Respect
In order for a player to truly respect the character they're playing as, it must be developed in three different ways: physically, sociologically, and psychologically. A character's physical aspect should mirror their role in the game. Playing as a stocky young boy in a Call of Duty game would be pretty unconvincing. The sociological aspect reflects both a character's background and the environment they currently reside in, and how it affects them, as it helps one to understand their motives and how these outside forces impact their means to achieve them. Finally, the player should have a good understanding of what's going on inside their character's mind. If they witnessed a murder would the character feel sickened or cold-hearted towards what they just saw? This depends on who they are and how they think.
Arthur Morgan
A cowboy in the 1800s and main character in Red Dead Redemption 2, Arthur Morgan is tied to a ragtag gang compiled of men, women, and a child, and they often refer to themselves as a "family." Throughout the story, Arthur undergoes a series of changes as the environment around him starts to alter in a way he's never experienced. In this game, Rockstar Studios does an exceptional job of making Arthur a well-developed character in all three of these aspects.
BIG SPOILER WARNING
Physical
Arthur Morgan seems to be designed around fitting that stereotypical cowboy type. This makes a lot of sense, especially at the beginning, as his character initially talks and acts like a spaghetti western character. While he's on the wrong side of the law, he isn't a dislikable character, and his features make him come across as hard-focused, determined, but also not evil. Instead, he has a certain charm about him.
Sociological
The world of Red Dead Redemption is a cold, harsh one, and that becomes apparent even at the beginning of the game. Morgan's background is revealed to the player slowly throughout the first few acts, and the first background the player gets is what happened only a few days before. Him and his gang are running from the law after a job in the city Blackwater goes south. The gang is scattered with some members dead and others missing. The violent, but successful attempt to rescue one of the members John Marston, who is being tortured at a camp nearby, sets the scene for how the game is going to be, but also provides a glimpse of the ugly past Morgan has experienced. As the game progresses, Morgan explores environments that are carefully created, and each city has a specific "mood" to it that affects both Morgan and the rest of the gang throughout the game.
Psychological
One of the unique aspects of Red Dead Redemption 2 is the characteristic that your actions will affect interactions Morgan has with other characters as well as the final outcome of the game. While this is a selling point for many games, these "actions" really only tie to a couple decisions the player has to make at certain pivotal moments. In Red Dead, almost everything you do has a positive or negative affect. If you ride around robbing and killing people, Arthur will turn more harsh towards his comrades and other characters he interacts with. However, if you take injured travelers to doctors, stop robberies from happening, or assist people in many different odd favors, he will become more open and kind to others. An odd experience that happened to me is that while I mostly helped people, I'd rob an occasional passerby, killing them if they reached for their weapon. Later one, I had a conversation with one of the female gang members where Arthur sat down and confessed that he was doing bad things sometimes and he didn't know why. It seemed like he wanted to be good, but felt like he didn't have control of many of the events taking place, so he took it out on random bystanders. This is just one of many examples of how each action you take has certain consequences and changes the way Arthur thinks, all the while keeping his character convincing.
From this point on, I'll be talking about the story from the good perspective, which is how I played through the game.
Growth and Development
At the beginning of the story it becomes clear that Arthur did what he was told and remained a loyal member to the group, staying more neutral than good or bad. However, as the game progresses, the gang's leader and pivotal character Dutch begins to turn more twisted, yelling at group members and demanding loyalty while bringing in new members that appear more sinister than the loving group of people the game originally started with. You also become aware of a former love interest Arthur had, who is torn between wanting to love Arthur and wanting to leave him behind because of his lifestyle. After helping her on different tasks (which you can choose whether you want to do them) she ultimately cuts ties with him, mailing Arthur back the ring he once gave her. In this moment, Arthur realizes who he truly is, an outlaw, and while he can't change that, he can try to do the right thing. As he becomes diagnosed with tuberculosis, he realizes his time is running out, and he decides to live out the last portion of his life doing right to those he cares about.
As Dutch turns more sinister and manipulative, Arthur accepts that he will remain part of the gang, but only to ensure the safety of the other members. After a messy train robbery, he rushes back to camp, ensuring the members who are still alive can escape. He confronts Dutch and his new group of guns for hire, but they're interrupted by a swarm of Pinkertons who are there to wipe them out. Arthur selflessly puts himself in danger to save others, and finally, after escorting John Marston away from danger, breathes his last breath on the side of a mountain overlooking the rest of the world. While it would be hard to imagine the old Arthur Morgan doing such a thing, the player can look back at small interactions of love and compassion he had, realizing that he had it in him since the beginning.
Sketches
I'm currently on the road traveling, and don't have my sketchbook with me, but I worked with what I had. Also, I'm not an artist, so forgive my sad attempts.
In order for a player to truly respect the character they're playing as, it must be developed in three different ways: physically, sociologically, and psychologically. A character's physical aspect should mirror their role in the game. Playing as a stocky young boy in a Call of Duty game would be pretty unconvincing. The sociological aspect reflects both a character's background and the environment they currently reside in, and how it affects them, as it helps one to understand their motives and how these outside forces impact their means to achieve them. Finally, the player should have a good understanding of what's going on inside their character's mind. If they witnessed a murder would the character feel sickened or cold-hearted towards what they just saw? This depends on who they are and how they think.
Arthur Morgan
A cowboy in the 1800s and main character in Red Dead Redemption 2, Arthur Morgan is tied to a ragtag gang compiled of men, women, and a child, and they often refer to themselves as a "family." Throughout the story, Arthur undergoes a series of changes as the environment around him starts to alter in a way he's never experienced. In this game, Rockstar Studios does an exceptional job of making Arthur a well-developed character in all three of these aspects.
BIG SPOILER WARNING
Physical
Arthur Morgan seems to be designed around fitting that stereotypical cowboy type. This makes a lot of sense, especially at the beginning, as his character initially talks and acts like a spaghetti western character. While he's on the wrong side of the law, he isn't a dislikable character, and his features make him come across as hard-focused, determined, but also not evil. Instead, he has a certain charm about him.
Sociological
The world of Red Dead Redemption is a cold, harsh one, and that becomes apparent even at the beginning of the game. Morgan's background is revealed to the player slowly throughout the first few acts, and the first background the player gets is what happened only a few days before. Him and his gang are running from the law after a job in the city Blackwater goes south. The gang is scattered with some members dead and others missing. The violent, but successful attempt to rescue one of the members John Marston, who is being tortured at a camp nearby, sets the scene for how the game is going to be, but also provides a glimpse of the ugly past Morgan has experienced. As the game progresses, Morgan explores environments that are carefully created, and each city has a specific "mood" to it that affects both Morgan and the rest of the gang throughout the game.
Psychological
One of the unique aspects of Red Dead Redemption 2 is the characteristic that your actions will affect interactions Morgan has with other characters as well as the final outcome of the game. While this is a selling point for many games, these "actions" really only tie to a couple decisions the player has to make at certain pivotal moments. In Red Dead, almost everything you do has a positive or negative affect. If you ride around robbing and killing people, Arthur will turn more harsh towards his comrades and other characters he interacts with. However, if you take injured travelers to doctors, stop robberies from happening, or assist people in many different odd favors, he will become more open and kind to others. An odd experience that happened to me is that while I mostly helped people, I'd rob an occasional passerby, killing them if they reached for their weapon. Later one, I had a conversation with one of the female gang members where Arthur sat down and confessed that he was doing bad things sometimes and he didn't know why. It seemed like he wanted to be good, but felt like he didn't have control of many of the events taking place, so he took it out on random bystanders. This is just one of many examples of how each action you take has certain consequences and changes the way Arthur thinks, all the while keeping his character convincing.
From this point on, I'll be talking about the story from the good perspective, which is how I played through the game.
Growth and Development
At the beginning of the story it becomes clear that Arthur did what he was told and remained a loyal member to the group, staying more neutral than good or bad. However, as the game progresses, the gang's leader and pivotal character Dutch begins to turn more twisted, yelling at group members and demanding loyalty while bringing in new members that appear more sinister than the loving group of people the game originally started with. You also become aware of a former love interest Arthur had, who is torn between wanting to love Arthur and wanting to leave him behind because of his lifestyle. After helping her on different tasks (which you can choose whether you want to do them) she ultimately cuts ties with him, mailing Arthur back the ring he once gave her. In this moment, Arthur realizes who he truly is, an outlaw, and while he can't change that, he can try to do the right thing. As he becomes diagnosed with tuberculosis, he realizes his time is running out, and he decides to live out the last portion of his life doing right to those he cares about.
As Dutch turns more sinister and manipulative, Arthur accepts that he will remain part of the gang, but only to ensure the safety of the other members. After a messy train robbery, he rushes back to camp, ensuring the members who are still alive can escape. He confronts Dutch and his new group of guns for hire, but they're interrupted by a swarm of Pinkertons who are there to wipe them out. Arthur selflessly puts himself in danger to save others, and finally, after escorting John Marston away from danger, breathes his last breath on the side of a mountain overlooking the rest of the world. While it would be hard to imagine the old Arthur Morgan doing such a thing, the player can look back at small interactions of love and compassion he had, realizing that he had it in him since the beginning.
Sketches
I'm currently on the road traveling, and don't have my sketchbook with me, but I worked with what I had. Also, I'm not an artist, so forgive my sad attempts.
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