooler heads, Hosea serves as something of an angel on Dutch’s shoulder, steering him in the right direction and keeping his wrathful and rash tendencies at bay. He manages to do this with a gentle, practiced hand, making the soft-spoken character one of the most crucial, respectable, and impressive characters in the game. The importance of his role in the story is underscored after his death, which can be seen as the final turning point for Dutch’s descent into madness and cruelty.
A Tier
John Marston
After the firstRed Dead Redemption, it was hard to imagine another character leading the franchise; John is a complex character who is hard to dislike. Arthur may steal his thunder a bit inRDR2, but John is still a great character in the prequel, where he is portrayed as a less mature man, on the verge of being transformed by a series of emotionally ravaging and stressful events.
Javier Escuela
TheJavier players meet inRed Dead Redemption 2is strikingly different from the one they hunt down in the first game. InRDR2, he’s perhaps a bit distant or aloof, but he is ultimately a decent man, showing loyalty and respect for the gang. He’s downright likable and trustworthy, which is majorly incongruent with his characterization inRDR. This inconsistency makes Javier representative of the Van Der Linde Gang as a whole, as he epitomizes the corruption and degradation of the outlaw crew.
Micah Bell
Micah Bell has drawn the ire of manyRDR2players, but this is by design. Rockstar set out to present a detestable and irredeemable character in Micah, and the studio undoubtedly succeeded at this. The ever-present devil on Dutch’s shoulder, Micah is the embodiment of selfishness and corruption, and an antagonist that noRed Dead Redemption 2fan will soon forget. As for usefulness, Micah is proven to be a skilled and resourceful asset, though this is undermined by his ultimate betrayal.
Charles Smith
Noble, brave, and loyal, Charles is one of the fewVan Der Linde Gang members who may be viewed as honorable. As the son of a black man and a Native American woman, Charles has a unique outlook on the outlaw lifestyle and America as a whole. He’s a relentlessly competent survivor, a good friend, and arguably far too good for the Van Der Linde Gang.
Sadie Adler
A fan-favorite pickfor the hero ofRed Dead Redemption 3, Sadie Adler is one of the brightest stars ofRDR2. Her transformation from helpless victim to ruthless, almost sadistic outlaw is grotesquely satisfying, and her chaotic, devil-may-care attitude helps her stand out amidst the Western genre’s sea of stoic, macho heroes.
B Tier
Sean McGuire
Scrappy, friendly Sean is in a bit over his head with the Van Der Linde Gang. He’s young, boyishly charming, funny, and likable—all traits that make his sudden death all the more shocking and tragic.
Lenny Summers
Although he’s the star of one of thefunniestRed Dead Redemption 2missions, Lenny is also a source of great heartbreak for many players. Another youngster in the gang, Lenny is something of a younger brother to Arthur, who regards him with great fondness and is subtly devastated by his premature demise.
Karen Jones
Karen Jones is an indefatigable firecracker, always looking to start trouble and exemplifying the exuberance of the gang’s more youthful members. She’s not particularly influential in the story, but she is certainly charming, playing a memorable role in some of the game’s more low-stakes missions and serving as one of the gang’s most vibrant, beating hearts.
Abigail Roberts
Abigail and John’s love storyis a rare bright spot inRDR2’s often bleak narrative, and the game does a great job of showing a side of her that wasn’t quite apparent in the first game, when she is already waist-deep in domestic life.
Tilly Jackson
Another youngster whom Arthur has a sweet spot for, Tilly is kind, dependable, and wise in spite of her rather tragic backstory. She often shows her resilience and depth of will, making her a good addition to the gang.
Mary-Beth Gaskill
Clever thief and aspiring writer Mary-Beth is a smart and kindhearted character. She serves as one of just a fewgang members with whom Arthur opens up, divulging details about his TB diagnosis, family life, and troubled past.
C Tier
Bill Williamson
Unlike Javier Escuela, Bill Williamson isn’t all that different inRed Dead Redemption 2compared to the first game. He mostly serves as a dull-minded, somewhat mean-spirited lackey of Dutch.
Susan Grimshaw
Though she is reliable and invaluable as a camp administrator, players ultimately don’t get to learn much about Ms. Grimshaw, aside from her brief relationship with Dutch in the distant past.
Uncle
Uncle isRed Dead Redemption’s infamous freeloader, often seen as lazy and unwilling to put in any real effort. While this is mostly true inRDR2, the prequel shows that he does have some redeeming qualities, with John praising his surprising helpfulness in building his ranch house in the epilogue.
Leopold Strauss
It’s hard to blame Strauss exclusively for his loan shark operations, as this is explicitly and implicitly endorsed by the gang at large, but while characters like Arthur are moved to some degree of guilt over situations like the Downes' debt, Strauss is calloused and predatory, seemingly unbothered by his unethical practices.
Josiah Trelawny
Trelawny is an enigmatic, charismatic con artist who helps the gang in many key ways, but he winds up not doing too much in the grand scheme of the narrative, dipping in and out of the story at many points and ultimately bowing out of the plot without much fanfare.
Reverend Swanson
Much like Trelawny, Swanson has an interesting backstory and personality but doesn’t really impact the narrative; he is somewhat memorable, and certainly not offensive, but he is more like set dressing for most of the game.
Kieran Duffy
Kieran has a unique introduction to the story and an even more memorable exit from it, but he doesn’t do too much during the interim, making him one of the game’s more forgettable characters.
D Tier
Molly O’Shea
Molly may not be one ofRDR2’s most evilcharacters, but she’s a strong contender for the gang’s biggest freeloader. To make matters worse, she doesn’t seem to have any respect for the other gang members, refusing to engage or even acknowledge most of them, despite the fact that they are essentially supporting her lifestyle.
Simon Pearson
As the camp’s cook, Pearson is markedly more helpful than Molly, but he undermines his usefulness through incessant complaining and bitterness, often criticizing others while refusing to do more than the bare minimum or offer constructive solutions, making him one of the more unlikeable and ultimately inconsequential characters ofRed Dead Redemption 2.
Red Dead Redemption 2
WHERE TO PLAY
America, 1899. The end of the wild west era has begun as lawmen hunt down the last remaining outlaw gangs. Those who will not surrender or succumb are killed. After a robbery goes badly wrong in the western town of Blackwater, Arthur Morgan and the Van der Linde gang are forced to flee. With federal agents and the best bounty hunters in the nation massing on their heels, the gang must rob, steal and fight their way across the rugged heartland of America in order to survive. As deepening internal divisions threaten to tear the gang apart, Arthur must make a choice between his own ideals and loyalty to the gang who raised him. From the creators of Grand Theft Auto V and Red Dead Redemption, Red Dead Redemption 2 is an epic tale of life in America at the dawn of the modern age.
