Red Dead Online's standalone version has arrived
Along with a big update for all you Bounty Hunters
Red Dead Redemption 2's online mode has been separated from its singleplayer cowboy adventure today, offering Red Dead Online as a standalone game. You can still get it all together in one big RDR2 package if you'd like, but if you're more into the idea of roaming around as a cowpoke in multiplayer, you can do just that now for a mere $5 as part of its introductory sale.
Today's update also expands the Bounty Hunter role, so players old and new have more pesky outlaws to bring in, and higher ranks to reach.
This new version of Red Dead Online is available now, priced at £4.50 / $5 until February 15th next year, when it'll go up to £18 / $20 - which is a really good deal, to be fair. From the many stories I've heard about meanies and hackers causing havoc in RDO, I've been reluctant to buy it myself. But for a fiver I'd be tempted to brave that wild west.
You can grab it on Epic and the Rockstar Launcher (and it should appear on Steam sometime today, too), as well as your PlayStations and Xboxes.
As for the newness in the update, the game's Bounty Hunter role is adding new targets to pursue, new role-specific items and higher ranks to climb amongst your fellow Hunters. Bounty Hunting is one of RDO's frontier pursuits - a kind of job role you can take on to roleplay your way through the world. Players who've already bought a Bounty Hunter License can now grab themselves a Prestigious Bounty Hunter License, allowing them to rank the role up to higher levels, and get access to special missions and equipment.
Other new things include more daily challenges, clothing items and outfits, some new emotes to woo and taunt your pals with, and loads more. Check out the full patch notes here.