Browse every Red Dead Redemption 2 costume and cosplay guide on Costume Wall. Released by Rockstar Games in 2018, the game follows Arthur Morgan and the Van der Linde gang across a fictionalised American frontier in 1899 — and its clothing is period-accurate enough to build a real outfit from. Whether you are after an RDR2 Halloween costume, a convention-grade cosplay build, or quick western outfit ideas for a party, every guide below breaks the look down into the pieces you can actually buy: hats, dusters, gun belts and boots. Start with Arthur Morgan or John Marston, then work through the rest of the gang — and pair your outfit with our cowboy hat and cowboy boots guides.
Arthur is the gang’s most dependable gun and the character most people picture when they think of Red Dead Redemption 2. His outfit is deliberately plain and hard-wearing: a light blue western shirt, brown canvas pants, black suspenders, a dark cowboy hat and brown cowboy boots — plus an empty western holster belt and a toy pistol if you want the silhouette to read instantly. Keep everything faded and slightly worn; Arthur never looks like he just bought his clothes.
John’s look is working cowboy with a layer of grit: a black square cowboy hat, a brown coat over a brown vest and dark pants, black boots and leather gloves. The accessories make it recognisable — a shotgun shell belt across the chest, a gun holster on the hip and a toy rifle. Add a wound kit or a little fake bandage if you are going for the later, harder version of the character, and keep the leather scuffed rather than polished — this is an outfit that has been slept in and ridden hard.
RDR2 cosplay is a layering game. Start with the shirt and trousers as your base, then build outward — vest, coat or poncho, gun belt, hat — and finish with the details that sell the era: leather, a neckerchief or bandana, and boots with a bit of heel. Carry a toy or foam revolver rather than anything real, check your venue’s prop rules before you travel, and don’t over-clean anything; a western outfit should look like it has been slept in. Our vest and western guides cover the individual pieces, and all costume titles is the full index of franchises.
Everything people ask before building a Red Dead Redemption 2 costume — what Arthur Morgan actually wears, how to make an outlaw outfit read as period-accurate rather than generic, what it costs, and how to do it for Halloween without spending a fortune.
Arthur’s default outfit is deliberately workmanlike: a light blue western shirt, brown canvas pants, black suspenders, a dark cowboy hat and brown cowboy boots, with an empty western holster belt and a black scarf. Change the hat and shirt colours and you have most of his other outfits — the point is that nothing fits too well and everything is faded.
Arthur Morgan, John Marston and Sadie Adler are the simplest, because they are built from clothes you can find in any western-wear shop or online: a shirt, trousers, a hat, boots and a belt. What makes them recognisable is the hat shape and the gun belt, not the exact brand of shirt.
Arthur Morgan and John Marston are the two most recognisable, and both work as a costume for Halloween parties as well as conventions — a shirt, hat, vest, boots and a toy revolver is all it takes. If you want something more distinctive, Micah Bell’s black tailcoat and ivory hat stand out in a crowd, while Sadie Adler is the strongest gunslinger option for women. Add a bandana and a little artificial dust so it reads as RDR2 rather than a generic cowboy.
Yes — it is one of the easiest big-budget games to cosplay, because the characters wear ordinary 1899 clothing rather than armour or sci-fi kit. A shirt, trousers, a vest or poncho, a wide-brim hat and boots are enough to read as the Van der Linde gang, and the details that finish it (gun belt, neckerchief, dust) are cheap. It also works as a group costume, since the gang has enough members for a whole party.
Budget roughly $80–150 if you already own boots, or $150–250 starting from nothing — these are ordinary clothes, not made-to-order pieces. The hat and the gun belt are the two items worth spending on because they carry the silhouette; shirts, trousers and neckerchiefs can be cheap. A toy revolver and an empty holster cost very little and change how the costume reads more than any single item of clothing.
Four things do it: a wide-brim hat with a flat or pinched crown, a proper gun belt, a neckerchief or bandana in a period colour, and a layer — a duster, frock coat, poncho or vest. Scuffed boots and a little artificial dust finish the job; brand-new shiny leather reads as costume rather than character.
No. The outfits are deliberately ordinary western wear, so any faded shirt, canvas trousers, wide-brim hat and boots will read correctly — what matters is the silhouette and the layering, not the brand. Change the shirt colour and you have a different gang member; change the coat and hat and you have a different character entirely.
Sadie Adler is the most popular and the most western of the women in the gang — a bib shirt, brown pants, teal bandana, holster belt and cowboy boots, with a hat and a lever-action rifle. She is the bounty-hunter version of the look, so she photographs well next to the male gang members.
Yes, and you should. Use toy or foam revolvers and lever-action rifles, and check your venue’s prop rules before you travel. A cartridge belt and an empty holster still read as an outlaw, especially in photos.
Red Dead Redemption 2 is an action-adventure game developed by Rockstar Games and released in 2018 for PlayStation 4 and Xbox One, later arriving on PC and Stadia. Set in 1899 across a fictionalised version of the American south and west, it follows Arthur Morgan, a senior member of the Van der Linde gang, as the outlaw era closes in around them. Dressing as the gang has become one of the most popular video-game cosplay projects of the last decade — largely because the outfits are made of things you can really buy: a plain shirt, a wide-brim hat, a vest, a gun belt. For more ideas, browse every video game costume title or the full costume collections.
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