John Marston is among the most beloved characters in Red Dead Redemption 2, though some long-time fans of the gunslinger may be shocked by the implications of a recent discovery. Referencing the first Red Dead Redemption, one player notices an interesting connection between a horse given to John for having low honor and Baylock, the horse used by the villainous Micah Bell of Red Dead Redemption 2.
John isn't the most moral character, as seen by some of his actions during Red Dead Redemption 2, though it's clear that by the time players get to the first game he's doing his best to put his gang activities behind him. Still, the prequel more or less follows the same honor system in that it alters how the player interacts with and navigates the world around them, particularly if the player commits honorable or dishonorable actions. Similarly, players likely haven't lost their intense dislike of Micah due to his immoral nature throughout the entirety of Red Dead Redemption 2.
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In Red Dead Redemption, having an honor level of "Road Agent" or lower grants some intriguing assets, one of which allows players to summon the Dark Horse, a unique variation of the Missouri Fox Trotter. Being a special breed, the horse comes with a white face, red scars and blood red eyes. Interestingly, as pointed out by Redditor JoshVoorhees86, Baylock bears a striking resemblance to the Dark Horse.
According to another Reddit user, this Easter egg is part of the more well-known trivia in the Red Dead universe, so much so that the official wiki mentions it on the Missouri Fox Trotter page. "... With his black body and white face, he is strikingly similar to the Dark Horse from Red Dead Redemption," reads the entry. "Given that the Dark Horse only appears if the player's Honor is low, it is almost certainly no coincidence that Baylock is almost identical, given Micah's immoral nature and acts of villainy."
While it may be no surprise that Marston was already mischievous as a part of the Van der Linde gang, it's interesting to see the comparison made between him and Micah. However, players can commit quite a few wild and immoral actions in the prequel that invoke the antagonist of the sequel, such as killing innocents and bribing lawmen. While none of Marston's actions go as far as to rival that of Micah's, they really do toe the line between honorable gunslinger and dishonorable outlaw.
In either case, fans of the original Red Dead Redemption are aware of how the game ends. Eventually, in spite of his efforts to start over, Marston still had to face his past actions. Even if the player's honor is as low as "Desperado," the once-great gunslinger can't bribe his way out, and instead of running he chooses to go down in honor of his family, revealing that John Marston isn't the same man he once was.
Red Dead Redemption 2 is available now on PC, PlayStation 4, Stadia, and Xbox One.
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