Red Dead Online is BACK! That’s right, for the first time in over 4 years, Red Dead Redemption 2’s Online mode has crawled its way out of its own grave with an appropriately themed free content update from RockStar Games. It’s been nearly 3 years since Rockstar published a newswire announcing that they were effectively cutting the life support to the online mode of RDR2, one of Rockstars and T2 Interactive’s most popular games to date. However, as of now, that has changed. On July 1st, 2025 out of nowhere, Rockstar published a newswire and a trailer for the next update for Red Dead Online. Where’s what you can expect in this update and how to participate in the action:
Strange Tales of the West – What is it?
As said, Strange Tales of the West is the newest, and first Red Dead Online update in a very long time. That said, what can you actually expect from it?
Strange Tales of the West is a supernaturally themed telegram update for Red Dead Online (RDO); and consists of 4 brand new missions to play through either solo, or in a posse. We do recommend you brave these missions in a group however, as they can be quite difficult.
Rockstar’s newswire reads: “Author Theodore Levin can’t believe the rumors and missives he’s been receiving from the four corners of the American frontier. He’s working on an anthology of these unexplained and weird phenomena and he needs your help investigating the wildest claims that cross his desk. Strange Tales of the West will require steely resolve and courage in the face of the odd, twisted, and downright supernatural.”
These missions are as follows:
Strange Tales of the Plague, which involves you needing to retrieve undead corpses from Armadillo while avoiding the disease, and the towns ravenous cultists. Strange Tales of Modern Science has you investigating and cutting down killer robots near Braithewaite Manor. Strange Tales of the Bayou involves you needing to enter Lagras near Saint Denis to fight off Swamp People, and capture an elusive Swamp Creature for study. and finally Strange Tales of the Wilderness which sees you or your posse investigating a disappearance in Tall Tree’s only to be confronted by his captors.
“Venture out to dispense frontier justice on behalf of characters both honorable and deplorable in Telegram Missions, including the new Strange Tales of the West Missions, to receive 3X Gold, RDO$, and XP through August 4. ” – Rockstar news wire
How to Play Strange Tales of the West
Like most of Red Dead Online’s content it can be accessed in a few ways. The first way and most accessible for players is straight from its dedicated tab in the online menu. However if you are already in a lobby and get bored of fighting in Valentine or trying to move product, here’s what you need to do. Strange Tales of the West’s missions can either be accessed from the many telegram spots at train stations littered throughout the map. Almost every town in the game such as Valentine, Strawberry, BlackWater, Saint Denis, etc has one of these. You simply walk up to the attendant NPC at the station and can select telegram missions in the list that gets presented to you.
The other way in which you can access these missions is through your camp. If you’ve bought the lockbox upgrade for your own personal camp you can simply walk over to it and interact to collect all deliveries. In these deliveries you will find a telegram containing each of the 4 missions in this update. Simply choose whichever mission you wish to play, and you’re in!
What’s Next For Red Dead Redemption 2 Online?
As stated this marks the first update for RDO in a very long time. So what’s next, if anything at all? Well at the very end of the trailer for Strange Tales of the West, and in-game, it is said that this is merely Volume 1. Meaning we can expect at least one more volume, or maybe even more in the near future. Hopefully this means Rockstar is gearing up to return to the Wild West, and to give this underrated multiplayer experience its due.
For more information on Red Dead Redemption as it unfolds, stay tuned to Detonated
