These days, we are getting plenty of news on Rockstar’s upcoming Western epic, Read Dead Redemption II, but in the early days of last year, fans were still thirsting for any news about the highly anticipated sequel. When a screen shot of a cowboy leaning on a post outside a general store surfaced on Rockstar’s forums, it sparked a debate about if it was in fact a still from the new game.
Unfortunately for fans at the time, it wasn’t. It was still from an upcoming massive multiplayer online game titled Wild West Online, a game which promised players an open world online experience where they could live out all their wildest cowboy dreams.
Now, about a year after that information was revealed, Wild West Online has officially left early access. Unfortunately, they’ve had a bit of a bumpy start.
The game has received a lot of negative reviews so far. Some are to be expected from the launch of a large game like this, with bugs and other issues regarding the servers, but some point at some deeper issues with the game. Many feel like it isn’t actually finished yet, and that it is lacking a lot of the promised features.
Particularly, some players feel that while there are plenty of Player vs. Player elements (PvP), there aren’t enough Player vs. Environment (PvE) quests to round things out. While many MMO’s focus on PvP and pitting players against each other in challenges and combat, some gamers want to focus more on PvE tasks, exploring the environment, and interacting with NPC baddies and wildlife.
The developers did post an update on Steam, but it is unlikely that it made users feel much better about their experiences. They did address some of the bugs and promised that they are working on fixing them, but as far as a lack of PvE elements goes, they aren’t too bothered.
“…this is at its core PVP MMO, with PVE elements (resourcing, simple NPC quests, homesteading). This has been and will be our focus: an MMO rooted in core PVP gameplay, with social and PVE elements to round it out,” their update read. It looks like anyone interested more in hunting and farming than in battling it out with their friends and rivals may have to look elsewhere for their Western themed entertainment.
Wild West Online is available now on Steam for $29.99. You can keep an eye on the game’s website for more information and updates.