Red Dead Online will be available to play as a standalone game on the PlayStation Store, Microsoft Store, Rockstar Games Launcher, Epic Games Store and Steam from December 1st. According to Rockstar’s official newswire, this game can be purchased at an introductory offer of $4.99 until February 15, 2021. After that date, the game will sell at its regular price of $19.99.
What do you get in Red Dead Online, you ask? You get to choose your progress through five different specialist roles – Naturalist, Moonshiner, Bounty Hunter, Trader and Collector. There is a series of story-based co-op missions, and a Showdown mode where players and teams compete in classic gunfights and objective-based competitions. There are tons of Free Roam Missions and Daily Challenges too. You can also indulge in a game of poker, for a change of pace.
In a recent interview by GamesRadar, Tarek Hamad, director of design production at Rockstar North said:
With Red Dead Online, we’re trying to deliver every aspect of what it might be like to live in frontier America in the late 1800s, so it offers a huge variety of options for players to create the experience they want within that world. By designing it in this way, there’s room for players of all kinds. Naturally enough, the classic cowboy shootout elements are extremely popular, so if a player wants to create and step into the shoes of a notorious, feared, and lawless scoundrel – on their own or running just as fearsome a posse – they can have that experience, they can be that person.
At the same time, we do see a large portion of the community enjoy some of the more solitary and calm pursuits on offer. We’ve made sure to provide just as much freedom for players who want to live a peaceful life as a hunter, or tending to their camp, or a burgeoning business owner – or even become a deadly bounty hunter that can protect the peaceful players of the world from the scoundrels. How all these different players interact really paints a picture of what it would be like to live and breathe in that era.
This is the first time where players who did not own Red Dead Redemption 2 will be able to experience its world – Rockstar Games guarantees access to all future game updates. This new standalone version of Red Dead Online will require 123 GB of storage space, and include the option to separately purchase and unlock the story mode of Red Dead Redemption 2.
The last big addition to Red Dead Online was the Naturalist update in July – this time around be prepared for an expansion for the Bounty Hunter’s role. You will get to track down new fugitives and unlock 10 more Bounty Hunter Ranks with prestigious level equipment and skills. There will also be new Legendary Bounties and a 100 Rank Outlaw Pass.
GTA Online, which recently announced the new Cayo Perico Heist, will also be going standalone in 2021 for next-gen consoles. These online live-service components have lasted in the gamer consciousness far more than their traditional single player campaigns, and it seems that Rockstar is planning to develop them further! A lower purchase barrier to entry will hopefully pull in a larger active player base to Red Dead Online, which will fulfill the community request of much-needed updates. No more dressing up like clowns, it seems.
Does this mean an end to all those rumors about a Red Dead Redemption remake? Well, we have to wait and watch!
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