The Most Bizarre Glitches In Red Dead Redemption 2
Rockstar's 2018 release of Red Dead Redemption 2 gave fans a lot to admire. Between the incredible graphics and in-depth storylines, the game delivered on almost every expectation it set. The tone of RDR2 tends to favor the more serious side of things, which makes it all the more hilarious and surprising when a glitch in the game turns a conversation into a lesson on defying the laws of physics. The more the characters continue on with their normal scripting while these glitches are taking place, the funnier they get.
Any new game is bound to come with its share of bugs and issues that need to be ironed out over time. Luckily for us, Red Dead Redemption 2 is no exception to that rule. But some of the glitches that have been found aren't just your common kink in the system. They're truly bizarre issues that can often almost seem intentional, like an Easter egg to lighten the mood a bit for players who come across them. With anything from people raining down from the sky to getting into an entire map that should be off limits, here are some of the most bizarre glitches in Red Dead Redemption 2.
Everyone needs a vacation sometimes
Many glitches found in games are things the player simply observes without being able to interact with in any way. However, sometimes the player can manipulate them in order to get ahead or even gain access to areas that would otherwise be blocked. When utilized in a game like Fortnite, you're likely to get banned for your troubles, but in Red Dead Redemption 2, you're rewarded with a vacation in a tropical paradise.
Players have found that you're actually able to get in your canoe and get under the entire map. This is all well and good, but it's what you can find by paddling under the map that makes it worth all of the effort. If players follow the path laid out in Basement Gamer Bros' tutorial, they'll find themselves in Guarma in no time at all. Well, it actually will take quite some time, as the amount of paddling required to get to this tropical paradise is so substantial that you're likely to make your thumbs fall off. But all of your hard work and clever manipulation of game glitches will result in a much-needed rest on a sunny island.
It's raining men!
A good gamer always checks their corners for possible threats. But in Red Dead Redemption 2, players need to keep an eye on the sky as well: NPCs seem to be falling out of the sky without warning. This may be because they're accidentally spawning in the sky instead of on the ground or some bizarre springboard glitch. The constant barrage of falling humans and animals is a bit unnerving to say the least. Of course, it's also usually hilarious, as it seems to happen at the most inopportune times.
Surprisingly, it's not just NPCs that are raining down from the heavens. In Red Dead Redemption 2's online mode, many people are experiencing this same glitch in a unique way. When piling into a vehicle that can hold multiple players, a sort of launch pad effect seems to happen, shooting the entire vehicle and its contents into the air. This sounds like fun until it leaves you to fend for yourself as you plummet towards the earth. While this glitch may be unwelcome in online mode when you have a common goal to accomplish, it's downright hilarious during the more serious single-player missions throughout the campaign.
John Marston's disappearing act
Not all glitches are fun; some of them have affected gameplay. Horses and people falling from the sky sporadically may take you out of the atmosphere of the game, but they don't necessarily change the story itself or prevent you from continuing on your quest. But one specific glitch in Chapter 2 of the single-player mode is doing just that. Not only is it removing key characters, but it's completely removing many side quests they would have provided.
At the beginning of Chapter 2, the mission entitled "Polite Society, Valentine Style" has a bug that's preventing gamers from getting the entire story. If you have to restart the mission from a checkpoint, you'll find a key aspect of the storyline missing on your second attempt. John Marston (our prickly protagonist from the first game), Abigail, and Sadie seem to disappear completely. This prevents players from completing side quests that, ultimately, are what inspire the plot of the first Red Dead Redemption. Not only do these characters disappear in Chapter 2, but they're absent until you get to Chapter 4. This has caused players to miss out on large portions of their plots. So far, the only way to avoid this glitch is to complete the mission without starting over from a checkpoint. Because Rockstar is aware of this problem, hopefully a patch will be created soon to fix it.
Through the invisible wall and into Mexico
Just like the ability to canoe yourself under the map to get to Guarma, there's another glitch allowing players to explore an entire area of unused and fully-realized space. Unlike the Guarma glitch, this one is a bit easier for Arthur to access.
In the Sea of Coronado, you must cross the river and find a certain ravine while riding your horse. While staying mounted, you must run towards the point of the ravine, continuing to jump and push forward, even though it seems as if you're simply going to run into the invisible wall. Eventually, your character will be able to slip through the invisible wall and access this hidden area.
Unfortunately, your trusty steed won't be able to make it through with you. This means you'll either have a lot of running ahead of you, or you'll need to use a cheat code to spawn a horse. Once into the Mexico map, you'll find a lot of desert and the El Presidio prison. It stands completely empty, looking like an eerie ghost town. Even though some of the textures aren't fully rendered, it's worth the trip just to be able to explore this location.
Taxidermy and limbo all in one house
The Mutant House, or Manmade Mutant House as some players call it, is an eerie location in Red Dead Redemption 2. Inside, you can find an odd room in the top floor, filled with a bizarre and slightly ominous-looking collection of tools. It's become famous for the large collection of animal parts found within the walls. What appears to be a boar, ram, bird, and possibly bear have all been sewn together and stuffed to create a horrific mutant that would scare even the bravest of cowboys. But it turns out, this creature isn't even the most bizarre thing in the house.
If you accidentally fall through the door on the second floor, you'll find yourself in an odd state of limbo. From the third-person perspective, it will appear as if players are floating in an endless sky blue expanse with no map around them. But when switching over into first-person, suddenly the world is visible again, if slightly broken. While you will be able to see the area surrounding the house, the mutant room, and the exterior structure, the inside will be completely empty. Players can walk around inside and even hear the sound of their boots on wooden floors, but no floors or walls are visible. This state of limbo just might be scarier than the monster in the upstairs room.
Physics means nothing in the wild west
Physics seems to be a big problem for the inhabitants of Red Dead Redemption 2. Whether people are falling from the sky, ragdolling off of horses, or simply spinning in place, these hilarious glitches aren't in short supply. There seems to be one camp in particular that's causing gamers a lot of trouble where gravity is concerned. Though it's not exactly clear what causes it, some have found that the glitch occurs after upgrading Dutch's tent. Or perhaps the muddy terrain just proves too much for some people.
When entering the camp, players will find their character, and other NPCs around them, slowly sliding sideways as they walk. Some will even become completely parallel to the ground. But the odd happenings in this camp don't stop at mere levitation. While levitating off of the ground, or sometimes stuck horizontally through the ground, characters will begin spinning around in quick, erratic motions. The best part is that as these characters are spinning like they just entered a dance party, they're continuing on with their normal conversations. That's dedication to sticking to your script.
Don't bring a cutscene to a gunfight
Cinematic cutscenes are one of the driving factors behind the tone of Red Dead Redemption 2. These scripted moments deliver backstory, develop characters, and show off the amazing graphics in Rockstar's arsenal. While most of these cutscenes move the story along in some way, one glitch many players have encountered is totally killing the mood. It's effectively interrupting it with an extremely loud gunfight.
In the cutscene where Arthur Morgan is being introduced to Chief Rains Fall, many have noticed that the moment isn't quite as calm as it probably should be. When this glitch occurs, the characters will continue talking in their even and level voices as if nothing strange is happening around them. Meanwhile, in the background, a handful of NPCs are having a full-blown shootout. Bullets are flying through the air and even streak past our protagonist's face while he talks to Rains Fall. The sides of the buildings are littered with bullet holes and pieces of mortar explode all around them. The scene itself is actually cinematic, but for all the wrong reasons. At least this makes it clear that Arthur can stay calm under pressure.
Levitating corpses galore
It's already been firmly established that the glitches found in Red Dead Redemption 2 like putting NPCs anywhere but on the ground. This next one is no exception. While riding his horse, one player found a man crouching down beside a wagon. This in and of itself wouldn't be too terribly out of place, but beside him is a corpse lying on his back, levitating a few feet off of the ground. Without any other context, it looks like this corpse is supposed to be inside of the wagon. But why the first man is crouching down beside him is still a mystery.
In this bizarre encounter, it seems that the only way to trigger the crouching man to stand is by threatening him with a gun. This will then spur him into action to draw his own weapon. Once you've killed the man, the corpse seems to forget how to levitate and joins the crouching man on the ground. It's entirely possible that the corpse simply wanted some company and was waiting for his companion to be killed. You're a hero.
Rooftop-dwelling horses
NPCs apparently show up in various places that they shouldn't throughout Red Dead Redemption 2. But with these glitches, few have offered any sort of advantage for the NPCs in question. But one glitch has NPCs and their horses spawning on top of a covered bridge. And while this may not seem like an advantage, just think about the amazing hiding spot this would be as they wait for you to approach and get the drop on you.
Unfortunately for them, if you manage to spot them before they spot you, they're incredibly easy to pick off one by one. Because they're not supposed to be there in the first place, when you hit these NPCs, there are a few different things that may happen. Some of them will slide from the roof of the covered bridge while others will flop into the water. But the most amusing outcome is when an NPC shoots off his horse like a bullet from a gun, never to be seen again. Whatever happens, one thing always remains the same: their poor horses panic and have absolutely no idea how to get down from the rooftop. At least there's a river below them, and if worst comes to worst, horses know how to swim.
Spontaneous sinkholes
Water is notoriously difficult to animate in games. Getting the textures, physics, and movements down is as hard as animating long hair. As amazing as the graphics and development of Red Dead Redemption 2 are, even they aren't immune to the difficulties of water animation.
Like the various physics-defying stunts NPCs perform all over the map, large bodies of water have joined in on the fun. Rivers sometimes abandon the constraints of gravity and do whatever they want. One area in particular can develop spontaneous sinkholes that create whirlpools. The water disappears into the ground texture without a trace. Other times, it almost looks as if your character is parting the sea just by walking towards it as a pathway magically appears before you. The best part is that your character can start swimming when there's no visible water around.
Killer carriage
Something about the gravity in Red Dead Redemption 2 just doesn't work the way it's supposed to. Or maybe Rockstar is just particularly keen on showing off their superb ragdoll mechanics. Either way, most glitches that have been found in game are somehow related to characters, animals, and objects behaving in ways that don't line up with staying down.
In this particular glitch, it's not just humans or animals defying all logic. Now wagons have joined in on the fun. As this man steers his carriage, things take a bizarre turn; the wagon sits up where it's attached to the horse, causing the driver to look straight up into the sky. Things don't look all that comfortable for the horse either. And finally, after a few moments of this bizarre ride, both the horse and the driver hit an invisible mine as they're launched up into the air a few feet. Both of them crash down to the ground in what can only be a painful landing. Of course, the horse was able to get up and walk away from the freak accident, no problem. The man who was in control of the carriage, however? He wasn't quite so lucky.
This glitch is awkward for everyone involved
Some of the glitches found in Red Dead Redemption 2 can be downright humiliating for you or the other characters around you. One such glitch, which has been found in numerous places throughout the game, places the body of an NPC right through your character's skull. This seems to happen the most when carrying a limp body over your shoulder, though it has also been seen when exiting a carriage. The exact circumstances needed to replicate it aren't clear yet.
When it happens, players have seen any different number of NPC bodies stuck straight through Arthur's skull. The NPC sits in a sort of V-shape with their legs sticking up and their back straight, hands in the air like they're on a roller-coaster. They have a perfect seat for the show, resting right in the middle of Arthur Morgan's brain. Even when these glitches manage to take you out of the flow of the game, it is admittedly entertaining to see our dignified protagonist with an extra passenger.
And just like many of the other glitches found in game, the best part about it is the fact that all of the characters in the scenes, including your own, will continue on in the script like nothing strange is happening. The show must go on.