Red Dead Online": World Update! New Missions & Poker Added, and More Information on What's Ahead!

Rockstar Games has implemented a world update in the "Red Dead Online" online mode (currently in beta testing) of the "Red Dead Redemption 2" software title for PS4/Xbox One.

Red Dead Redemption 2" is the sequel title to the open-world action adventure "Red Dead Redemption" set in frontier America. Players take on the role of Arthur Morgan, a member of the Dutch gang, and must survive in a world of outlaws.

The game takes place in the United States in 1899, as the pioneer era is coming to an end. Arthur Morgan and the Dutch Gang are forced to flee after a major robbery gone wrong in the western town of Blackwater. Pursued by federal agents and bounty hunters from all over the country, the gang's only way to survive is to rob, violate, and steal in the wilds of America, but the more involved they get in the struggle, the more they are in danger of being torn apart. Arthur is forced to choose between his ideals and his loyalty to the gang that raised him.

The following is a summary of the details of the world update and future outlook for "Red Dead Online," the online mode of the game currently in beta testing.

<Update Information
Today's update for "Red Dead Online" brings a variety of updates and improvements, as well as new gameplay features such as cooperative story missions, wandering mode activities, and poker. Along with a wide range of updates and improvements that stabilize or enhance the world upon which "Red Dead Online" is based, the world of "Red Dead Online" will continue to evolve.
We sincerely thank all players who participated in the beta during this period. Your feedback has been instrumental in helping us fine-tune the game. Many of your suggestions have been incorporated into today's update and will be incorporated into future updates.
This update is just the beginning. Red Dead Online will continue to improve not only the core elements of the game world so that players can enjoy every aspect of the game, but also create a whole new immersive experience for the world and characters.
For more information on today's update and future plans, please check out the details below.

■A LAND OF OPPORTUNITIES:NEW CO-OP MISSIONS

The Land of Opportunities brings a new dimension to Jessica's tale of revenge with new missions for both high and low honor level players. After the dramatic decisive battle at Fort Mercer that closed out the previous mission series, the story will now focus on the mystery surrounding Jessica's husband's death. The high honor level gunman route will have you fighting the Del Lobos gang for U.S. Marshal Tom, saving his head and the city of Valentine.
On the other hand, in the outlaw series, you'll go behind the backs of law enforcement officers, help Samson in his tailgating business, and even get rich in a daring robbery scheme at the Bank of Saint Denis. Both routes lead to a rendezvous in Blackwater.

■FREE ROAM MISSIONS

The roam mode missions have also been expanded with today's update, adding a variety of new missions along with new characters from the "Red Dead Redemption 2" storyline. You can meet small boat captain Tomas in Bayou N'Wa with his militia friends and get down to serious business, or you can get down to some lousy underhanded work while receiving a rough welcome at the Aberdeen Pig Farm. And look for new characters to be added in the near future.

POSSE VERSUS CHALLENGES
In one of the three new Civil Police challenges, you can compete in fishing whenever you like. The leader of the Police Force can initiate a Police Force Challenge from the player menu to play the "Big Fish Fishing Contest" to catch the biggest fish within the time limit, the "Bird Shooting Contest" to shoot down numerous birds, and the "Herb Gathering Contest" to gather more medicinal herbs.

DYNAMIC EVENTS
As you travel through the frontier, local residents and travelers may come to you for help, and drifters may approach you to prey on unaccompanied travelers. These encounters can earn you XP, honor, money and sometimes gold, so don't miss them.

POKER

Visit the poker tables in the towns and settlements scattered across the map to challenge your friends to a private, invitation-only hold'em (card game). Or sit at a public table and play poker for even higher chip prices and rewards. Poker tables seat up to six players and are located in five different locations. You can play at Blackwater, Sandni, Tumbleweed, Valentine, and Flat Neck Stations.


■OVERRUN SHOWDOWN MODE

While defending your own territory, enter and occupy enemy territory and mark as much territory as possible to make it your own. In this new combat mode, the player who holds more territories at the end of the game wins.

■LEMAT REVOLVER, CLOTHING AND MORE
The Lemat Revolver, which combines a nine-shot revolving chamber with a single-shot shotgun barrel and can switch between rapid-fire and destructive shotgun shells, is now available for purchase from the Wheeler Lawson catalog.
New fashion items and emotional expressions are also available, including the much-requested poncho and patterned bandana. New emotional expressions include "slit throat" and "middle finger up". New items will be replaced from time to time, so please check the catalog regularly to see what is in stock, which changes weekly.

Players who start a new "Red Dead Online" game this week will get a free 15 gold (large bar) and 25% bonus XP in the Land of Opportunity, Wandering Mode missions, Combat Mode, Races, and Wandering Mode events. You also get 25% more money and gold in treasure chests in treasure hunts. All Ultimate Edition players will receive $100 in RDO money and the "Slit Throat" emotional expression for free.

■PLAYING STYLES

As mentioned in previous articles on today's additions, this update will allow players to select an aggressive or defensive play style from the player menu to determine how they interact with other players they encounter in the world of Red Dead Online.

By default, the aggressive playstyle is selected. As many players have done in previous wandering modes, you are free to engage in hostile interactions with other players as long as you are prepared to deal with the consequences.
The defensive play style is for players who would rather explore the world than fight other players in wandering mode. It is designed to let people know that you do not want to get into a fight with other players and to minimize harassing behavior from other players. At the same time, defensive players are not subject to anti-player wandering mode missions when they are in defensive mode, allowing them to focus on their own play as freely as possible without being drawn into them.
Players in defense mode are marked with a shield icon, take less damage from enemy players, cannot be lassoed, and are not subject to melee attacks, executions, or auto-aims. Defending players are also exempt from anti-player missions such as player assassination. Players who attack a player in defense mode, or who attack another player themselves while in defense mode, are immediately pulled out of defense mode and suffer the same penalties in the hostility system.

■the hostility system
With today's update, the player radar and visibility system introduced in February has evolved to become even more sophisticated and sensitive to and able to prevent harassing behavior. The hostility system works for both styles of play. By monitoring for aggressive behavior, it helps visualize highly hostile players and helps balance the needs of players who want to distance themselves from those who habitually attack and kill other players in a scenario-free wandering mode of play.
The color of the player icon will continue to change. It starts out dark blue and changes to red for repeated acts of hostility. The bright red color is the enemy icon. With today's update, attacks to defend against players with enemy icons and attacks against highly hostile players will no longer increase the hostility or bounty. If a player attacks another player, he or she will not appear as hostile to everyone, but only to the attacked player, and that player will not be penalized for fighting back.
The current hostility level can be checked from the player menu. The higher the hostility level, the further away the player will appear on the radar of other players. Also, in the event of death, the resurrection location will be further away. At the highest hostility level, you will be resurrected in a different area than where you died.
Hostility level does not increase while playing wandering mode events, wandering mode missions, battles, races, etc. While in an aggressive playstyle, hostility will not be increased by any anti-player activity related to wandering mode missions. However, attacks on players who are not participating in the activity will cause hostility levels to increase.

BALANCING AND IMPROVEMENTS

Several important changes have been made to Red Dead Online to enhance the overall game play experience.
Removal of auto-aim headshot tracking (enemy players only): This subtle but important change affects headshots against rival players. AutoAim will still track the center of an enemy player's body, but the ability to change to a headshot by simply lifting the right stick from that position will be removed. This makes headshots a little more difficult, but allows for a more balanced and challenging play against other players, such as in combat series.

Reduced weapon switching time/instant ignition: Overall, the time it takes to switch weapons has been reduced. This includes instant ignition for quickly throwing Molotov cocktails and dynamite.

New control scheme " FPS2": A new control scheme "FPS2" (and its specifications) has been added, reflecting feedback from the community. Basically the same specifications as "FPS", but with [R1] to dash and [X] to crouch (this option is available in both "Red Dead Redemption 2" and "Red Dead Online").

Update to Today's Challenge: In response to feedback, we have removed all versus-player related Today's Challenges from wandering mode and added a large number of new Today's Challenges and rewards. This includes a series of challenges with higher gold rewards for each record set.

New Awards: New awards have been added to wandering mode, including those related to the latest gameplay.

Wide-area signal tim er: The wide-area signal timer has been extended and the signal range reduced to allow for more flexible play in wandering mode missions.

Accusation: If a player with a low hostility level is unilaterally disposed of and fails to retaliate, he or she will be given the option to "accuse" the attacker before being resurrected. Accusing will force the assailant's bounty and hostility level to increase. The "Charge" option is not available to players who already have a high hostility level, or to players who have marked themselves as enemies.

Horse Role Selection: From the player menu, you can set which of your owned horses will be used in wandering mode, racing, combat mode, and missions, respectively.

Increased Gold Rewards: The in-game economy has been adjusted to increase gold rewards overall. Rewards have been increased for most gold-earning activities, up to twice as much gold can now be earned. Also, starting today and for a limited time only, you will earn one gold (large bar) for every rank you achieve.

A list of all other fixes included in today's update, including the HDR cinematic mode available in both Story Mode and "Red Dead Online," can be found on the dedicated Rockstar Support page. Be sure to also check out the new official Red Dead Online website. You will find detailed information on existing game modes and features that new players can refer to, as well as comprehensive game data management in the Social Club and much more.

■EXCLUSIVE PLAYSTATION PLUS OFFER
During a special bonus period through May 27, PlayStation 4 players who are not subscribed to PlayStation Plus can also play Red Dead Online. All PlayStation 4 players will also have new early access content coming, so stay tuned to the PlayStation blog for more details.

■WHAT'S NEXT

New wandering mode characters, new combat modes, and much more will be added to "Red Dead Online" in the coming months. This includes new wandering mode missions and costumes that will be added next week on May 21 on both PlayStation 4 and Xbox One, as well as early access content for PlayStation 4. Stay tuned for more details coming soon on the PlayStation blog.
Then on May 28, a new combat mode "Escape," a wandering mode wildlife kill challenge, and more content will be added; on June 4, a new combat mode "Social Enemies" and a wandering mode event "Railroad King" in which players compete for a train car in motion will be added; on June 11, an update will include a new combat mode "Royal Sports," as well as the addition of limited-time and classic clothing to the Wheeler Lawson Company catalog.
Also, don't miss weekly bonuses such as RDO money, gold gifts, reward increases, support supplies, and exclusive gifts.

■COMING THIS SUMMER TO RED DEAD ONLINE

Now that the foundations of Red Dead Online have been laid, future updates will introduce elements to further establish your life as a character. Characters will be able to take on different roles and establish their own unique position in the frontier.
Three of the upcoming roles will be added this summer. They can track down criminals as a bounty hunter, seek out treasures and specimens as a collector, or build a business in the camp as a merchant.
Each of these roles has its own gameplay and offers new costumes, weapons, and other rewards. Players can focus on a specific role and unlock its attributes in one fell swoop, or they can play at their leisure and take on multiple roles simultaneously, building their own characters and paths in the world of Red Dead Online.
Familiarize yourself with the world of "Red Dead Online" now and prepare for the roles that will be added in the summer. Stay tuned for more information as it becomes available.

[Product Information
■ "Red Dead Redemption 2".
∙ Release date: Now on sale (Friday, October 26, 2018)
Platform: PlayStation 4/Xbox One
∙ CERO: Z (for ages 18 and up)
・Released by: Rockstar Games, Inc.

<Price
PS4 package version
Normal Edition: 8,800 yen (excluding tax)
Special Edition: 10,800 yen (excluding tax)
Ultimate Edition: 12,800 yen (excluding tax)

PS4 download version
Normal Edition: 7,963 yen (excluding tax)
Special Edition: 9,723 yen (excluding tax)
Ultimate Edition: 11,528 yen (excluding tax)

Xbox One downloadable version
Normal Edition: 8,618 yen (tax not included)
Special Edition: 10,562 yen (including tax)
Ultimate Edition: 12,506 yen (tax included)

© 2018 Rockstar Games, Inc.