i usually give semi-ironic reviews to things but with PD3 i feel like i have to do something different. so here we go

ahem

payday has been a part of my gaming identity for a while: ever since PD2 had that free giveaway back in... i wanna say 2017. hell, i watched the trump-biden debate happen live while playing cook off. i never worked through the mystery, but i got to see it unfold in real-time. i never experienced the safe fiasco, but i got to see it unfold after-the-fact. when PD3 was teased, i got to see it happen before my very eyes: and i was hyped. i was beyond hyped. it looked amazing.

when launch came, i was one of the view who still really liked this game. it had its problems, but i never really play with other people. they didn't affect me most of the time: but the complaints were there and i felt the teething pains. i got dropped from matches, i was unable to connect to servers, i plateaued at level 50. i watched as the management team bungled its way through broken promises and operation medic bag.

i also watched this game rise from the ashes.

is it perfect? no. not even close. it's clearly living on a packet of monster munch and a hi-five, but it's building something out of the crumbs. that was a stupid analogy, but you get my point. for all of its faults when it came out, PD3 is a beautiful game. it's the best looking—and best feeling—game in the series. even at launch the gameplay was incredibly tight, and the core combat loop is the best in the series. it's an incredibly fast and tight game, with there not really being any bad builds: i've played as adrenaline-junkie SMG-toters, armored up bullet hoses, and masters at sneaking through robbing people blind without ever putting on my mask. the skill system, while a little hard to completely understand, plays into itself very well and is a massive step up from the perk deck system.

the new leveling system is fast and rewarding, and although many people dislike the UI i think it looks beautiful. there are only a few heists i dislike (under the surphaze and 50 boxes come to mind) but i still enjoyed my first playthroughs. the newest heists—boys in blue, houston breakout, and fear & greed—are all masterclasses that feel like some of the best heists from the latter days of PD2's lifespan. the new heists that came with the game are nothing to sneeze at, either. rock the cradle is a highlight for being the best heist to stealth through in the entire series, and gold & sharke attempted to be this game's first world bank and while it did not quite reach those levels it's still an incredibly fun and engaging bank heist.

PD3 is a game that i still think has the utmost potential to succeed. right now, even if it's not taking in a lot of money, it's in an incredibly good place both content-wise and gameplay-wise. the story may be a bit lackluster, especially when compared to the grand conspiracy of PD2, but there's a story that exists and is definitely getting paid attention to.

at the end of the day, payday 3 is very fun, and that's all that games really have to be.

i usually give semi-ironic reviews to things but with PD3 i feel like i have to do something different. so here we go ahem payday has been a part of my gaming identity for a while: ever since PD2 had that free giveaway back in... i wanna say 2017. hell, i watched the trump-biden debate happen live while playing cook off. i never worked through the mystery, but i got to see it unfold in real-time. i never experienced the safe fiasco, but i got to see it unfold after-the-fact. when PD3 was teased, i got to see it happen before my very eyes: and i was hyped. i was beyond hyped. it looked amazing. when launch came, i was one of the view who still really liked this game. it had its problems, but i never really play with other people. they didn't affect me most of the time: but the complaints were there and i felt the teething pains. i got dropped from matches, i was unable to connect to servers, i plateaued at level 50. i watched as the management team bungled its way through broken promises and operation medic bag. i also watched this game rise from the ashes. is it perfect? no. not even close. it's clearly living on a packet of monster munch and a hi-five, but it's building something out of the crumbs. that was a stupid analogy, but you get my point. for all of its faults when it came out, PD3 is a beautiful game. it's the best looking—and best feeling—game in the series. even at launch the gameplay was incredibly tight, and the core combat loop is the best in the series. it's an incredibly fast and tight game, with there not really being any bad builds: i've played as adrenaline-junkie SMG-toters, armored up bullet hoses, and masters at sneaking through robbing people blind without ever putting on my mask. the skill system, while a little hard to completely understand, plays into itself very well and is a massive step up from the perk deck system. the new leveling system is fast and rewarding, and although many people dislike the UI i think it looks beautiful. there are only a few heists i dislike (under the surphaze and 50 boxes come to mind) but i still enjoyed my first playthroughs. the newest heists—boys in blue, houston breakout, and fear & greed—are all masterclasses that feel like some of the best heists from the latter days of PD2's lifespan. the new heists that came with the game are nothing to sneeze at, either. rock the cradle is a highlight for being the best heist to stealth through in the entire series, and gold & sharke attempted to be this game's first world bank and while it did not quite reach those levels it's still an incredibly fun and engaging bank heist. PD3 is a game that i still think has the utmost potential to succeed. right now, even if it's not taking in a lot of money, it's in an incredibly good place both content-wise and gameplay-wise. the story may be a bit lackluster, especially when compared to the grand conspiracy of PD2, but there's a story that exists and is definitely getting paid attention to. at the end of the day, payday 3 is very fun, and that's all that games really have to be.