The two Red Dead Redemption games are two of the finest games in the medium's past ten years. They each created a convincing Wild West environment, telling brutal, unfair tales of the outlaw lifestyle. Throughout both the original and the prequel, many established characters bite the dust. Some of these folks really deserved it, while others were innocent victims. For this list, we'll take a look at five whose passing brought tears to gamers' eyes, and ones that had us whooping with satisfaction as they got what was coming to them. If revenge is a dish best served cold, then why did it feel so sweet in these titles?
10 Sad To See Go: Molly O'Shea
It is still unclear why Molly did what she did to earn herself a hole through the chest via shotgun. If she didn't squeal to the Pinkertons, then why did she claim to do so? Perhaps it was her idea of getting back at Dutch in a drunken rage.
Seeing her slowly realize her mistake in abandoning her prior life for the love of Dutch van der Linde was tragic, and this most likely lead to her falling deeper into the drink. The gang's leader has the gift of the silver tongue, and it led people to make regrettable decisions.
9 Happy To See Go: Dutch Van Der Linde
Dutch makes the top of the list because there is still so much sadness and confusion in his character. He is irredeemable by Red Dead Redemption, but it forever remains unclear what made him snap in the first place. Was it the pressure of his fading outlaw lifestyle? Was it the head injury he sustained during the first botched Saint Denis bank robbery? Perhaps he was always evil and selfish and no one noticed until his survival instinct negatively affected them. He had to be put down, but everyone involved wished some other alternative was available.
8 Sad To See Go: Lenny Summers
Lenny was a good man who fell into some bad luck. His father was murdered and he was forced to go on the run after enacting swift vengeance. He was always a good friend to Arthur, and probably would have made the right choice if he had lived to see the gang's downfall.
What makes his demise all the sadder was how unceremonious it was. He got no last words or even time to contemplate his life. Lenny was simply gunned down on a rooftop after an ambush.
7 Happy To See Go: Bill Williamson
Red Dead Redemption starts with John Marston nearly meeting his maker at the hands of Bill Williamson. He foolishly heads to the fort where Bill is hiding out and tries to take him head on. After recovering, he goes to Mexico to do the job properly and succeeds.
He doesn't get a lot of characterization in the first game, but the prequel does a solid job of making the player hate his guts. He sides with Micah during the standoff at the end of Arthur Morgan's story, and runs away after the Pinkertons drop by. Good riddance to you, traitorous Bill Williamson.
6 Sad To See Go: Hosea Matthews
The saddest thing about the deaths of honorable people in this game is how dishonorably they were treated. Hosea was shot in the back after the Pinkertons captured him. Unarmed in the middle of a dirty street is no way for anyone to go, let alone someone players got to know so well. It also signaled the death of any sense of honor or loyalty within the gang. That moment, and the ensuing ambush, were omens foreseeing the beginning of the end. Would things have turned out so tragically is Hosea had lived?
5 Happy To See Go: Andrew Milton
The Wild West is synonymous with freedom and possibility, even if those possibilities are less than virtuous. The Pinkertons worked as the government's dirty hand in bringing that chaos to order through whatever means possible. Bank robbing is dirty business, but so is spying on labor unions and intimidating organizers, activities that were common for the Pinkertons back then. The player doesn't get to pull the trigger on Andrew Milton, but it was still so satisfying to see Abigail put a bullet through the side of his skull.
4 Sad To See Go: Arthur Morgan
Arthur Morgan's arc was unlike anything gaming had ever seen. Maybe a few characters had gone through complex changes over the course of several games in a series, but Arthur's starts and finishes in one epic title.
He's an undeniably bad person at the start of RDR2, who eventually does what he can to make things right upon learning of his fatal diagnosis. Maybe he could never fully redeem himself, but his sacrifice gave John Marston a second chance.
3 Happy To See Go: Edgar Ross
The last thing to happen in the series is Jack Marston gunning down retired Pinkerton Agent Edgar Ross in an act of vengeance. Some may argue that one doesn't deserve such violent retribution for simply doing their job, but the Pinkertons did their service through nefarious means.
Holding one's family hostage to make them do your dirty work is morally corrupt, and deserving of some good old fashion Wild West justice. Coincidentally, the two's first and last meeting were both on a riverside where one party was fishing.
2 Sad To See Go: John Marston
John Marston had finally done it, or so he thought. Everyone in his past was either in the ground or out of the picture living a different life. He had a second chance at life with a beautiful family.
The Pinkertons didn't make good on their promise, however, and mowed him down in cold blood. It was entirely unnecessary, as John had put that life behind him and was eager to settle down. Unfortunately, some people won't let others forget their past.
1 Happy To See Go: Micah Bell
While the Pinkertons are scum, at least they come off as such. Micah Bell was a traitor through and through, and a large contributing factor to the gang's downfall. The outlaw was consistently feeding Dutch lies, and exacerbating his paranoia.
Depending on one's honor by the end of Arthur's story, he can directly kill Morgan as well. Fortunately, players get to take out all their steam on him during the last mission and thoroughly pump him full of holes. Still, none of that undoes all the damage he caused.