A Red Dead Redemption 2 fan recently created a graphic that merges its map with that of its predecessor, Red Dead Redemption. Both series installments are some of developer Rockstar Games' most detailed and expansive games to date, making the games' open world as much a part of the gameplay as their stories or mechanics.
The events in Red Dead Redemption and Red Dead Redemption 2 occur nearly 12 years apart, in 1911 and 1899 respectively. Unlike their different timelines, however, both games' maps slightly overlap. Red Dead Redemption's world stretches across western U.S. states New Austin and West Elizabeth, as well as a portion of Mexico called Nuevo Paraíso. RDR2's setting is situated a bit east of its series counterpart, encompassing only New Austin and West Elizabeth in addition to three new fictional U.S. states. That being said, RDR2 players can only explore these two Red Dead Redemption territories in the epilogue.
Reddit user TokerSmurf recently highlighted the two games' connected geographies by consolidating their maps into one image. The user, who said they combined the maps out of sheer boredom, commented that the final product showed "how much more" there is in Red Dead Redemption 2 when compared to the series' first installment. With the two maps layered over each other, one can see that RDR2's boundaries enclose more than twice the area of its predecessor's land, only leaving out Red Dead Redemption's settlements in Mexico.
The apparent exclusion of Mexico motivated other Reddit users to detail their hopes that Red Dead Redemption's Mexican territory would be added in a future Red Dead Redemption 2 update. There does exist an exploitable glitch that opens Mexico to RDR2 players who finished the game's main story. The glitch doesn't give way to the same Mexico found in Red Dead Redemption or new missions - and if players venture too far into the game's uncharted territory, they will fall into a void and die. Even so, TokerSmurf remarked on the glitch, stating that "There is a lot more there than would be required just to make it look good from the north side of the river." This indicates that it's possible the game's developers might have originally intended to incorporate Mexico into the gameplay.
The combined map and Red Dead Redemption 2's absence of Mexico suggest Rockstar still has some wiggle room when approaching the confines of RDR2's open world or any future Red Dead Redemption games. If anything, there is a lot more untapped territory in Mexico, south of what players in even Red Dead Redemption can already traverse. Until there are any updates from Rockstar, though, glitches that unintentionally expand the games' maps will have to suffice for now.
Red Dead Redemption 2 is available on PlayStation 4, Xbox One and PC.
Source: TokerSmurf/Reddit