Rockstar Studios will be disappointing the fans of "Red Dead Redemption" who expect John Marston to star in the second game, as rumors that Marston would be the protagonist have been debunked.

According to an updated article by the website Crave, the central character that appeared in one of the promotional posters for "Red Dead Redemption 2" is apparently not Marston, and may very well be a new and apparently younger protagonist. That said, the possibility of Marston re-appearing in the prequel has not yet been set aside, as the poster features seven characters, and Marston could be the one on the far left. 

The main character has been confirmed to be Arthur Morgan, who forms an outlaw gang called Van der Linde, along with characters like Dutch from the first game.

Rumors began when Rockstar released an earlier version of the said poster showing only the silhouettes of the seven characters. Fans assumed that the one in the center was Marston due to the similarities in their builds.

Bill Williamson, another assumed character based on the silhouetted poster, still appears to be a correct guess, as the unique Stetson hat and grizzly beard are the character's trademarks. Fans can assume that the member of the outlaw gang will be getting an appearance in the second game despite dying in the first, as the upcoming game is a prequel.

Meanwhile, fans hoping that the prequel will be released sometime in Fall of 2017 will be disappointed as website Alphr confirmed that the aforementioned date set by Rockstar has been moved to Spring 2018. The reason for the delay hasn't been clarified by Rockstar, but rumors are that they were pursuing a cross-platform multiplayer between Xbox One and PlayStation 4 (PS4), causing the delay.

"Red Dead Redemption 2," despite being a prequel, is reported to be featuring a much bigger Wild West map than the first game. The map will expand further east compared to the one in "Red Dead Redemption" and may also feature boats as an alternative way of travel in addition to horses.

"Red Dead Redemption 2" has no exact release date yet but is planned for a Spring 2018 release on the PS4 and Xbox One consoles. There has been no word from the developers yet on a PC version.