Words by: Catherine Lewis
It's undeniable that Red Dead Redemption 2's protagonist Arthur Morgan has cemented himself as a gaming icon. While he may not be as widely recognisable as the likes of Mario or Master Chief, most gamers would still be able to spot the guy from a mile away with his signature gambler hat, brown leather jacket, and...BMX bike? Wait, what?
Back in July at the 2021 Game Developers Conference, Rockstar's lead AI and gameplay programmer, Tobias Kleanthous, gave a talk about the making of Red Dead Redemption 2's horses, and how they were made to be so believable. Definitely an interesting talk if virtual horses are a passion point of yours. Anyway, a PDF file of the presentation slides became available last week, and fans spotted something rather interesting hidden amongst the many horse filled pages - what appears to be a beta version of Arthur Morgan.
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Before you see a new (old?) take on Arthur Morgan, why not kick back and enjoy some other Red Dead Redemption 2 characters doing some daft things?
It was Twitter user videotech_ who first spotted the mysterious man: "No idea if that's an early version of Arthur considering the character is wearing his outfit. I love how he's riding a bike though haha." Assuming it is Mr Morgan himself, he looks considerably more rugged, and also noticeably older in this earlier concept. Some fans have also pointed out the similarity to Uncle and Bill Williamson, but it seems most likely to be Arthur, since their outfits match up.
As for his preferred mode of transport, there's a likely reason for that too, as explained by Twitter user NotDoctorMike: "The game was probs still using GTA V's version of RAGE at the time this pic was taken, hence him riding the BMX and the GTA V styled graphics." RAGE is the proprietary engine that was used to develop RDR2, and GTA V before it, so it makes perfect sense that early in development, graphics and assets were likely plucked straight from the streets of Los Santos.
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I'm sure I'm not the only one who'd love to see more early development shots of the game with this in mind, and see what other GTA V assets might have been hiding in the Wild Western world. Horses are cool, but you can't do a bunny hop on one.
Featured Image Credit: RockstarTopics: Red Dead Redemption 2, News, Rockstar