Red Dead Online Gives Players Conflicting Open World Missions

Jeremy Ray
Games Red Dead
Games Red Dead Xbox PlayStation

Red Dead Online blends your open world with that of several other cowboys, and the cheeky Western sees fit to give you objectives that conflict with that of your peers. You can help or hinder the other folks in your world. Team up for some horse rustlin’, or chase down enemy players as they attack a train under your watch.

The massive success of GTA Online meant we always knew Rockstar would replicate that formula in Red Dead Online. We can 100% expect constant updates with new quests and equipment.

We’ve been told there will be new events like bank heists periodically, each with unique challenges. The overall template, according to Rockstar, will be taken from GTA Online. Think Heists, Gun Running, and that kind of content.

Rockstar has currently released Red Dead Online as a “public beta,” which is not really what a “beta” is, but who’s going to stop ’em?

We now know what Red Dead Online consists of. You can watch the above video to get an idea of gameplay, and we’ll go through all of it below.

RDR2 Dutch van der Linde sitting reclining
Who knows what singleplayer characters you may come across in the multiplayer lore.

Red Dead Online’s Main Quest

You start out in Red Dead Online as a nobody who was framed for a murder. It just so happens the wife of the murder victim knows you didn’t do it, and decides to bust you out of prison so you can find who actually did.

Your goals are aligned, and she gives you four scoundrels to investigate. After that, it’s up to you. But as you ride from A to B, you’re almost sure to get distracted by all the fun along the way.

Rockstar wants the honour system to play a large role in this series of quests, and like most things in Red Dead Online, it’s possible to team up with people to get things moving.

Red Dead Online PvP Modes

  • Shootout & Team Shootout – These are your standard Deathmatch and Team Deathmatch modes. Kill the enemy, and get the highest score. In the event of a tie, a sudden death mode kicks in and the first player to get a kill wins.
  • Make it Count – A bow, arrows, and throwing knives are all you get in this mode. It’s a battle royale mode in which you try to be the last player standing with the threat of an ever-shrinking circle always looming.
  • Most Wanted – Deathmatch with a twist. Kill an enemy in this mode, and you’ll add their score to yours. Needless to say, the top of the leaderboard is targetted — and their position is even shown to all the others.
  • Hostile Territory – This is your Domination-type mode in which you capture territories and hold them for points. This mode isn’t limited to two teams though, so you’ll have to watch for attack from all sides.
  • Name your Weapon – Using “worse” weapons will get you more points in this mode. The tomahawk is an instant kill, offering seven points, but can easily be dodged.

Open World Missions in Red Dead Online

Much like the singleplayer portion of Red Dead Redemption 2, you’ll see stranger markers on the map and you’ll come across people who either need a helpin’ hand or a hurtin’ hand.

Riding up to one of these missions can trigger a matchmaking session so you can tackle the quest as a group of four. Or if you’re already in a posse with your friends, even better.

There are also world events that happen without explicitly triggering a mission. You might be riding along and get a notification that someone’s trying to deliver some mail, and you’re goal – if you choose to participate – is to steal it and deliver it yourself.

It’s a seamless transition. Notifications and markers on your map will let you know it’s there, if you want it. All you have to do is ride over and join in.

The Differences in Red Dead Online

Being a multiplayer environment, there are a few things that need to operate differently. For example:

  • Deadeye has been reworked. Instead of slowing down time, it now activates Perk cards that you unlock by levelling up.
  • Did we mention levelling up? Yep, that’s a thing now. Certain gear and upgrades require a certain rank.
  • Gold is the second currency in the game now, and this will be used to purchase high level gear and upgrades. You’ll eventually be able to buy gold with real-world cash.
  • Saddles offer stats for your horse now. You can also get horse insurance for when it gets critically injured.
  • There’s no pause! Keep that in mind while checking your map.
  • You can buy almost anything basic from the handheld catalogue that you’re given early on.

We Thought it Would Be in Mexico

One crafty player discovered you can glitch your way into a Mexican town in the current game code, which proves Mexico is in the game right now. But what is it for?

It could be for a new singleplayer adventure, and certainly Arthur and Dutch casually mentioned going to Mexico (after just one more score, natch). Or it could be a future battleground for Red Dead Online — either a PvP arena or some kind of horde mode in which you take down waves of O’Driscolls, Pinkertons, or anyone else who has a brain itch that needs a bullet scratchin’.

You can get there now using a glitch to get you “outside the map.” There’s a crevasse you have to finagle yourself through, and then you’re free to run amok in the very incomplete Mexican countryside.

There’s a small Mexican fort which could be the setting for some great multiplayer battles. It’s unfinished — windows aren’t actually windows, and pieces of towers and doors are missing. But with a little work, it’d be a great little Alamo simulator.

RDR2 Arthur Morgan mask stealth night
Stealth missions will undoubtedly be a part of the many new content additions.

Red Dead Royale

Leaked documents seen by Trustedreviews pointed to a battle royale mode being included in Red Dead Online, and that’s now confirmed. But the infamously litigious Rockstar didn’t hesitate to go to court over the leak. Trustedreviews decided to settle and pay $1.5 million USD.

It’s the subject of much controversy. Leaked information is fair game, and Rockstar shouldn’t be able to throw a legal tantrum because something didn’t fit into its scheduled hype cycle. So spare a thought for the Bothans over at Trustedreviews who brought us this information early.

RDR2 scenic view mountains
You can roam across this country in a whole new way.

With the above-mentioned content updates, that means you’ll constantly be enriching your character with new and rarer guns, horses, outfits, friends, and who knows, maybe even properties. Who knows, you may even be able to decide an allegiance. Can you imagine being able to create an O’Driscoll, or take part in a Grays vs Braithwaites war?

We’ll update this post Red Dead Online updates itself, which should start very quickly.

Jeremy Ray
Decade-long games critic and esports aficionado. Started in competitive Counter-Strike, then moved into broadcast, online, print and interpretative pantomime. You merely adopted the lag. I was born in it.