Red Dead Redemption 2 Actor Stands With The Game's Community
It's a solemn day for the gaming world, as Rockstar Games has shot up Red Dead Online and left the once beloved cowboy caper bleeding out on the saloon floor. As fans hold their own funeral for the online spin-off of 2018's Red Dead Redemption 2, one of the franchise's big names is standing by the community.
In 2019, Rockstar tried to emulate the success of Grand Theft Auto with its second most-successful franchise. Unfortunately, while GTA Online has helped GTA V stay at the top of the charts, the same can't be said for Red Dead Online. Just years after it released, it's being buried alive by the gaming goliath.
What's Going On With Red Dead Online?
The writing was already on the wall, and unlike GTA Online getting two big updates a year, RDO was left as a tumbleweed-riddled ghost town. Fans had already decided to hold their own in-game funeral on July 13 to commiserate a whole year without updates, but before that could even happen, Rockstar confirmed it would stop "major updates" to the title.
The community is obviously up in arms, but joining the cause is Red Dead Redemption 2 actor Roger Clark - taking to Twitter to share his views. Clark is known for playing Arthur Morgan, so is something of a big deal in the franchise. It would be a bit like if Steven Ogg (Trevor Philips) slammed GTA. Unlike Arthur Morgan himself though, Clarks promises the RDO community will never die.
While it's all well and good having Clark behind RDO during these tragic times, it's still not saving the once-hopeful game from becoming its very own Undead Nightmare. Fans responded to Clark and shared their memories of RDO. In one particularly heartfelt message, one superfan wrote: "I just want to exist in that world. Hunting, fishing, riding horses (which I can’t do in real life. Too terrified of heights), enjoying the slower pace of life. It's not what everyone wants, but it's my heaven. Between online and offline I have over 800 hours in this game…"
Is Red Dead Online Doomed?
Rockstar has said there will still be updates, meaning it's only the big content drops being shown the door. Still, RDO is circling the grave. With nothing new to entice us back, expect the player count to tumble until we're at a Battlefield 2042 level of abandonment. You can share your love with Roger Clark all you want, but it won't bring RDO back.
Like it or not, Rockstar is making a massive pivot into GTA - which makes some sad sense when looking at the financials. Things have been going from bad to worse, and after the disastrous launch of the GTA Trilogy, a proposed Bully 2 was apparently cancelled. More recently, the rumour mill has gone into overdrive that new-gen remakes of GTA 4, Red Dead Redemption, AND Red Dead Redemption 2 have all been gunned down thanks to GTA. With RDO being the latest casualty, GTA 6 had better be worth it.
