The third installment push up the 2nd game ’s mechanics into the innovative historic period .
Thanks to the recent closed beta for Payday 3 , I was able to dive in for about 10 hours to see what the raw episode had in depot . I overall came out impressed by how much it understand what made the balance of the serial tick , albeit with a few points of concern .
The closed genus Beta itself offered access to the first of the eight heists that will be useable at launch , No quietus for the Wicked . This heist essentially is a complete remaking of the titular Bank Heist from the second game . I also had access to a few of the secret plan ’s signature weapons , alongside some of the potential skills .
Slow and Methodical, or Loud and Violent
As the serial publication is best know for , there ’s rarely just one way to tackle a problem ( excluding stealth or loud - only heist of course ) . In the causa of No Rest for the Wicked , both the stealth and loud methods are fleshed out with plenty of steps along the way .
Stealth has by far figure the most changes , with the orifice holdup offering some much - needed depth that ’s likely to make it far more gratifying on replay . A great example of how this differs is seen prominently in two of Payday 2 ’s more memorable heists , Bank Heist and Car Shop . Trying to run either of these mission stealth is a completely unlike experience . Bank Heist is square and a tad bore on replay ( particularly when waiting several minute for a drill ) , while Car Shop is far more diverse with numerous variables to consider , making it find fresh even after running it a few times . No rest period for the Wicked follows the latter ’s design philosophy which can be a bit overpowering for novel players , but for those willing to learn , it is a good path to prepare for running other heists in stealth .
That ’s not to say that cheap does n’t get the same sort of making love . First and foremost are changes to the game ’s core system . Gunplay feel much tighter and more tasteful , the movement offer a lot more in the way of velocity , and most excitingly , AI is far smart than their Payday 2 similitude .
Image via Starbreeze.
They act far more dynamic in combat , setting up for coordinated blast recreate to each especial enemy ’s strength . One morsel of AI behaviour I noticed more prevalently was with how shield building block ordinate their attacks with the rest of the constabulary force . They ’d often call out to their mate to postdate behind them , like to how actual - life history police will utilize an officer with a bacchanalia shield to take item in assault . foeman units are still easy enough to take down , but have them require a little more strategy is a welcome quite a little , especially on higher difficulty . Related : Remnant 2 Review | Variety is ( Mostly ) the Spice of LifeWhile I ’m worried this wo n’t be logical , I was glad to see how No eternal sleep for the Wicked cuts down on the lengthy wait times for loud approaches . There ’s still some waiting involved , but the power to speed up that wait is a game auto-changer . Instead of await forever for the thermite to break a hole in the floor , you’re able to collect additional thermite to make it burn even faster . Cops can also turn on the sprinklers to cool down down the thermite but can be arrest if you obliterate them in time . I trust this sort of thing persists across the other seven heists , seeing as it force you to stay on your toes and forever challenge you . Speaking ofchallenge , I was impressed by how much they reigned in the incomprehensibledifficultycurve that Payday 2 abide from . Rather than well over half a dozen degree to take into account , they ’ve condense this into four differentsettingsthat sense more streamlined . Unlike the previous biz , they also do n’t get easily aggroup . Each one ( Normal , Hard , Very Hard , and Overkill ) find more in line with what the name suggests . After 10 hours , I was only scarce able-bodied to fill out a discharge on Very severely , something that would be a breeze in the former entrance . Different difficultieseven change stair to the stealth side of armed robbery , which is a welcome refresher and a welfare to replay value .
It should go without order that visuals have seen a massive advance thanks to Unreal Engine 5 . That is n’t to say that Payday 2 is a bad - await game by any stretch of the imagery , seeing as some panorama and grand shell views are beautiful , but its primitive locomotive engine has n’t done grain work any favors . gloss are far more vibrant thanks to the newer engineering , with some parts of the banking concern ’s entrance in No Rest for the Wicked almost reminding me of Mirror ’s Edge in color pallet and panache . When you see the entrance , you might see what I mean .
No Bank Run Goes Smoothly
With all of this being said , Payday 3 ’s beta prove that it is a shade rough around the edges . principal among these problem is the forced always - on-line frame-up . I do n’t have the worst internet in the world , but Ping River is often a considerable pain point that could ’ve been remedied by the ability to solo mission offline . I can excuse the lack of an option to do so with it being a beta and all , but I ’m worried that could deter me from playing when my WiFi is less than conjunct .
Beyond web issues , I was n’t the big fan of the current skill system of rules looping . Rather than a couple of skill Sir Herbert Beerbohm Tree to spec into alongside the perquisite decks , Starbreeze has go for this strange mix of the two that just does n’t knead . It ’s a convoluted system that ’s concentrated to understand , compounded by the fact that you unlock skill slots by gain XP for individual attainment that you demand to manually take . The squad says it ’ll see iteration , so I hope I ’m not tell the same matter at launching .
My last proceeds is potential to be fixed by launch , and that ’s residual . As far as the closed genus Beta is concerned , the shotgun and semi - automatic rifle are Martin Luther King Jr. , with assault rifle put up from ammo issuing and SMGs proving to be nigh unserviceable in anything but Normal . Again , I suspect this will be fixed by launching , but it was a pain point disregardless that should have a snug optic kept on it .
Image via Starbreeze.
The Payoff of a Decade
If attention is pay to the few painfulness points ( things the developers seem keen on holdfast ) , Payday 3 is fructify to be a worthy successor to a monumentally popular game . The game ’s various organization have seen welcome inspection and repair , thanks part to switch over to Unreal Engine 5 . Other areas have go out further development , such as stealth being far more in - depth and meaningful . Payday 3 was one of my most hype game to come in 2023 , and after play the shut beta , that exhilaration is far from being deterred .
Image via Starbreeze.
