Contrary to the Red Dead Redemption 2 song that refuses to leave my brain right now, I do not stand unshaken. In fact, I'm shaken to my very core, because I've finally finished Rockstar's Wild West action-adventure for the first time in 2025, and I'm utterly lost. The intensity of my own emotions speaks to how effectively Arthur Morgan's story took hold of my heart, and after wrapping up the epilogue, I find myself in desperate need to take some time to process. To feel my feelings. It might sound dramatic (I'm very aware this is a video game I'm talking about), but even when I feared the worst at certain points, nothing could have prepared me for how it all unfolds… and I think there's a part of me that won't ever be able to let it go completely.
While I'm absolutely starting a second playthrough to see how different my perspective is on the opening chapters, I find myself retreating to the safety of the Beecher's Hope homestead where I can live a quiet life in Rockstar's world for a little while. Here, I can retire from the life of gunslinging, train robbing, and danger in general and trade it for manual labor. From carrying bales of hay to milking a cow, I've been playing Red Dead Redemption 2 like I'm some farmhand NPC who works hard for their family, and it feels like the perfect remedy as I try to pull myself together and face Arthur's journey all over again.
