I Interviewed Almir Listo About Payday 3's Future...

[@RedArcherLive]

Are you playing Payday 3 again yet? If so, what brought you back? If not, what WOULD bring you back?

[@sirisaac6225]

Yes, the solo mode beta. My internet is unreliable at the moment but the “incentive” for more money and favors makes it fun to grind.

[@RyanAlters]

I am, but what would really bring my loyalty back is a better progression system alongside more maps. It feels like the only progression is weapon levels right now

[@remiemayfallia]

Better heist and maps. The maps are very boring and one dimensional. No versatility and no repeatability, and really gets dry after playing the heist a couple of times.

[@martyr2846]

Never stopped playing from launch.

[@hanzorik6215]

Old Armor 😊

[@gibbings5534]

You have to give props to Almir for being so open and willing to talk about whats happening. Hopefully this Interview will get people in good spirits

[@RedArcherLive]

Yeah, I reached out purely to ask for a comment before I made a video on his call to action because he'd helped me with content before so I felt it best to reach out to him first - it's thanks to him that it snowballed into this and I'm VERY glad it did.

[@braddeal2184]

​@@RedArcherLive nice work

[@WildWombats]

@@RedArcherLive Almir really is the goat!

[@scottdiesel69]

Yes! I love the game and respect this guy and can only imagine what he deals with on a daily basis ❤ RESPECT 🫡

[@jimjam3270]

Honestly I would like a safe house, instead of a menu, to hang with others in a lobby waiting or doing random stuff like in Payday 2

[@Hitscanister]

A hub would be very sweet. I think it would be a lot more lore friendly and engaging than a bland background. Hope to see it in year 2. Edit: typo fix.

[@zerparadoxx9458]

I just want a safehouse so I can just TEST OUT MY WEAPONS. I just wanna know what attachments do for my gun, the bars aren't enough...

[@cool4cookies41]

Almir has lied before, and he will do it again. Payday 3 will stay dead forever.

[@Xenocide333]

Agree

[@zerparadoxx9458]

@@cool4cookies41 let's hope not, but if it does... oh well I suppose

[@SpicySkeleton]

Almir is genuinely a good dude. I really hope payday 3 makes a comeback

[@threadhazard]

source?

[@jeremieallard7687]

@@threadhazardtf you mean source, he's just a good guy

[@Zare007]

Too bad being a good guy doesnt mean that game will be good

[@robgaertner632]

@@Zare007nah fr, great.. he’s a good guy.. beyond everything wrong with the game (I still play i WANT it to flourish) it’s CRAZY it took 10 months for 2 heists

[@Finppa]

He's been here for a long time and has a lot of experience all the way back from Payday 2

[@auspiciouskaktus2692]

Really good interview, and it's nice that Almir came on to clarify what he meant. I was nervous about the future for Payday 3 when people speculated on his statements, but after the interview I'm left excited for the next few months.

[@RedArcherLive]

I'm glad to hear it!

[@dennista42069]

To be fair, if it wasn't for Almir, there would be nobody playing PD3 right now.

[@skilltissue1]

because negativity flows more than positivity

[@nattythepanda4692]

@@skilltissue1 The joke went way over your head.

[@skilltissue1]

@@nattythepanda4692 indeed

[@ZawayixFalconer]

I'm not playing payday 3 right now because i have other games I'm focusing on right now. I've been a payday fan for a very long time, and I very much appreciate that the team is trying to fix the game instead of taking the money and running like most other studios would do. I'm proud to be a part of a community with developers who actually do care and i look forward to seeing how the game changes between now and then

[@panthersfreak02]

It's been getting better and better. The trajectory is definitely on the up and up right now

[@bobrocker1019]

@panthersfreak02 Do the criticisms [Unintelligible] had in the video “PAYDAY 3's heists are not fun, engaging or memorable” still hold true?

[@panthersfreak02]

@@bobrocker1019 I do think they are a little too safe. There needs to be more things to accomplish in heists. But, I don't think they are not fun or anything like that. I really liked Boys in Blue. That was a very fun heist but it also had new guns that came with it too. I think that helped freshen things up there. I do think Boys in Blue is a step in the right direction. We'll see tho because a lot of heists are coming August, September

[@arenndups5294]

​@@panthersfreak02i personally think there needs to be more replayability in each heist. Just adding more rng in every heist would add so much. You don't even need to create new heists for it.

[@SafyAbecasis]

Fantastic interview. Always so pleased to see Almir is comfortable being this open and honest with us. 💜

[@Chickenyummynuggies]

hello payday 3 youtuber

[@RedArcherLive]

Why thank you kindly, new fellow Starbreeze Partner ;)

[@Jacolexi]

That was a average interview to be fair, Red archer went way to easy on Almir and i know there is future colabs and PR things to consider, but a little bit more critical would not have hurt.

[@RedArcherLive]

@@Jacolexi I specifically tried not to get involved in his answers unless I deemed it absolutely necessary (microtransactions lol) but my main goal was to throw a varying range of player outrages and questions at him. I personally think it was a good mix, but I'm sorry you disagree!

[@Jacolexi]

@@RedArcherLive And knowing Almir, you took the very safe approach. But i had hoped you would have pressed him a bit more on payday 3 and the state of it. Payday 2 still has almost 20-30k players, while payday 3 has around 500-800, so clearly something is not right with payday 3 and one issue is the lack of content. Being someone who have put a fair amount of time, and who have been a part of payday since the payday 2 beta, i truly enjoy this game. So with that said keep up the great work Archer,

[@matthewneal1870]

Glad he did the interview and clarified some things, I was one of the people put off by his comments before. I've played every major update, hoping it will make a come back. For me, the loud game play still doesn't feel the best. The Payday 2 loud game play still feels much better, though that is probably just from hundreds of hours of being used to Payday 2. The Stealth in Payday 3 is much better though, which is my favorite way to play in both games. I beat all the Payday 2 DSOD heists, but I can barely beat Payday 3 overkill loud heists. Fighting loud just feels bad in Payday 3.

[@WildWombats]

It was also super cool hearing Almir confirm they are still looking to do a movie/TV series of Payday. I think that could be a great thing for when the game is in a great state (post-medic bag). Fallout did a TV series and it was an incredible boost for their games too. I would think Payday could have that same potential as well to jumpstart some new heisters.

[@elianwilliams]

I think of it more like what Edgerunners did for Cyberpunk 2077, So many people (including me) had written that game off entirely, then Edgerunners coming out of nowhere being so good is what made me & a lot of other people go back to Cyberpunk and realise “oh wait, without all the bugs that were here at launch, this is a great game”

[@jpvaz2280]

Almir my beloved

[@Moonistic]

I will not forget about no 45 min power point about clover.

[@gilby_6543]

$500 patreon reward Moon

[@vanek5229]

I love that Almir is talking to community face-to-face literally every day even after all those negative feedback, cant remember another game developer doing that

[@arbert....8654p]

Excited for next step.

[@Nothing2C-2]

I've had this idea floating around in my head. What if we had some Overkill drops that were support or defensive based. Maybe a supply drop to replenish ammo, health and armor, or maybe a set of Dozer gear that has high damage reduction, but has no armor regen. Thoughts?

[@dennista42069]

1) I really would like to get the safehouse back. There is smth oddly satisfying about seeing your stacks of cash in the vault. 2) Then being able to open the ATM's. What about the saw? 3) A heist like mall crasher. 4) Tbh I am no friend of the overkill weapon system, I want to set a build around my Minigun or flamethrower as my primary. 5) Weapons and weapon attachments. 6) More heists for more replayability. *edit 7) If you cancel the search for a online game, your lobby members will bekicked out of the lobby!!

[@WildWombats]

Building on 6) I think we absolutely could do more heist variation within pre-existing heists already. That surely would be a more easy task too for the team too than entire new heists, and it would add tons of replayability to the existing heists. Different spawn locations, different loot variations more wildly, different setups inside and pickup locations, just more randomness to each heist we have. 7) Introduce NEW loot, like bullion and coins. would loooove to see a bullion vault heist with super valuable coins/dollars/silver/gold/platinum/etc. and it would be a heck of a score 8) Loot bag skins!

[@dennista42069]

@@WildWombats Agree with you. I love the legacy heists. Continental coins were cool aswell. Im looking forward for the safehouse. Almir said that there will be one but it may take some time.

[@WildWombats]

@@dennista42069 I think we're happy to wait if it's something that will happen eventually. It's a highly requested feature.

[@TehCoopaTroopa]

@@dennista42069 I didn't know almir confirmed that, that's cool to hear. Obviously its not top priority right now but having a safehouse is definitely something I really want to see.

[@theoatmealman1037]

Payday 3 should have a player test build version were starbreeze can just throw things out there for the community to try and see what sticks

[@festival3051]

I really want Payday 3 to succeed! Just bought this with a friend. Would like a safehouse like in payday 2 Secondly Crimenet needs to come back!

[@jordyvrinssen]

Almir is honestly such an amazing person. I hope he and the rest of the team enjoy their holiday. They worked so damn hard the past year. Keep up the great work guys, love the communication and honesty!

[@theoatmealman1037]

I hopped back in after not playing since about 2 months after launch, personally the additions I noticed the most were the additional animations added into the game. They give the game a sense of personality that I love. I do think some need tweeking and more need to be added, but the game felt like it had character again

[@faaskee7071]

Never giving up hope. This game is getting there!

[@inkiepie2259]

Honestly my biggest gripe was not being able to hop in the back of the van so I'm happy.

[@Bombadill138]

Almir is doing a great job, you don't see this kinda commitment from a game studio towards the fans nowhere else.

[@DominisNugget]

There are a couple game studios that have this type of comitment

[@shagaru1234]

completely forgets no mans sky lmao

[@tomi-ld9lp]

@@shagaru1234 helldivers is my second in head

[@frostieisme]

I'd play a lot more if I could participate in any form of chatting aside from the current communication wheel. Voice chat especially

[@johannswart9859]

Biggest thing PD 3 can do that would make me play much more is updating the current heists small updates like removing objectives that are not fun (circles) or big updates like heist layouts (Road rage, 99 boxes, Under the surphaze) Adding more RNG elements other than random spots for the key card, but map changes RNG Road rage could do with a lot of randomization of where objects are placed every round.

[@Jocken75]

Good feedback 👍

[@kkay000]

Absolutely, I'd love them to update the current heists.

[@TehCoopaTroopa]

The thing is, what can they really replace circles with that are better? They're clearly meant to replace "just stand and drill" with something that makes you move around the heist instead of turtling with the intention of rewarding team play since you can do multiple at the same time, which is (in my opinion) a better gameplay decision that using the drill and defending that point. Do we really want drilltopia to return?

[@friendly9799]

​@@TehCoopaTroopaThey could make an event where a police unit enables a jammer and they guard it in one of the couple designated spots on the map. Players have to go out, kill the cops and disable the jammer. They could expand it by having some cops pausing progress by accessing one of the computers the heist map has. Same schtick, go out, kill the cop and disable the hack by interacting with the computer.

[@WildWombats]

I really need more RNG for more variation on heists so the replayability goes up. I've played Armor Truck 100 million times it feels like. It's NEVER different. That should not be the case. It should have different paths, different elements, maybe sometimes snipers are there maybe sometimes they aren't it's like a dice roll, the path could be different and longer or shorter, the loot could vary more, spawn points could change, etc.

[@Drag0n092x]

I'm excited for the future of the game.

[@Adlmmmmm]

Payday 3 needs some atmospheric upgrades and some nostalgia from payday 2 wouldn’t be a bad thing Payday 2 soundtracks Character voice lines even if there old ones Bulldozers with the skull 💀 is iconic, more skins and variants of the bull dozers More dynamic police and assaults randomisation Cloakers need better voice lines and to be sneaky again So much More More ways to spend money safe hose, lobby system and voip The skill system needs a overhaul for more role play

[@TheLoveTrain]

the microtransaction answer was wild, like clearly with how he dodged it, we absolutely still have a microtransaction store coming they are just waiting to launch it when we aren't wanting to burn everything down

[@chrisollirum6943]

All I need is more bank heists with good paid and different way to do it. Like change the route of the cops and items and the way to exit the heist. To keep me play more and having more fun as well

[@TBowne]

I really appreciate this video, both you and almir both share a passion for this game same as I and it's so nice to see what the situation is so directly. It really is a precedent that shows just how strong this games community is. Much love to the both of you for this, I look forward to the future.

[@heretics_archive]

I would like smaller smash and grab style heists like 4 stores or the original jewelry store my favorite part of payday 2 was managing hostages and getting bags of jewelry to the van while avoiding triggering an alarm and trying to do it as fast as possible was addicting to me

[@bumx678]

This boys in blue update and the incoming updates made me buy the gold upgrade and fell in love with the game again, my faith has retourned. Keep up boys.

[@RedArcherLive]

Heisting time!

[@marioluigijam3612]

Hell yes! Lets get back in the saddle!

[@nutzz168]

Facts

[@misterbones5981]

If almir listo or any of the payday community / development team sees this please I beg of you add a customization to mask that was one of the coolest features from Payday 2, also another small nitpick of mine please refocus how Overkill weapons work I like the craziness of Payday 2 having a grenade launcher as my secondary weapon instead of a weapon that you call to spawn in, another thing that kind of nitpicks a little bit is that after the third wave of cops it kind of turns into an endless mode but it's like really difficult it feels like I'm being pressured against time to finish the heist in a very fast manner, another nitpick would have to be the edge rush and the other thing being focused in perks, if anything that's the biggest turn off for me from Payday 3 is the fact that I have to rely on those three things to have some of my perks work me personally I would much rather have my perks working all the time instead of having to wait for another thing to happen for my stuff to work. I understand you all are working very hard to get this game to work and please the community so people could keep playing it I'm trying not to sound mean I'm just trying to give you my honest opinion about the game

[@Souls_Master]

Im believe in this game and helps how fast as I can: Bug Reporting and other things. Together we can cook better instead of hating and compare with previous game

[@-------------764]

as much as I love payday and I'll keep coming back for new dlc releases, I can't see myself really playing it as long as the awful skill system and the lack of replayability isn't fixed, the heists suck and theres barely any of them in the game, these issues are bigger to me than a missing VOIP or small bandaid fixes like that.

[@SalvationCode]

I respect the humility and mindset shown in this interview. Healthy competition with Crime Boss is great, and I hope this bit of rivalry drives both games to improve & keep up the momentum. Same with the encouragement of negative, critical feedback. Goodness knows we're really good at that. But the latter half of this year will show if SB's actions speak louder than words. Fingers crossed The Boys in Blue was the nudge & turning point we were all hoping for. Let's see what new adventures await beyond July, buddy.

[@PlebNC]

From what I experienced with Crime Boss: RC it's even a very good comparison to compare it to PD3 because while superficially they share many mechanics the experience they're aiming for is widely different with Crime Boss being more fast "smash and grab" bite sized heisting with criminal gang management and PD3 is more focused on attrition and the heist itself. And while Crime Boss has many of PD3's faults covered, it has many faults that PD3 does better like cops that get in formations and hostage trading/human shield mechanics. Overall hopefully this will lead to a healthy rivalry and maybe a crossover. Imagine recruiting Dallas in Baker's Battle or having Travis Baker or Dollar Dragon as playable PD3 heisters.

[@lonerider543]

To join in with Almir's call of action then here's my comment under a red archer video 😋 I like where the game is heading and the recent updates have been great. The one major thing currently stopping me from playing more Payday 3 myself is the fact that I still cannot pause the game (so no proper offline mode yet). Solo mode is a great first step and I really like being able to skip the matchmaking queue that should not be there when I am playing solely by myself, but I am still holding off a bit until you figure out how to get the game running offline and I am able to pause the game when I need to. As an adult person I cannot usually commit to long sessions of uninterrupted gameplay so being able to pause a game is absolutely vital for me most of the time. Edit: one other thing I would probably note as well is that I struggle a bit with the hardest difficulty. Even when we had that patch recently where everyone was saying how easy and mindless the game was I still struggled, and that has somewhat made me want to play a bit less. I did have a similar issue in Payday 2 to be fair though and I don't necessarily think the game should be adjusted to my needs and it's just a bit of an issue I need to get over myself and maybe just accept that I can just play the game on very hard instead of overkill. At the end of the day I do enjoy Payday way more when I am winning and I am not a good loser, but I understand why it's important for some people to have a challenge when it comes to games.

[@Jocken75]

Thanks for your input 👍

[@screversam7989]

Thank you very much for that interview, that gave me a huge insight on what is actually behind the fascade on the developers side. Still, I would love faster patches or fixes concerning new updates. So here is a "small" request by my side for the new DLC, please fix: - placing down ECM Jammers (doesn't work when the Techie spawns, making anti Techie builds useless) - picking up ammo from an ammo bag (doesn't work even if you have 0 grenades, despite the skills for grenade pickup from ammo bags) - getting shot through the wall in the hall infront of the vault - reduce Techie spawn rate (i had several occasions of the Techies spawning 4 times within 2 minutes, also in other heists than BIB) - cloakers remain kicking you, despite behind handcuffed - not being able to place gadgets on the wall opposite of the vault (when exploded) - lighting in the vault hall and the bathrooms (all bugs occurred on OVK diff. in loud) I'd love to play more of BIB and the game in general, but I just can't get hooked on it because of many nuances throwing me off. I want to support the franchise and the devs as much as I can, but right now it feels like "game/bug testing" instead of actually playing the game. Wish for the best to change that!

[@Mr.Alighieri.]

I want a melee system and tree, maybe the tree buffs throwing knives so you can be like biker from hotline or smth

[@AtomicDudMan]

Payday 3 SUGGESTIONS: -Add in game voice chat and text chat to make it easier to communicate with other players. -Add weekly and Daily challenges for money, xp, and C-Stack for completing to keep us coming back. -Please add mask variants for our OG payday heisters like Dallas, Houston, Chains etc. -Add BETTER suits for players to wear such as the ones with cloth physics such as the default outfits of Dallas, Wolf, and Hoxton. Would love to see some more outfits of classy 3 piece suits. -Add a Joker style mask, masks that are creepier, lifeless, and horror like. -Add holiday cosmetics and outfits, would’ve been cool to have an American flag suit to play on the 4th of July and rob federal banks! -Please bring back Santa’s Workshop from Payday 2! Loved that one! -Add a filter for loud and stealth heist lobbies. -Allow us to create a filter for specific heists we would be willing to play in quick play with friends. -bring crimenet back.

[@shadefrb9812]

Great video this type of content is just as important as good updates very happy to see confidence growing with the devs

[@RedArcherLive]

Glad you think so!

[@scottdiesel69]

You are right Almir! You are doing great! How many other developers play their own game live like you do? lol I’m a huge fan win or loose for Payday content… period! People love to play on words, it’s ok, just keep the masks and heists coming!!! Thank you so much for all of Starbreeze’s hard work! Payday 3 is totally underrated and I hope to god it sails off the charts!!! ❤

[@WildWombats]

What I personally am waiting for to fully lure me in are two things at this point. Operation Medic Bag has addressed much of my other concerns which I'm grateful and glad we got, and I know some of this is already in medic bag, but just to iterate for prioritization sake, I think the crime net needs to be implemented, and loud/stealth lobbies because I personally hate not knowing how the game is going to go down. Sometimes I'm in a loud mood, so I don't feel like stealthing, but I don't want to ruin some guy's stealth run either. So it makes playing a bit hard for me being so unsure on that.

[@chickencurry420]

I'm so happy that Almir is like this. He wants people to participate in the community, even if that participation is simply being critical on Reddit. He actively encourages criticism as long as it's in good faith and you just don't see that anymore. Any other dev would've downplayed it by saying "things weren't up to the usual Fallout standard" if they said anything at all but Almir outwardly admits when they didn't do a great job and actively takes accountability for it. That's why Overkill is the last game dev in which I have any amount of faith anymore. They're the only dev team that seems like they actually give a shit and I really think this is the beginning of a No Man's Sky type of redemption arc for Payday 3. I was very disappointed but I'm so glad that I can now say "was disappointed" in the past tense.

[@danielarnold287]

I’d love cut scenes at the end of missions. Payday has a bunch of really cool escape plans that I never get to see happen 🤪. It’s like one of the most important parts of the heist is missing. I do love the game tho, this just bugs me. Thought I’d put this here in the spirit of the interview. Thanks ✌️

[@CommanderCH]

A bit of feedback from the hardcore grinders side: Some people start leaving mainly for two reasons 1. Their friends are no longer playing (god knows why) 2. There's no goal for us I myself am setting arbitrary goals such as getting out of debt to try and stay entertained but I would much rather prefer a "real" grind-goal. Challenges have been removed. I'm aware I've done them all and they're coming back and that it was a bad system. Still, it was something good for the hardcore grinders. Infamy Point rewards have been hardcore buffed (by x10) which led to us reaching max Renown really quick. Not having a cap at first was actually good in a sense of keeping people like Churmite entertained. So that goal is gone too. I myself have played each heist at least 300 times (not Boys In Blue obviously) and I basically know them inside out. I've done pacifist loud runs, no skillpoint runs, solo Kiss The Chef,... I'm running out of ideas on how to challenge myself, hence I tasked you recently to challenge me (I might actually go for that only backwards walking thing). Atm. I'm mainly trying to play with anyone to try and let them have a good time hopefully. It'd be nice to have a fresh long-term grind-goal for us hardcore grinders. Heck make it Renown 10000 if need be.

[@elizvanguard4598]

I honestly struggle to find people to play with too, and that's also what keeps me going in this game.

[@SterIingM]

Something I would’ve liked discussed more is the armour system and the what appears to be stubbornness from mio not willing to change it “your opinion my choice” comes to mind. I think this is the biggest problem with payday 3 and almost fully prevents me from enjoying the gunplay and heists

[@Payday69]

I can’t wait for Almir mask

[@RedArcherLive]

Same...

[@peves-]

And heister.

[@joshuag8106]

Shame it’s a twitch drop

[@tgeharry9335]

@@joshuag8106 when is the almir mask twitch drop happening do you no ?

[@joshuag8106]

@@tgeharry9335 idk, I don’t watch twitch.

[@firsttodie7013]

U can do it ! The game is good base, just need some more seasoning.

[@AtomicPuma9]

Honestly glad we got a question about the MTX store. I feel like Starbreeze in general has had a change in attitude towards it. Going from it’s gonna happen, to it’ll happen later on, to where we are today with them looking at different games and I love love LOVE that Almir specifically talked about HD2 and how they do their MTX. It’s fair and you don’t feel pressured to buy stuff whatsoever if you don’t want to and you’d rather just spend the time to play the game. Payday 3 could very well do the same thing and as long as the gameplay loop is good (much like Helldivers 2) they will bring people new and returning people into the game and make some money from people that don’t mind spending $10 on a pack. It’s a win win for everyone involved.

[@sol-3uk]

I took another look at the game after Boys in Blue and honestly the impact was barely there. I wasn't hooked, I don't want to grind to level up these new weapons. They're not the most fun part about the game by any stretch. The heists and re-playability are almost the ONLY thing that will bring back a lot of the loyal fanbase. The thing that brought me back to Payday 2 was the payout after each heist, the crime sprees and the promise of levelling up, unlocking a rare cosmetic, re-skilling multiple times with infamy. None of that exists in PD3, bar the few weapons that I can buy with the money I'm using to buy them and kit them out. There just needs to be a tangible hook: Give me a reason to mix up my skills (Why would I use anything other than a one-hit build? Give me a "class" I can get behind). Give me a reason to use different weapons (Would I sacrifice a primary for more loot? Saw?) Give me a reason to replay heists in different orders for higher risk/reward.

[@creed9938]

They should add infamy it gives you something to grind for and keep playing

[@Xenocide333]

It's great that the team is listening and interacting with the community, Almir seems like a nice guy (payday twitter man?). I'm positive, I believe this game can make a comeback, just need that server browser and lobby system!

[@lmratichino]

Honestly I think the payday team has been doing such a good job, and if they keep putting updates out like the Boys in Blue update then payday 3 will be a really solid game.

[@CasperTLW]

Here’s some common sense, more content. Masks that make sense, cosmetics that can actually match, more outfits/masks/guns that you can buy with in game money. More attachments that make make sense for the guns, attachments for specific guns, regular masks like a balaclava or things like those. Max 3 heists per update, more taste in the heists, heists that are more complex and just have more thought in the progression. The ability to take your mask off and put your gun back, more colours that match outfits, the ability to change colours on the track suits like the white lining.

[@onji5213]

Amazing interview. Thank you Troy and Almir for this one!

[@RedArcherLive]

Thanks!

[@tlatham2260]

Thank you so much for this, it gives me a lot of hope

[@creed9938]

Am I the only person that wants infamy to return all the way to 100 so after level 150 you can go infamous

[@robertlocke7711]

Bulid are what makes payday. Building for armor or a gun type skills that synergize with you perk deck. But in 3 there is only a few skills worth taking and everyone uses them. So replay is low where in 2 lot of different ways to build for the heist or just try a different style of play. Focus on that.

[@MrChase-]

W Almir, W dev team, W game

[@RedArcherLive]

W Archer? 👉👈🥺

[@elizvanguard4598]

​@@RedArcherLive YES W ARCHER!

[@BaowSchmeow]

I feel like the biggest issue I am having is with variety of missions and mission rewards. Some missions are fun but I would love more stuff in the future like Mall Crashers (paid for destroying stuff), Meltdown (transporting loot in interesting ways), 4 Stores (variety of ways/places to loot), etc. (I don’t remember the names of a lot of heists but there was a wide variety of just things to do). Rewards. Everything in Payday 3 is money. That is the only thing you really can farm and you need an absolute crap ton of money. (Everything I play on Hard) I have been playing Gold & Sharke since it gives almost $2 million. I played Rock the Cradle and it gave a tiny bit over $1 million I believe. Road Rage was only like $800,000. The thing is most things you can buy cost C-Stacks…. In a week I get under 200 C-Stacks (I just got back into the game discovering my laptop can run it so I have been buying the mask of the week every time it has become available). The problem with that is a pair of gloves is either 50 or 100 C-Stacks. Customized Masks are 100, 200 and maybe higher (I am “only” 134 so there are 4 masks I can’t see their prices). It would be interesting in the future if we get heists that give us other rewards like paints (Chaos Graffiti, Patched Camo, Them Bills, etc.)…. maybe have us stealing a car from a detailing shop and as an extra reward we get extra paint jobs. I would love to get experience for guns from kills. It’s kind of annoying to use the same gun you don’t like over and over again and only getting like half a level per mission. Also of course I would love more variety of weapon attachments like when we got the AK and AR weapon packs in Payday 2 where more unique attachments came out. Right now most guns all get the same attachments

[@AliChitax]

agreed with everything you said, funny how Crime Boss has missions like Mall Crasher where you destroy cars of a gangs group and 4 stores with 3 variants of that mission I play both games , I love the gunplay of Payday 3 but that's it for now, and I love the looting and heisting ALOT more in Crime Boss

[@OneVate]

Maybe it's just me, but I would like to see some more fun Achievements in the game and some random stuff like the stampler in Breakin' Feds. So that you always have something to work for

[@MovieTrialers]

The “why should I buy into a dying game?” question wouldn’t be an issue if Payday 3 wasn’t an online only, live service mess at its core. That can’t be patched out, they’d have to make a whole new game with different foundations. It’s a shame, but that decision has cost the game its success.

[@Jocken75]

I believe off-line mode is one of the highest priorities to add 👍

[@caligero3000]

True. All they had to do, was make pd2, but better. They have had more than TEN YEARS to do this. Better graphics, better gameplay, better or different missions, better whatever. They could have just made a regular co-op mp shooter, but had to try out the live service thing. It worked so terribly well for rocksteady's suicide squad, after all... This is beyond fucking shameful, I have to say. Some truly shameful shit. They didn't even have to make it that much better, just a little bit. Just a simple sequel to pd2 that improves on the pd formula and is good old fun to play, that's all anyone has ever asked of them. And that was apparently way too much to ask, it seems.

[@jackayers4569]

So much respect for Almir to do this, it can’t be easy to come out and face the community like this considering how this game bombed the way it did I enjoy payday 3 and will support it throughout its content drops I just wish I could get my friends to give another try

[@tonymoreno6961]

Always been a fan of payday and it feels good seeing it come back.😎

[@liamwelch6485]

I just want a ps5 version of payday 2 with all the dlc I'll pay full price for that

[@TheFunnyscool]

I just got this game on sale, and me and my friends been really liking it. We've only been doing stealth though because to me that's the most fun thing to do in payday in my opinion. I can see the complaints about going loud. I also don't think it's not as bad of a game as what everyone is making it out to be though. It does have problems, but it also has improvements, and hopefully they can find their footing and make it better.

[@cleanboi9136]

the time it takes to log in, cancel matchmaking, and exit heists (and to a lesser extent purchasing things) is crazy long

[@DomExists]

If we do get collabs honestly I just want my boy bodhi back

[@helrazr44]

I haven't grabbed the game, because everything that's come out so far has a 'This is good, but...' and the 'but' usually sticks out and feels like a two steps forward, one step back. You guys are so close to the turning point to put this game on the trajectory to greatness I know this game is capable of.

[@ashhely]

Will we still be able to play solo mode when maintenance during updates happens? Since normally it stops that initial loading of the game. I really hope they sort that before the next update so that the impact of maintenance is not so great when it lasts 8+ hours.

[@captainhydrodus4616]

Can we get some QOLs during this month at least? this mask event thing coming up gives me a bit of hope, so far though thanks to almir for coming out and speaking on behalf of the team and all that, I won't ease up on my caution but they're doing good so far

[@AtomicDudMan]

I am here for it! I’ve been here since payday 2s launch. I played payday 3 on launch on gamepass to see what it was about. Leveled to level 77 and stopped playing until you fixed progression. Now I am a level 150 and 25 infamy. I bought the gold edition recently and I love the game. The foundation for payday 3 is a wonderful structure and foundation for years to come and build off of! The games getting better and I look forward to the future. Until then, “I NEED A MEDIC BAG!”

[@ItzumiMario]

Hey Almir, I'm a heister that has been following PD2 for a long time, and I left the game after the microtransaction fiasco came out. I have already purchased PD3, but I never played it beyond a few hours because content felt stale and boring. Since PD2, I've been keeping track of the community, conversations about the game, with the hope of one day getting back into the PD series. If this open dialogue goes on, and the community's feedback is great to content updates and patches, I'll be looking forward to playing PD3 again. I would also be able to get my friends to join in on the fun as well.

[@leandrolacorcia]

The whole thing sounds very good. I'm looking forward to the second year. ❤

[@tomt55]

Thank for posting this interview! QOL issues are certainly getting better. The latest update, BIB, was a solid one. I am an Xbox player and an old man that enjoys co-op horde shooters. I think much more new free/legacy heists and finding a way to vary existing heists to allow players to play and enjoy a lot more and diverse content is essential going forward to continue growing the player base. Another suggestion(s) are the skill points... The skill point system feels a bit bloated now and some core features should be combined into lesser skill points to make it easier/less complicated to create a viable build for the player. Are there plans to add more points for the players to play around with? I personally find it very enjoyable to find and try different skill point builds to vary game play and specialize in different styles of play.

[@Spectrezx]

More Trench Coats! I want some black on black drip. And i miss my Cobra Commander style mask from 2.

[@PlebNC]

I'd love some weapon colours based on brushed metals and woods so I can make my guns classy with wood foregrips and brushed steel/aluminum barrels/receivers. Currently most weapon colours feel like they belong on Nerf guns with how bright and saturated they are.

[@TakedaIesyu]

I feel that much of what he said was corporate-speak except for the Q&A. That had the sort of authentic and realistic responses that Almir is known and loved for in the community, and I appreciate his honesty. This being said, I've been playing since launch, I'm still playing, and I'm still having fun. I look forward to seeing what gets added in Year 2!!

[@LeDuck1999]

I gave the launch of Payday 3 a good try and I mean I played it for a good month and half after the release. Wanting it to be good just like PD2, but PD3 let me down in terms of what we had in PD2 already. It felt like PD3 was the literal barebones of PD2. After watching this and having not played PD3 in a good 6 months, I will try it again just because of what Almir said. I see that he and the dev team are compassionate about the game and have a positive outlook on the game especially when he said they want to support it for years to come. I feel that in those years PD3 will become a great game. Also have to give massive credit to Almir for doing this interview. Respect all around for being transparent and honest about what they are doing.

[@creed9938]

I personally really enjoy the game and have little problems with it 🤷

[@ston63]

i feel like if Almir said this when the game first launched this would have been terrible, but post boys in blue, I really belive in him.

[@Arthad]

I love that Almir and Elizabeth are leading the PR of the game. They really reassure me that Payday 3 won't die and it's further being reinforced by the amazing work they've done so far

[@bucketzzz.]

TROY! The ducklord has been summoned. For this content I find quite appetizing. Ducklord approved.

[@RedArcherLive]

Quack?

[@bucketzzz.]

@@RedArcherLive Ahh yes. I understand, alas the language of the ancients is spoken once more. Godspeed Troy, Godspeed.

[@PlebNC]

Places bread on altar.

[@bucketzzz.]

@@PlebNCthank you for the offering 🥺

[@vaughnmartin2949]

No matter what they say they can never make me hate you payday 3

[@cherryking9571]

Having been with the franchise for around 10 years now and having grown up with the Payday 2, I’m very relieved seeing Almir allowed to speak. Sure, he doesn’t or can’t comment on everything (Microtransactions store still being on the table feels kind of meh) but nonetheless it’s just reassuring having him acknowledge these frustrations, even if I don’t agree on some of what he said I can understand where he’s coming from and it does feel like he’s being as transparent as he can within reason. If you’re reading this Almir, know that for all the thumbnails with you in devil horns or whatever else, we appreciate you, I know that I do at the very least :)

[@WildCharger]

Upon first hearing Almir’s clarification, my rather emotional response was that the community _had_ been “participating”. Ever since the launch debacle, and especially since PD3’s gameplay flaws became staggeringly apparent, you have had no shortage of negative feedback, most of which makes it very clear what the community consensus is. He sounds like he wants every single person to chip in their voice, and even now that still feels a bit entitled to me - there’s a lot of people who already feel as if a more prominent community figure has already voiced their opinion for them, basically, and see no need to repeat it, which is within their right. But eventually my thought process trailed off to voting. In the US, we have a fair number of organizations that openly encourage voting, regardless of the circumstances. So what I kind of realized is that what Almir is saying here is no more egregious than if a US government official publicly told every citizen to vote, regardless of their leaning or association. I’d argue this, however, only to the extent of people who have not yet refunded the game. If you still _have_ the game, and you are choosing not to refund it, then I would at that point agree that your voice is needed to help bring the game to where you think it should be, within reason. Unfortunately, it’s the corporate backend Almir can’t speak to that still pretty much baffles me. Starbreeze higher-ups constantly making decisions that just make no sense has an effect of nullifying hope for PD3 when the reality is that, even if the dev team shared every last bit of private information _they_ had access to, they cannot really counteract said nullification. So at this point my hesitancy goes beyond the PD3 dev team and is now directly associated with the corporate suits.

[@flamedramon68]

I have a lot of respect for Almir

[@OfficerNoodles]

I'm hearing a lot about cooking, looking forward to when the Payday dev team gets it on the table.

[@RedArcherLive]

Boys in Blue sounds like it's just the starter course!

[@alostbaron781]

This is what I wish 343i would do. As both a Halo and Payday fan, it's been rough. But at least Payday hasn't abandoned us yet! Keep going!

[@carminefan110]

It’s never fair in Almirs case Even back in 2 and probably PDTH since he’s the PR mascot He always takes the full brunt of all the negative feedback whenever anything goes wrong with the game Shooting the messenger and such

[@bxndz8917]

I’d like to see overkill 145+ comeback to payday 3 , as it’s more comparable to PTH , I feel like it’d fit perfectly into the style . Reintroduce medics and a spin off on the zeal units , as well as a mini gun dozer a minigun as overkill weapon (takes longer to get and heavily slows you down due to its damage output)

[@seandivens7654]

Good interview.

[@sheeshore]

That's our boy! I am hopeful for the Payday 3 revival

[@shanky.y]

I believe the ultimate game-changer would be a collaboration between Payday 3 and CrimeBoss Rockay City. If Payday 3 integrates A character or a heist from CrimeBoss Rockay City and vice versa, it would ignite the heist gaming genre in an exciting way. Players would thoroughly enjoy the enhanced experience brought by such a crossover.

[@AnthonyAscue]

Good interview. Fair but tough questions and good answers. Honestly all I wanted from them was to show a little humility and admit they made the wrong decisions on some features. It’s just the lessons learned from Payday 2, that’s all I wanted to carry over, and I’m glad they’re focusing on it now. Wished they would have done this earlier but I’m glad they’re at least trying.

[@Jocken75]

Thanks for sharing 👍

[@deth2you458]

Here's what will bring me back to Payday 3: no more "standing in the white circle" objectives (I'm unaware if there are any in the BIB DLC), Overkill weapons getting a major rework/buffs (because it feels like 70% of the time I call one in it either spawns too far away or behind a horde of enemies), the ability to command my AI followers (or at the bare minimum is to get them to wait in an area like in PD2), a rework of the favor system (getting them randomly is annoying and frustrating, and like 60% of the ones you get anyway suck), and all-around weapon buffs/more guns in general.

[@Riteliso]

I mean the reason I cant really get back into it easily because all my friends dont wanna give it another shot yet because any time theyve tried to hop back in in the past theyve had technical troubles

[@praserdanser5407]

I hope to all that is brilliant that they atleast have considered jackets return

[@pastasandwich]

Heists need to be more replayable, and higher scale the enemy spawns feel static, i enjoy how the cops get harder the longer youre on the map, but it feels predictable the way completing certain objectives, the cops will start to spawn certain enemies (i.e, NRFTW dye packs spawning a dozer) i believe pre planning would really help replayability, give us more options to get into bank vaults! (drill on nrftw, thermite on gold and sharke), more escapes! (gold and sharke, have a loud escape option in the garage? that would give open elevator a use in loud! On the flip side, a zipline escape for stealth, to use the roof!) Give us a way of breaking through barriers other than hacking circles/qr codes. I think one huge missed opportunity with payday 3 is you never have to push AGAINST cops (Heat Street, Hoxton Breakout day 1), the streets on NRFTW are just....empty, why arent cops waiting for us, having to push through some cops could really help the game feel more chaotic, and encourage sticking with your team more. Payday The Heists heat street had such dynamic gameplay with having to push as a team, and i feel like payday 3's mechanics could really feel good with a heat street like, crowded urban environment with the gang on the run.

[@Jocken75]

👍

[@alcapo9600]

The success of post-launch content for payday 2 can be summed up with one character… and that’s FUCKING Jacket!!!

[@peves-]

Without question, boys in blue feels like a comeback. It feels like payday 2 felt in some ways and that's very cool. I would love to see more updates that feel similar to payday 2 and I think I'm probably not alone here. This game can really make a huge comeback and I still have hope for it. I have said negative things in the past but I have also said a lot of positive things and I would love to see some great things around the corner. Laser detectors being brought back would be great. I hope to see more than just one though. 14 in payday 2 to just 1 in payday 3 is a harsh reduction. A starting amount of 3 would be nice but another skill allowing for 2 or 3 more would be nice too. I've also said this several times already in the past, and I'm saying this with hopes that Almir actually DOES read this. The cutscenes are lackluster. They are not videos. They pan over an image and I have always felt that this was not a great way to do cutscenes. Hitman did this in one of the games as well and I've just always disliked this style. I hope eventually we get some proper cutscenes to replace the ones that are there. I know live acted stuff requires a big budget. I am not even necessarily asking for live acting. Some animated scenes would be good too.

[@Jocken75]

Animated cutscenes are also very expensive 💸

[@peves-]

@@Jocken75 I'm well aware of that, however when you go from payday 2 with live acted scenes and then Payday 3 has voices over an image it's a massive downgrade! I know animating scenes costs as well but not as much as it costs to make live acted scenes. You have your guys on the team working on that, as opposed to hiring an entire film crew, budgeting for lights, props, actors, costumes, .. the list goes on. In an animated scene you can reuse costumes, characters, lights, and assets that already exist, which drastically brings the costs down compared to using all real life things. I don't feel that panning over a picture is good. I think it looks tacky and I think Starbreeze is better than that.

[@Jocken75]

@@peves- thanks for your input and I agree animations would look much better but we only have a small ingame animation team and not a cinematic animation team so we had to focus on game animations. The cut scenes were made by outsource studio on a budget that was not for cinematics