Rockstar has always loved putting obscure, mysterious, and sometimes downright creepy Easter eggs in its open worlds. As the most ambitious open world game the studio has created to date,Red Dead Redemption 2was obviously no exception to this. Spread all across the game’s five states are mysteries hidden throughout the wilderness that range from humorous Easter eggs to downright bone-chilling mysteries that may or may not get any sort of resolution.
While every state inRed Dead Redemption 2is beautiful in its own way, Lemoyne might just be in the running for the prettiest. Something about the wide open green and red plains around Scarlett Meadows, the peacefully ominous bayou, and the absolutely stunning city of Saint Denis are just a handful of the breathtaking sights this state has to offer. But under the surface of all that graphical fidelity are some ofRed Dead Redemption’s strangest mysteries.
Saint Denis Vampire
In a game that’s mostly entrenched in the gritty realism of the Wild West, it can be kind of alarming to stumble into a scene out of an Anne Rice novel, but that’s exactly what this Easter egg brings to the table.To find the Vampire of Saint Denis, players first have to track down his five diary entries scrawled in white/red ink on walls across the city. Once these entries have been located, players will note that the layout of these writings forms a pentagram over the map of the city, which will lead them to the location of the vampire itself.
Go to the alleyway behind the cathedral at nighttime. If the vampire is present, there will be a black “X” on the minimap indicating there is a corpse in the alley. Approach the vampire as he feeds, trigger the cutscene, kill him, and take his unique dagger to finish this secret quest. It’s worth noting that the vampire can kill in just one hit, and he does not respawn, so be sure to act fast.
This is a pretty creepy Easter egg and seeing the Nosferatu-esque NPC in a dark alley way is enough to give anyone chills, but the jury is out if he’s actually supernatural. In traditional lore, vampires can only be killed in a few very specific ways, and the Saint Denis bloodsucker can be killed like any conventional NPC. This could either indicate thatRockstar has bucked the old school vampire rules, or that this is just a mundane serial killer who’s really committed to his gimmick. Both are pretty unsettling.
Compson’s Darkest Secret
Most players havegone through Jeremiah Compson’s sidequestand know full well about his history in the slave trade, but a hidden detail just behind his old home makes his already dark story all the more nightmarish. In the dried up well behind the home, players can find a ladder going down to the bottom. Not much is down there by way of loot besides a few coins likely thrown in by passersby. But scrawled on the walls of the well are tallymarks, much like those used by prisoners to note how many days they’ve been locked up.
Compson was likely keeping slaves as prisoners at the bottom of the well for weeks, if not months, at a time. A shockingly cruel misdeed from an already horrible man, this hidden detail can go completely missed by anyone not taking the extra time to explore. Thatpositive honor spike Arthur gets after killing Compsonfeels a lot better after learning this not-so-fun fact.
What Happened to Pleasance?
Pleasance is an abandoned township in the state of Lemoynelocated in the Scarlett Meadows region. There’s not much by way of missions for this area, so a lot of players probably pass right through on their way to another more important objective, but there’s more than meets the eye to this little town-that-was.
Nobody knows what exactly happened in Pleasance. Founded in 1883, it only lasted one month before becoming a ghost town. There’s a cemetery full of graves that all indicate violent ends for everyone buried there. But beyond those sparse details, there’s nothing concrete about what precisely happened that wiped an entire town off the map.
Some clues scattered around the map in the form of graffiti have led some fan theorists to two leading hypotheses: plague and some sort of occult activity. While widespread sickness could have absolutely wiped a small settlement off the map in that day and age, occult activity seems slightly more likely due to the preponderance of violence in the town, the church’s lack of any and all crosses, and the messages scrawled on walls reading “Unclean Sinners” and “Ill with Sin.” No answers have ever been given for the town’s actual fate, leavingPleasance one of the truly unsolved mysteries ofRed Dead Redemption 2.
The Night Folk
While not exactly a mystery in the traditional sense, these swamp-dwelling enemies are among the most frightening and unexplained in the game.Other rival gangs inRed Dead Redemption 2like the O’Driscolls, the Murfree Brood, and the Lemoyne Raiders all have pretty concrete backstories with identifiable motives, but the Night Folk are something else entirely.
Little is known about the Night Folk’s backstory, only that they live in the swamps and bayous surrounding Saint Denis, communicate almost exclusively via animal calls, and prefer traps and ambush tactics under cover of darkness. The latter is especially terrifying because they target horses with the intent to kill, and, like the vampire, they’re one of the only enemies in the game able to one-shot the player themselves.
Very little is certain about this subculture outside of how brutally they attack anyone they deem an enemy. They’re an unknown quality, which makes them one of the most frightening opponents to go up against should players ever find themselvesunlucky enough to be stuck in Bayou Nwa after dark.
Unlike the Saint Denis vampire, who may or may not be supernatural, it’s hard denyingthe ghost of Agnes Dowd is actually something from the other side. She’s fittingly difficult to actually see in-game, though her wails will be easily heard floating through the swamps of Bluewater Marsh.
Agnes Dowd will only spawnbetween the hours of 9pm and 3am in foggy weather. The ghost will appear in the northwest area of Bluewater Marsh (that’s between the “B” and the “L” on the map) but can easily be tracked by her screams. Allegedly, this encounter can happen up to 16 times, with each appearance revealing more about Agnes’ tragic life story.
Strange Man’s Cabin
One of the series mostopen-ended mysteries is that of the Strange Man, seen most prominently in the originalRed Dead Redemption. This dapper gentleman will appear throughout the game several times and act as a sort of commentator on John’s morality or lack thereof. His exact nature is completely unknown, with over a decade of fan speculation claiming he’s God, the Devil, the Grim Reaper, or something unknowable in its entirety. Developers at Rockstar have weighed in, claiming even they don’t know for sure who the Strange Man is supposed to be.
In Bayall Edge, players can find an unoccupied, yet lavishly furnishedcabin, belonging to the Strange Man. If the player visits as Arthur, there will be an unfinished portrait of the Strange Man, along with various references to the player’s choices in the story up to that point. If the player visits as John, however, things start getting a little creepier.
On consecutive visits with John, the portrait will slowly reach further states of completion. Eventually, on the players’ final return to the cabin, they will see a mirror with the reflection of John, with the Strange Man standing ominously behind him. He’ll disappear before the player can turn and face him, but it’s safe to say this is where the Strange Man, whatever he is,developed his interest in the Marstons.
Giant Swamp Snake
This one’s a mystery that would make even Indiana Jones “nope” right out of the game. Located just west of Pleasance is a tree with a gargantuan snake hanging dead from its branches. This monster must be 20 feet long and would have been an absolute nightmare to face off with had it been alive. But despite its threatening appearance, it is harmless and very much dead.
Fans have speculated for years as to what the meaning behind this creature could be, but there’s nothing conclusive as of yet. Theories range from theremains of a scrapped legendaryanimal to a light, passing reference to the filmAnaconda. One darker, more theological theory is that the snake is meant to be a representation of the devil from the Christian story of creation. This is mainly driven by the creature’s close proximity to Pleasance, the town which many fans believe was engaged with devil worship.
Ghost Train
Anyone who’s playedRed Dead Redemption 2has tried their hand atoutrunning one of the many trains on theRDR2map on their trusty horse. It’s just something everyone tries at least once. But the most elusive train in the game is the ghost train that rips through the state of Lemoyne.
The ghost train inRDR2can be found at 3:00 amin the northwest part of the state near the “Welcome to Lemoyne” sign. Simply ride up and down the tracks; there’s no guarantee the train will spawn. But when Arthur/John’s horse starts whinnying, that’s a surefire sign the train is arriving at the station, so to speak.
There’s no in-game lore for this ghost train, leaving it something of a mystery. It could just be a fun bit of spooky flavor to the open world, though some fans have noted the train’s similarities to the Phantom Train inFinal Fantasy 6. Maybe the devs at Rockstar are just shouting out their peers at Square Enix.
Who is the Woman in The Outhouse?
Do enough snooping around the Braithwaite property and players will come across a heavily fortified outhouse. At a glance, the boarded-up door might just indicate an out of service commode, but the chains certainly do seem to be overkill. Closer investigation reveals a disfigured young woman trapped inside, who’ll take a swing at Arthur if he gets too close.
Without further investigation, players may or may not get answers as to this woman’s identity. If Arthur brings Penelope to the outhouse while helping her escape, she will reveal the woman’sname is Gertrude Braithwaite and that they are cousins. Penelope will go on to reveal that Gertrude was born physically disfigured and mentally unwell and that, instead of getting her the help she needed, the family locked her away on the property to save face. Penelope claims she will send help for Gertrude if she manages to get to Boston.
Returning years later as John reveals that Penelope did no such thing; Gertrude’s outhouse will be a dilapidated wreck with her skeleton rotting away inside. A tragic ending, but one sadly very much in line with how people with mental health issues were treated at the time.
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 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.
