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Red Dead Redemption 2 Teaches You That Money-Lending Is Worse Than Mass Murder
In Red Dead Redemption 2, your gang's leader forces you to do some questionable things in the name of money ... much like the game's developers, come to think of it. Player character Arthur Morgan commits murder, various types of robbery, and most heinous of all ... money-lending?
One of your comrades loans money to people, then gets Arthur to rough them up and/or rob their house when they default. Every person tells a sad sob story, and this slowly erodes Arthur's spirit. After seeing the misery he's causing, Arthur becomes so disillusioned that he kicks the money lender out of the camp. Character growth!
This happens regardless of whether you play as a bad cowboy (you commit crimes willingly) or a good cowboy (you commit the exact same crimes, but like, slightly complain about it). Even the most immoral version of Arthur will throw the money lender out of the camp. The message is obvious: Predatory loans are so bad that even a total psychopath knows it. It's a good lesson ... rendered totally worthless by the fact that your character is still surrounded by other thieves, killers, and a dude who likes to castrate people.
You and your buddies kill hundreds of people in this game, but there's no scene about their widows grieving by their graves. You never see the passengers on the trains you robbed explain they're having difficulty sleeping because of the trauma. The farmers whose sheep you rustled don't get a monologue about how you've ruined their livelihood. But the folks who borrowed money and couldn't pay it back? That's where the game draws the line.
As a final twist, Arthur ends up dying of tuberculosis ... which he contracted through a money-lending mission. Remember, kids, you can kill as many people and steal as many sheep as you want, but stay the hell away from investment banking.
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Breath Of The Wild Really Wants You To Read Women's Diaries
The Legend Of Zelda: Breath Of The Wild sticks to the usual list of child-friendly morals: good prevails over evil, the most insignificant person can be a hero, and fish people really want to fuck you. Oh yeah, and you should read as many women's diaries as you can, even if they specifically tell you not to.
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