The Jungle Book Easter Egg That You Can Find In Red Dead Redemption 2
While rambling through the West in the expansive Red Dead Redemption 2, players might be surprised to see another familiar face out in the wilderness, one that takes them straight back to childhood. In the southeast corner of the map, right by the Kamassa River, players can find a large, swinging snake reminiscent of Kaa from The Jungle Book.
Red Dead Redemption 2 is full of Easter eggs, but Kaa stands out from other goodies throughout the game. Instead of referencing more recent pop culture events, Kaa is from The Jungle Book, which was originally published in the late 1800s. Many players might recognize Kaa from Disney's 1967 adaptation of Rudyard Kipling's work, where he sings a song about trust in an attempt to lure the young protagonist Mowgli to sleep.
In Disney's The Jungle Book film adaptation, Kaa threatens Mowgli and attempts to eat him, but Kipling's original portrayal of Kaa didn't include any evil undertones. In Kipling's novel, Kaa acted as a protector to Mowgli, offering him sound advice. The Red Dead Redemption Kaa simply hangs from a tree, a true Easter egg that does not add any additional plot to the game.
What does this easter egg do?
If Arthur Morgan shoots the gigantic snake, it sways but otherwise remains unresponsive. It's not entirely clear if the snake is truly a reference to The Jungle Book or, perhaps, another famous franchise, Anaconda. Considering the snake's location near the Kamassa River, which sounds awfully similar to the book's "Kaa-massa River," some fans are more inclined to write the snake off as an Easter egg for Disney and Kipling fans alike.
Most disappointingly, the snake doesn't do anything, but then again, Easter eggs aren't always meant to provide new gameplay opportunities or plot connections. Still, it looks pretty cool hanging and swaying from an epicly large tree.
Disney itself is known for pop culture references and collaborations, like its Kingdom Hearts franchise with Square Enix. With rumors of a Kingdom Hearts adaptation for film or television, fans might see more Jungle Book content sometime in the future. While adaptations of The Jungle Book haven't always been consistent with one another, things like Kaa's appearance in Red Dead Redemption 2 proves that audiences still love seeing some of their favorite characters pop up in other franchises.