Besides being the year that Grand Theft Auto 6 will launch — fingers crossed — 2025 will also mark the seventh anniversary of Red Dead Redemption 2. Red Dead Redemption 2 was Rockstar’s last major release, and it continued the developer’s streak of success. It received incredibly positive reviews and has sold over 67 million copies.
Whenever the next Red Dead Redemption game rolls around, it will certainly have its work cut out for it. The weight of Red Dead Redemption 2‘s narrative, the impeccable acting chops of its main cast, and the attention to detail in its open world have set a high bar, not just for the series, but for open-world games in general. Expectations are therefore quite high for Red Dead Redemption 3. Rockstar has proven itself time and time again when it comes to its storytelling, but fans may be more concerned with how Red Dead Redemption 3 will address one of its predecessor’s most notable failings.
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Redeeming RDR 2’s Abandoned Mode
Grand Theft Auto 5 was a monumental success for Rockstar. Besides being regarded by fans and critics as one of the best video games ever made, it has also raked in billions of dollars in revenue since release. GTA 5‘s open-world story mode was certainly a draw for many players, but a big reason why GTA 5 is still prevalent — and profitable — today is its online mode.
Grand Theft Auto Online launched two weeks after the release of GTA 5. The mode allows players to explore San Andreas as a customizable character of their own making. They can then complete missions, purchase property, and interact with other players’ characters in real-time. Despite some rough edges at launch, Rockstar’s continued updates have made GTA Online one of the most beloved multiplayer experiences of the 2010s, and one that is still frequented by many players to this day.
Considering how popular GTA Online proved to be, it was no surprise that Rockstar attempted to replicate its success in Red Dead Redemption 2. Red Dead Online released in beta on November 27, 2018. While the original Red Dead Redemption had an online experience as well, its multiplayer was more traditional, with a handful of PVP and co-op modes. Red Dead Online instead tried to emulate GTA Online by allowing players to create their own gunslinger and explore Red Dead Redemption 2‘s vast open world with friends. This premise had Red Dead Redemption fans ecstatic, but the reality of Red Dead Online proved to be disappointing.
Why Red Dead Online Failed
The Red Dead Online experience was flawed from the start. Besides being plagued by bugs and errors, the game’s combat controls felt unpolished — unfortunate considering the game’s heavy emphasis on gunfights — and the overall gameplay was much more sluggish than that of GTA Online. It makes sense given the limitations of vehicles and weaponry in Red Dead Online‘s historical setting, but slowed down gameplay was made all the more noticeable by the absurd amount of grinding required to make money in-game.
Obtaining the currency necessary to buy many of the cosmetics, horses, and weapons in Red Dead Online required dozens of hours of playing. Considering the severely limited number of open-world activities that awarded money at launch, this grind was grueling and repetitive. Rockstar did provide an alternative for players wishing to skip this grind, as they could instead opt to purchase the in-game currency with real money. Players suspected that Rockstar had intentionally made the grind so intense in order to pressure players into giving in and just shoveling out more money in order to play the game how they actually wanted to.
While Rockstar eventually stated that it would make changes to the game’s economy, the initial model had already left a bad taste in players’ mouths. The game had fewer players and made less money than expected, which resulted in Rockstar limiting the amount of updates that the game would receive. This created a cycle which deterred players from spending time playing the game, which deterred Rockstar from spending time adding to the game. Rockstar would eventually abandon development of Red Dead Online all together in 2021, opting to instead focus resources on the upcoming Grand Theft Auto 6.
Moving Forward With Multiplayer in the Red Dead Redemption Series
With how badly Rockstar fumbled Red Dead Online, any future multiplayer experiences in the Red Dead Redemption series may have a hard time gaining traction. Players will always have doubt in their minds, wondering if their time and money is worth sinking into a game that Rockstar might just give up on if the going gets tough. Red Dead Online started at such a low point, which would leave one to think that Rockstar could only go up from there with a sequel. However, Rockstar’s biggest hurdle will be earning back enough trust from fans to get them to even try a second Red Dead Online.
- Released
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October 26, 2018
- ESRB
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M for Mature: Blood and Gore, Intense Violence, Nudity, Sexual Content, Strong Language, Use of Drugs and Alcohol