[230919]How Red Dead Redemption 2's Vetter's Echo Mimics Real History

https://gamerant.com/red-dead-redemption-2-vetters-echo-similar-real-history-homage/
Red Dead Redemption 2 is filled with nods to real history, and Vetter's Echo is one of the lesser known historical locations to grace the title.

As the axiom goes, art imitates life, and it is commonplace for developers to include remixed renditions of real-world events in their games. Franchises sometimes put unique spins on such incidents since sticking to the source material might not make for optimal storytelling, but the cultural importance of representing an event supersedes total accuracy. AAA games like Assassin's Creed 3 have enjoyed great success with their depictions of historical happenings, and Red Dead Redemption 2 employed a more nuanced approach to achieve similar results. With several seemingly innocuous cutscenes and missions littered across the map, not many gamers know the lore behind some of the Rockstar brainchild's features, and the Vetter's Echo cabin is one of such places in the title with real history.

Red Dead Redemption 2 is home to some of the most comprehensive lore on display in modern-day RPGs, and gamers are still uncovering secrets in every nook and cranny in the title years after its release. Since most sub-plots in the game don't have an official explanation, many theories have been proffered to decipher unclear storylines like the famous Mystery Tree Faces. However, other plot lines can be straightforward to follow, and a few are based on obscure North American history so that players can learn and play simultaneously. Rockstar's depiction of the late 19th-century tale of Vetter's Echo displays the developer's savvy historical knowledge, paying homage to a largely forgotten piece of the past.

Vetter's Echo is a Rendition of a Real-Life Event


Jumpscares are a more favored feature in horror games like Silent Hill, but the odd heart-jolting action is always welcome in regular-themed titles, and entering the Vetter's Echo shack without prior knowledge of what awaits inside is a rude shock. Located in the Big Valley region of the West Elizabeth territory, gamers will note that the building's back door has been destroyed and ripped off its hinges, although there is no clue in the surrounding area of what forces would be responsible for the destruction. The sight might put more discerning players on edge, but during most first-time playthroughs gamers are blissfully unaware and unprepared for the danger lurking.

Once players enter the cabin, they are greeted by a terrifyingly large grizzly bear who doesn't appreciate the company, launching into a ferocious attack intended to catch Arthur Morgan off-guard. After successfully fighting off the creature, surveying the room reveals a chaotic scene with an upturned easel and messy desk. There is also a corpse lying face down at the edge of the bed, an unfortunate victim of the bear attack, although there is no detail of his identity in the shelter. That corpse belongs to Phillip Henry Vetter, who met his demise at the hands of a grizzly bear on Wyoming's Greybull River in 1892.

A market hunter by trade, Vetter wrote a note to a friend stating his intention to go after a bear in the area. However, when the friend came across the cabin to weather a brewing storm, he found the door open and Vetter's body inside, with messages written on a newspaper's edge in his own blood detailing the aftermath of his battle with the grizzly. His rifle lay close to the river with two spent casings where the attack took place, and Red Dead Redemption 2 depicted this in the form of a bloodstained tent with a lockbox containing Rifle Cartridges, Predator Bait, and the Special Miracle Tonic Pamphlet.

Vetter's newspaper scramblings were also represented in Red Dead Redemption 2, as the scattered desk contained the Dear Annabella and A Day's Walk poems. Veering off-script from the source material, Rockstar included gifts in the cabin; a pipe for Dutch, a pocket watch for Lenny, and Cigarette Cards for the Black Widow Spider. The scene is a well-done tribute to Phillip Vetter, a name that isn't well-known in American history, and Red Dead Redemption's commitment to forgotten tales is quite commendable.

Red Dead Redemption 2 is currently available on PC, PS4, and Xbox One.

机翻：
《荒野大镖客：救赎 2》充满了对真实历史的致敬，而维特回声则是为该游戏增光添彩的鲜为人知的历史地点之一。

俗话说，艺术模仿生活，开发者在游戏中加入现实世界事件的混音表演是很常见的。 特许经营权有时会对此类事件进行独特的诠释，因为坚持原始材料可能无法实现最佳的故事讲述，但代表事件的文化重要性取代了总体准确性。 《刺客信条 3》等 AAA 游戏凭借对历史事件的描述而取得了巨大成功，而《荒野大镖客：救赎 2》则采用了更加细致入微的方法来取得类似的结果。 地图上散布着一些看似无害的过场动画和任务，没有多少玩家知道 Rockstar 的一些创意功能背后的传说，而维特的 Echo 小屋就是游戏中具有真实历史的地方之一。

《荒野大镖客：救赎 2》拥有现代角色扮演游戏中最全面的故事背景，在游戏发行多年后，玩家们仍在揭开游戏中每一个角落的秘密。 由于游戏中的大多数支线情节都没有官方解释，因此人们提出了许多理论来解释不清楚的故事情节，例如著名的神秘树脸。 然而，其他情节可能很容易理解，其中一些是基于晦涩的北美历史，以便玩家可以同时学习和玩耍。 Rockstar 对 19 世纪末《Vetter's Echo》故事的描绘展现了开发者渊博的历史知识，向一段基本上被遗忘的过去致敬。

维特的回声是现实生活事件的再现


在《寂静岭》这样的恐怖游戏中，跳跃惊吓是更受青睐的功能，但在常规主题游戏中，奇怪的惊心动魄的动作总是受欢迎的，在事先不知道里面等待着什么的情况下进入维特的回声小屋是一种粗鲁的震惊。 该建筑位于西伊丽莎白领地的大山谷地区，玩家会注意到该建筑的后门已被摧毁，铰链也被扯下，但周边地区没有任何线索表明是什么力量对破坏负责。 这种景象可能会让更多有洞察力的玩家感到紧张，但在大多数第一次玩游戏时，玩家对潜伏的危险没有意识到和准备不足。

玩家一进入小屋，就会受到一头大得可怕的灰熊的欢迎，它不喜欢有人陪伴，并发起了猛烈的攻击，意图让亚瑟·摩根措手不及。 成功击退该生物后，环视房间，发现混乱的场景，画架翻转，桌子凌乱。 床边还躺着一具尸体，是熊袭击的不幸受害者，不过庇护所里没有详细说明他的身份。 这具尸体属于菲利普·亨利·维特 (Phillip Henry Vetter)，他于 1892 年在怀俄明州格雷布尔河 (Greybull River) 死于一头灰熊之手。

维特是一名市场猎人，他给朋友写了一张便条，表示他打算在该地区追捕一只熊。 然而，当这位朋友穿过小屋去抵御一场正在酝酿的风暴时，他发现门开着，维特的尸体在里面，报纸的边缘用他自己的血写着信息，详细描述了他与灰熊战斗的后果。 他的步枪躺在河边，两枚弹壳已用完，《荒野大镖客：救赎 2》以一个血迹斑斑的帐篷的形式描绘了这一点，帐篷里有一个锁箱，里面装有步枪弹药、捕食者诱饵和特殊奇迹补品小册子。

维特乱翻报纸的行为也出现在《荒野大镖客：救赎 2》中，散乱的桌子上放着《亲爱的安娜贝拉》和《一日漫步》的诗篇。 Rockstar 偏离了原始材料的剧本，在机舱内添加了礼物； 荷兰人的烟斗，莱尼的怀表，黑寡妇蜘蛛的香烟卡。 这个场景是对菲利普·维特（Phillip Vetter）的精心致敬，这个名字在美国历史上并不出名，而《荒野大镖客：救赎》对被遗忘的故事的承诺是相当值得称赞的。

Red Dead Redemption 2 目前可在 PC、PS4 和 Xbox One 上玩。