So, it’s no surprise that Rockstar’s formal official announcement of Red Dead Redemption 2 earlier this week has sent the Hype Train roaring out of its station. As a natural consequence, fan speculation has been running wild concerning the identities of the seven bandits pictured in the title artwork.

There are Red Dead Redemption spoilers ahead. Proceed at your own risk!

It turns out that the mystery has been solved by Reddit user BlueSaber80, who posted an image yesterday which evidently identifies John Marston, Bill Williamson, and Dutch Van der Linde - all members of the same gang of outlaws prior to the events of Red Dead Redemption, and all dead by the end of the game. Seeing as Red Dead Redemption 2 appears to feature these characters alive and together, the only logical conclusion is that we will see a prequel next year, not a sequel.

A keen observer might notice that John Marston is the only person to face away from the pack. This is a nice symbolic touch from Rockstar which represents Marston’s eventual moral dilemmas and separation from Dutch van der Linde’s gang.

Are you aboard the Red Dead Hype Train? Do you even think this guess is true? Leave a comment below to let us know!