Rockstar let it snow, let it snow, let it snow in GTA Online and Red Dead Online

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas in the Online modes of Grand Theft Auto V and Red Dead Redemption 2. Rockstar started the Christmas events yesterday, dressing the sandbox worlds in Christmas finery, placing presents under our trees, and firing up the snow machines. I have already won a GTA Online snowball fight to the death while dressed in my Christmas warms so my season is looking very merry indeed.

In GTA Online, snow is now falling and a load of festive clothes are free for everyone. Go visit a store to claim all the sweats, pyjamas, leggings, hats, scarves, and everything. Don't miss the elf boots. All offices, clubhouses, MC businesses, bunkers, hangars, and facilities are half-price too.

The snow is murder to drive in but you can pick up snowballs by pressing G and pelt people with them. Whipping snowballs at cars is a lark.

If you log in on December 24th, Rockstar will give you goodies including the Firework launcher and an aggressively festive-sounding Green Reindeer Lights Bodysuit. Log in on the 25th and you'll get even more gifts, including the wee remote-controlled tank which usually costs $2,275,000.

It seems a bit cheeky to ask people to log in on two big family days for the biggest rewards, not wanting people to forget about the game for one single day. Considering it takes seven hours for the game to launch and connect to Online, that's no small ask.

In Red Dead Online, Christmas trees are up, carolers are singing, and the west's winter is looking harsher than ever.

Logging in between December 23rd and 25th will get you a gift chest full of goodies including food, ammo, and a Krampus variant of the double barrel shotgun. Getting on from December 31st and January 6th will give 1000 XP for each Specialist Role. Festive collections are afoot too.

Disclosure: I have some pals who work at Rockstar. It's a near-inevitable consequence of living in Edinburgh.