Payday 3 got off to a relatively poor start, but not all hope is lost for the sequel to the beloved heist-simulator franchise. Many fans are eager to see where the studio takes the game in future updates, which makes the recent announcement of Payday 3’s first free content update a sweet treat.
Payday 3’s first content update will be arriving sometime in November 2023, bringing back two legacy heists, among other features. While it’s great to hear that the studio is hard at work, the new content coming in Payday 3’s first update is seemingly setting itself up for failure by featuring returning content from Payday 2.
Payday 3’s First Update Sets a Worrying Trend
Bringing back old heists for Payday 3 is a slippery slope. On one hand, it technically expands Payday 3’s roster of heists, which has been a popular complaint for the game. At the same time though, many fans are likely to be disappointed by the returning heists coming to Payday 3, given the contexts surrounding the situation. Not to mention, Payday 3 is a continuation of the overarching story of Payday 2, which has left some players confused by how these returning heists will fit back into the franchise a second time.
Payday 2 Currently Has More Players Than Payday 3
A large part of Payday 3’s player base has shifted back to Payday 2, as is evident by Steam’s player counts for Payday 2 and Payday 3 from the last few months. Not only do Payday 3’s future updates need to win back fans after its rough launch, but they also need to bring back fans who have settled back into playing Payday 2. This doesn’t seem to be off to a great start with the announcement that Payday 3’s long-awaited first update will be reintroducing legacy content. Fans have been occupying themselves in anticipation of this update by playing Payday 2, so it comes as a bit of a shock that Payday 3 will be adding content from the prequel, at least so soon.
Payday 3 Content Update 1’s Confirmed Features (So Far)
- Two Legacy Heists (Cook Off & Turbid Station)
- The Transporter skill line
- Brand new first person interaction animations
- Weapon inspect animations
- Added Infamy Points to heist payouts
- The “Under Wraps” mask
- The “Compact7 Lycan” preset weapon
- New music by composer Gustavo Coutinho
- Optimization improvements
- 200+ bug fixes and many balancing and quality of life improvements
Payday 2 is Payday 3’s Worst Enemy
Adding returning heists is a perfect opportunity to showcase all of Payday 3’s gameplay and QOL upgrades that this sequel brings to the table, but it arguably needs to strike a delicate balance to pull this off. If the returning heists are too similar to the original material from Payday 2, many players will likely still stay committed to Payday 2. At the same time, if the returning heists are so different that they lose what makes them special, players will once again be encouraged to stick with Payday 2 and neglect Payday 3.
Since the community is so willing and eager to stay committed to the second game, it might be for the best for Payday 3’s future updates to avoid competing with Payday 2. Allegedly, however, this first update won’t be the only time that Payday 3 will be adding returning content. It remains to be seen how these particular heists will vary between the two games, which makes this first update another defining moment for Payday 3 that will potentially make or break the game.
Payday 3
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Payday 3 is a first-person shooter video game developed by Overkill Software that was released in September 2023.
The game is set after the end of its predecessor, Payday 2, and features the original cast of characters from 2011’s Payday: The Heist.
- Platform(s)
- PC, PS5, Xbox Series X, Xbox Series S
- Released
- September 21, 2023
- Developer(s)
- Overkill Software
- Publisher(s)
- Starbreeze Studios, Prime Matter
- Genre(s)
- FPS