Red Dead Redemption 2 has received praise for its attention to detail, and a perfect example of Rockstar Games' effort is Arthur Morgan's journal. All told, the journal can reach well over 500 pages of entries. Now, a Red Dead Redemption 2 fan has recreated this journal, including its contents, in real life.
As players move through the story and complete tasks, their progress is chronicled in Arthur's journal as a collection of sketches and notes documenting his journey. For instance, if a player tracks and hunts a legendary animal like the white moose, when they next stop to rest the journal will be filled with an entry detailing the encounter. Also, depending on choices made in-game, players will unlock different journal entries.
As a tribute to this feature, Redditor antelopunny created a real version of the journal. In order to garner a more authentic look, they bound its nearly 500 pages in a vegetable-tanned leather cover, complete with a clasp closure like in Red Dead Redemption 2. The images in the journal were sourced from a PDF put together by fellow Redditor sheilaStmaria, who spent over three months cleaning up and formatting images from the PS4 version of the game. The result is a stunning recreation that catalogs nearly the entire story of Red Dead Redemption 2 in hand-made leather bindings.
While the journal was originally for sale on antelopunny's Etsy, after objections from the PDF creator these sales have ceased. Luckily for fans wanting to get their hands on such a replica, the original PDF is available for free and could be printed and constructed in a similar manner with a bit of effort.
Regardless, the journal stands as a reminder of the meticulous effort put into Red Dead Redemption 2, which continues to gain notoriety for the minute details that make up the in-game world. The journal also offers a way for players to see what the game looks like upon full completion if they aren't interested in searching out every little detail in Red Dead Redemption 2.
While the journal represents one of the more unique real-life tributes to the game, Red Dead Redemption 2 is known for its in-game fan creations as well. Just recently, a fan managed to recreate The Penguin from Batman Returns through Red Dead Redemption 2's character customization. A Tron fan also jokingly recreated the lightcycle in-game by using an alcohol-soaked pelt and an unwitting horse.
Red Dead Redemption 2 is available now on PC, PS4, Stadia, and Xbox One.