RED DEAD ONLINE BETA UPDATE (February 12, 2019)

[ALifeOfMisery]

NEW FEATURES AND MORE COMING FEBRUARY 26

 

The next set of updates and new features is set to be added to the Red Dead Online Beta on February 26th as we implement many new improvements and enhancements to the game’s open world, including a new Law and Bounty system, weapons balancing, changes to player blips on the mini-map and more.

 

Read on for details about these changes and stay tuned next week to learn more about some of the other new content coming in this update.

 

Player Visibility

As part of our response to community feedback on how to minimize certain types of destructive player behavior, we’ve made some changes to the way player blips will appear on the map.

 

Firstly, we’re reducing the visibility of blips over long distances – your map position won’t display to other players unless you are nearby (within 150 meters) and if you are slightly further away you will only appear when firing your weapon.  Players in other towns or regions, for example, won’t be visible. This prevents players from being repeatedly targeted across the map at long distances.

 

We’re also introducing a new system that highlights overly aggressive players. If your style of play becomes more hostile, your map position (and the position of your Posse members) will become more visible to other players with a progressively darkening dot that incrementally shifts from blue to dark red. Your visibility increases through bad deeds such as attacking and killing other players or their horses outside of a structured mode, Free Roam Mission, event or competition, and the shorter the time between bad acts, the more your visibility increases. Shift back to a more righteous path and your visibility will fade over time.

 

We’re also introducing Posse-wide Parleys and improving Feuds. You’ll soon be able to initiate Parley that applies to your attacker’s entire Posse after just a single kill. Alternatively, if you’d rather challenge your opponent, you can initiate a Feud, Posse Feud or Leader Feud after one kill, quickly turning a dispute into a timed mini-deathmatch for rival players to fight out amongst themselves in Free Roam, earning points for each kill on the opposing player.  

 

Bounty Hunters & Law Balancing

At the same time, players who have racked up high bounties will have a chance to be beset by NPC Bounty Hunters who will attempt to kill them and collect their reward.

 

Criminal behavior will have bounty values and honor consequences that scale based on the severity of the crime. For example, killing another player can incur a higher bounty, while assaulting townsfolk or animal cruelty could give you a lesser bounty if the crime is reported, while lower level crimes like looting and ransacking will only decrease your honor.

 

If your bounty exceeds a certain threshold and Bounty Hunters take notice, you will be wanted dead and alerted to their pursuit. The higher your bounty, the greater your value and the more difficult the pursuit becomes for you and your Posse.

 

Daily Challenges

We will also be adding a variety of Daily Challenges to take on across the Red Dead Online Beta. Complete individual objectives that cover every aspect of life on the frontier to earn Gold Nuggets and XP. Challenges will range from foraging for herbs, selling items at a Fence, hunting and skinning animals, clearing hideouts, winning Feuds and so much more. These Daily Challenges will continue to expand and evolve over time bringing specialty challenges and rewards, streak bonuses and more.

 

Other Fixes and More

Your feedback has been invaluable so please keep it coming. In addition to these updates we are planning to address several additional changes based on community feedback received thus far - select weapons will be re-balanced including the Varmint Rifle, which will have its accuracy brought more in line with other longarm weapons; voice chat will be reduced to work at closer proximity, and while fixes to horse cargo are numerous and ongoing we plan to introduce some improvements to making pelts and carcasses more persistent after death or respawning.

 

We will have more details on additional content in the February 26th update next week. We are excited about the future of Red Dead Online and look forward to sharing lots more in the weeks and months ahead.

 

Meanwhile, there are chances to earn more XP to rank up ahead of February 26th. Playing in a Posse will bring benefits like earning increased XP in Free Roam Missions and Free Roam Events.

 

Posse up this week to earn twice as much increased XP on these activities, and next week earn 20% more XP across all activities in the Red Dead Online Beta.

 

Newswire

Edited February 12, 2019 by ALifeOfMisery

[Ryan5252]

They really could have added something small to tide us over for the next two weeks. 

 

Really worrying that since launch, despite various "updates" and briefings there have been zero mentions of additional lobbies. Surely that has to be the most common request yet they just refuse to even acknowledge it...

Edited February 12, 2019 by Ryan5252

[ThaBirdCoot]

Doesn't sound too bad. But content wise still pretty thin. I'm wondering if we won't loose carcasses/pelts to other players anymore. 

 

Edit: Dissappointed by the bounty system just being over aggro npc's probably, would have liked it to be a player thing...

Edited February 12, 2019 by ThaBirdCoot

[trudypoo2]

So they're eliminating griefing so the world can go back to spawn killing cougars for 8 hours a day. There is nothing to do online and adding police isn't going to make the game more fun.

[4eyedcoupe]

I don't like that if I look at the map in the pause menu that I won't be able to see where other players are.  I like the current system of the proximity dots only on my mini map and being able to see EVERYONE when I open the menu map. 

[El Payaso]

So nothing then.

[Smokewood]

Still no new content. Absolutely nothing to do.... 

[TheAnkou]

9 minutes ago, Ryan5252 said:

Really worrying that since launch, despite various "updates" and briefings there have been zero mentions of additional lobbies. Surely that has to be the most common request yet they just refuse to even acknowledge it...

All these replies are from their recent tweet, surely isn't a wanted and a highly requested feature...

[CosmicBuffalo]

Double XP for posses.

[ghostsoap01]

10 minutes ago, Ryan5252 said:

They really could have added something small to tide us over for the next two weeks. 

 

Really worrying that since launch, despite various "updates" and briefings there have been zero mentions of additional lobbies. Surely that has to be the most common request yet they just refuse to even acknowledge it...

Honestly I hate to say but I don't think its happening. At the every least I doubt it will happen before it comes out of beta, and that's my best case scenario. At this point its plainly visible that they are purposefully ignoring it, while addressing less frequently requested changes like the bounty system or the voice chat.

2 minutes ago, Sir McTim said:

All these replies are from their recent tweet, surely isn't a wanted and a highly requested feature...

Its infuriating the way they ignore it.

[Dr.Rosenthal]

Sounds alright, but I guess we'll see how it all plays out.. Griefing hasn't been a huge problem for me lately, so I feel that there could be issues with blips disappearing over distance and easier ways to Parley.

 

In a way I prefer that if someone fires at me for no reason, I should be able to follow them and harass them to the edge of the world if I please, and they shouldn't be allowed no parley.

 

I also don't want my blip going dark red because I kill someone 10 times who's killed me only once. Also, getting bounties for attacking NPC's is a bit worrying, I mean, will we get NPC Bounty Hunters chasing after us just because we feel like stirring up St Denis for a bit (without attacking players, even)?

 

Lots of questions, like I said - I guess we'll see. I also hope R* is willing to adjust some of these changes if they don't really work out. Judging by how they've refused to do so previously on GTAO has me a bit worried as well.

Edited February 12, 2019 by Dr.Rosenthal

[jdv95]

So would it be wise to go back to online after having been gone for a couple months?

 

i have this red dead online urge again but I don't know if it will Be worth staying again with the lack of content and the increasing money gap between me and other players.

Especially all the gold I missed out on.

 

tnx for the help in advance !

 

[IamCourtney]

Sooo glad to see Parley move closer to an abusable GTAO style passive mode. Great design decision that will certainly work this time for sure!

 

Guess I'll wait and see how the Bounty system works in detail. Was hoping for a more PvP oriented system than it sounds like we're getting but it could still be fun. Daily challenges and double XP sound great.

 

Nice to have a firm date I guess but this'll need to have a THOROUGH suite of bug fixes to land with more than a dull thud.

[AndyGanteks]

There's nothing really new in there other than we got a date when it's coming now.

 

 

[Jason]

Hmph. Doesn't sound like a lot of bug fixes but we'll see. Curious what the additional content will be, but as of that article I'm not exactly excited to play RDO still.

[ALifeOfMisery]

I'm glad proximity blips are being coupled with proximity chat.

 

150m seems like a good range of blip visibility, as a starting point at least. I'm also pleased that the blip darkening and extended visibility is coming alongside proximity blips.

 

The bounty system is as I feared, players can't hunt down and claim bounties. As i, and others here, predicted, bounties trigger what will be an increasingly OP NPC response. The least fun implementation of bounties possible. I know someone who won't be thrilled with this, @Happy Hunter

 

The 20% XP boost across all activities next week is decent.

Edited February 12, 2019 by ALifeOfMisery

[ThaBirdCoot]

Hopefully many of the so called fixes will finally be including horse bonding, cores glitch, spawn issues, stranger missions bugged, unsellable items, butcher stealing stuff non retrievable items in camp/post office, treasure map balancing and many many more. Fix bugs first then add stuff imo.

[Talisman_83]

I hope the changes to the Varmint rifle don't impact its accuracy when shooting at animals.

[ALifeOfMisery]

Just now, Talisman_83 said:

I hope the changes to the Varmint rifle don't impact its accuracy when shooting at animals.

Looks like I'll be crafting small game arrows after all. Still, I'm glad it's getting nerfed.

[IamCourtney]

5 minutes ago, jdv95 said:

So would it be wise to go back to online after having been gone for a couple months?

 

i have this red dead online urge again but I don't know if it will Be worth staying again with the lack of content and the increasing money gap between me and other players.

Especially all the gold I missed out on.

 

tnx for the help in advance !

 

If you weren't enjoying what was on offer a couple months back,  nothing has changed on that front. On the other hand, sounds like now will be a good time to earn more XP and close up the level gap, making money in the process. You'll only fall further and further behind so if you feel like RDO might become something you'll enjoy in the future, get in here friend.

[Talisman_83]

Just now, ALifeOfMisery said:

Looks like I'll be crafting small game arrows after all. Still, I'm glad it's getting nerfed.

I'm glad its getting nerfed in terms of the fact it will bring some light relief to new players who don't have Slow and Steady, but I have a feeling its accuracy will be altered across the board.

Just need to wait and see. As long as I can one shot a heron or spoonbill with full cores from a good distance, I'm good.

[YNNEL]

At least there’s a confirmed date. Something to look for to at least.

[rusbeckia]

9 minutes ago, ThaBirdCoot said:

. Fix bugs first then add stuff imo.

This is basically what it sounds like they‘re doing.

[ALifeOfMisery]

3 minutes ago, Talisman_83 said:

but I have a feeling its accuracy will be altered across the board.

Yep, that sounds like R*. Make it so it doesn't one shot players, but also so it takes 2 shots to kill a rabbit.

[ThaBirdCoot]

Just now, rusbeckia said:

This is basically what it sounds like they‘re doing.

We'll see if they adress the right issues. I totally expect new bugs to come around on the 26th that being said. I think this "update" being end of february pretty much confirms no big updates will drop content wise until summer, end of 2019. Lame but what can we do about it ?

[Ryan5252]

6 minutes ago, ALifeOfMisery said:

Looks like I'll be crafting small game arrows after all. Still, I'm glad it's getting nerfed.

Was gonna say they're gonna be next to useless when a flock of Heron/Pelicans fly overhead, then I remembered how silly I was being. Whatever drops from the flock immediately despwans if you look the other way. Silly me. 

 

Interested to know what other weapons will be "re-balanced". The semi auto shotgun needs work in my view. There's no way I should ever have to reload after expelling 5 slugs into the chest of someone 10' away, I don't care what cards they may have in their pockets.

[rusbeckia]

2 minutes ago, Ryan5252 said:

Was gonna say they're gonna be next to useless when a flock of Heron/Pelicans fly overhead, then I remembered how silly I was being. Whatever drops from the flock immediately despwans if you look the other way. Silly me. 

 

Interested to know what other weapons will be "re-balanced". The semi auto shotgun needs work in my view. There's no way I should ever have to reload after expelling 5 slugs into the chest of someone 10' away, I don't care what cards they may have in their pockets.

I was thinking the same. No idea what other weapons they wanna re-balance. Lasso maybe? Is it even considered a weapon lmao

Imo not even varmint would have needed rebalancing, since it‘s almost solely a threat to low rank players. I hope it‘s hunting capabilities won‘t get ditched because of this, but I‘m feeling kinda positive. You always needed to wait a little longer to one shot a bird with it, than another player. 

 

[ALifeOfMisery]

7 minutes ago, Ryan5252 said:

Was gonna say they're gonna be next to useless when a flock of Heron/Pelicans fly overhead

I'm never that far South, the only flocks I see are crows and ravens. I wish there was as much airborne cash in the North.

 

7 minutes ago, Ryan5252 said:

then I remembered how silly I was being. Whatever drops from the flock immediately despwans if you look the other way. Silly me. 

Yeah, still annoys me even though a despawns only cost me a few cents.

Edited February 12, 2019 by ALifeOfMisery

[rusbeckia]

No comments on daily objectives in this thread? 

 

Here‘s to no new content... lol

[fryday]

this game needs new content so drastically...but still nothing.