It’s high noon. I am squaring up to another player, both of us not that bothered about voice chat enough to get over the clear awkwardness of our meeting. I teabag thin air, he teabags thin air. He spits in my direction, I curse his smell. And then the first Red Dead Online lassoing tournament begins in earnest, me landing the killer “blow” before dragging him across an open field. We have a friendly knife fight to finish the encounter off.
This has been the highlight of my time with Red Dead Online so far, that rare moment when you meet another player in a Rockstar game and don’t immediately try to kill each other. The rest of my encounters have been more straightforward, me trying to engage with people and them then riding away (possibly wisely) or trying to throw me off my horse.
The reason why I’ve been trying to engage with as many players as I can? Well, Red Dead Online is in its beta stages, meaning that it it isn’t nearly fully-formed yet and, truthfully, a little lacking — there isn’t even poker yet. The features and content it does have are held back by some of the quirks of the single-player carrying over or the reward just not being worth it. Do I want to ride halfway across the map with a slow starter horse for a mission that’s going to give me just a couple of dollars or do I want to have impromptu deathmatches with anyone who has an open mic because death is what they deserve?
Red Dead Online does a good job of pulling you in from the off, however. The opening will be familiar to anyone who’s played GTA Online: you create your very own criminal and then off you go. There’s something about a widow who enlists you to get her justice and to clear your name, but I’m still on a comedown from Dutch to care enough about another possibly demented gang leader. It’s also difficult to become invested when your character is, again, a mute who just gets talked at.
It’s clear that the long-term fun in Red Dead Online will come from playing with your friends and building up your posse. I’ve not dabbled much in it yet, though the difference between a persistent and temporary posse has me a little concerned when the former costs in-game money to form and the dollars don’t exactly flow your way. Still, if it’s silly nonsense you want, a temporary posse will do the job: I ganged up with some randoms and then gallivanted around before completing a couple of easy missions without much fuss.
The missions in question are varied and even feature a cameo from the Red Dead Redemption 2 single-player, which I won’t spoil here. You can take part in main story missions or those given to you by Strangers, who are dotted far and wide across the map. There’s a lot to dabble in, though the rewards seem seriously off — the most I’ve earned from about ten missions so far is about $15. One mission ends with you being handed a wad of notes. The actual reward? $3. Judging from what I’ve played, the worthwhile money will come from selling animals and jewellery.
You can also take part in matches against other players by either riding out to specific markers for specific matches or by joining random playlists while in the menu that’s brought up by pressing left on the d-pad. To Red Dead Online’s credit, these are supremely fun and run the gamut from traditional deathmatches to Conquest-esque melees and much more. There are even public events that pit players against each other, which may be the most fun I’ve had so far.
That being said, it’s unusual to see some of the single-player mechanics make their way into multiplayer: it’s not clear how the Honor system will change things owing to the fact that the world doesn’t feel quite as alive and reactive as in the main game, so your actions don’t seem to carry nearly as much weight. It also looks like it will be nigh on impossible to be virtuous when your honor can plummet just from defending yourself against other players. The cores are also included here, and while I appreciated that level of micro-management while role-playing in the single-player, it just seem like negligible busywork in Red Dead Online.
I also have to question the long-term monetisation of Red Dead Online, though you are currently unable to buy microtransactions at this point in the beta. You earn a tiny fraction of gold for completing missions, which can then be used to buy special items from the handy catalogue which can be accessed at any time. I do wonder how Red Dead Online will shape up when it’s ready: the hints of a monetisation scheme are there, but nothing that feels oppressive and entirely optional yet. Considering how GTA Online started off before becoming the moneypit that it is now, perhaps this optimism should be countered with some pessimism.
Red Dead Online is very much in its infancy and currently feels like quite the fun oddity. It’s going to find its own identity over the next few weeks and months but feels a little hamstrung by single-player mechanics and a slower pace to make it an immediately captivating time as it is. Here’s hoping this is that rare time when a beta is just that and helps to shape and improve the game from here.
From our Red Dead Redemption 2 review:
“Despite it having some wrinkles, Red Dead Redemption 2 introduces more than enough innovations to provide one of the most immersive and captivating open world games ever made.”
MORE RED DEAD:
– 22 Red Dead Redemption 2 Tips To Tip Your Hat At
– Red Dead Redemption 2 Guide: How To Raise Your Honor
– 5 Red Dead Redemption 2 Single-Player DLC Ideas
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