Red Dead Redemption 2 News: The Controversial Game Economy of Red Dead Online Explained

With the recent launch of Red Dead Online, the online platform on Rockstar's Red Dead Redemption 2, there have been some issues players have raised with regards to the game's economy. While microtransactions have not yet been implemented in the game, the grind you need to get items, feed your horse or upgrade your items is quite a lot.

You can earn two kinds of currency in Red Dead Online: cash and gold bars. Gold bars were not available in the single player mode and it allows players to bypass level requirements and by unique items only purchasable with Gold bars. So what's all the fuss?

Players found on the game's subreddit that the price for items is a lot higher in the online version. The biggest issue so far though, is the sheer grind it takes to get Gold bars and the absurd prices of items that require Gold bars. The player will need 100 gold nuggets to get a gold bar, which requires heavy grind in deathmatches, races and other game modes.

In order to skin your basic gun which you started with, you need 12 gold bars. That alone takes an estimated 8 hours of gameplay. Purchasable items cost significantly more gold bars and require the player to have completed a heavy number of gameplay hours in order to farm it.

The payouts in cash for deathmatches and races are not very great too. While the in-game economy is fine-tuned to the Wild West and its time, you can only get about $4 while doing so for about 10 minutes of gameplay. A Mauser Pistol in Red Dead Online costs about $1000, but in the real world during that time period, it cost only $35.

While this is only the beginning for Red Dead Online, players are hoping they can see improvements in the game economics. The heavy grind in Rockstar's other major game, GTA Online has worn out players. Or Rockstar will stick with this model in hopes of getting successful microtransactions.

Get the latest Video Game News at Sportskeeda.