Red Dead Redemption 2 recently received update 1.06, and it has left some fans unhappy and scratching their heads. The new update for the critically-acclaimed open world western Red Dead Redemption 2 seemingly removes ambient occlusion, which basically amounts to more realistic lighting. The graphics downgrade was not announced by Rockstar Games ahead of time, but was noticed by a fan on Twitter.

Darealbandicoot posted comparison photos of the same scene in Red Dead Redemption 2 to show the downgrade. With the ambient occlusion removed, it makes it seem as though certain objects in the environment have less detail than they did before the patch. Some may have trouble noticing a difference, but it's understandable why those that do are bothered by the downgrade, as it can become very distracting.

Rockstar hasn't released any statement about the apparent graphical downgrade for Red Dead Redemption 2, so it's unclear why it chose to do this. After all, many would argue that the single player portion of Red Dead Redemption 2 was fine in its previous state, and while it had its fair share of glitches and technical issues, there weren't many people rallying for a change.

It may also rub some people the wrong way that Rockstar's update for the single player portion of Red Dead Redemption 2 downgraded the graphics, whereas those playing Red Dead Online are enjoying regular updates that add content to the experience. In fact, Red Dead Online received its latest update just this past week, which added new clothing and the Showdown mode, whereas the single player has remained basically untouched since launch.

Red Dead Redemption 2 fans have been holding out hope for more substantial single player updates, perhaps in the form of paid DLC story expansions. The single player expansions Rockstar released for Grand Theft Auto 4 and the original Red Dead Redemption earned critical-acclaim, but the company hasn't bothered to make anymore since the runaway success of GTA Online.

One expansion it's safe to say fans of Red Dead Redemption 2 would like to see is a followup to Undead Nightmare. For the uninitiated, Undead Nightmare was an expansion for the first Red Dead Redemption that filled the open world with zombies. Red Dead Redemption 2 has an Undead Nightmare easter egg that has led some to speculate that Rockstar is in fact releasing a new version of Undead Nightmare for its newest open world western, but that has yet to be confirmed or denied at this time.

In the meantime, for the sake of those still exploring the wild west in Red Dead Redemption 2's single player story, hopefully Rockstar reverses its graphical downgrade sooner rather than later.

Red Dead Redemption 2 is out now for PS4 and Xbox One.

Source: DualShockers