It took a whole lot longer than anyone expected (or reasonably thought possible), but the first Payday 3 patch is finally here. Developer Starbreeze says the update makes “a massive amount of fixes to make your heisting a smoother experience,” and that the instability issues players have been dealing with since the game launched in September are finally fixed.
It’s been a long, rough road getting here. Payday 3’s launch was a catastrophe: Players strongly disliked the game’s progression system, and worse, its demand for an online connection even for solo play meant that matchmaking woes were a big headache even for people who wanted to play by themselves. A presumed fix didn’t pan out, and a more comprehensive update planned for early October was delayed multiple times as Starbreeze discovered and struggled to fix numerous problems.
The net result is visible on Steam, where the user rating almost immediately tanked to “mostly negative” and concurrent player numbers remained a small fraction of Payday 2’s. That situation is slowly turning around: The user rating has managed to climb up to “mixed,” although with just 40% positive user reviews it’s at the absolute bottom of that scale. Still, it’s progress in the right direction, and this patch will hopefully go a long way toward lifting it up further.
The first patch makes a wide range of fixes and balance changes, including to a number of connection-related problems: Issues preventing the social list from filling, that prevented matchmaking when a former party leader leaves, and a non-specific “crash related to IP address,” are all reportedly addressed by the patch. Several other crash issues have also been fixed.
“After some instability, we’re finally up and running as things should be!” Starbreeze wrote. “Heisters heisting, civilians screaming and cops floundering! We’ve got a lot more cooking, keep letting us know when you find bugs and sending us your suggestions!”
Naturally, some players aren’t happy that it took this long for the first Payday 3 patch to arrive, and there’s a multitude of complaints about issues that remain unaddressed on Steam and Reddit. The weapon charm and death wish reward that were offered in the cross-promotion with Payday 2 still haven’t been granted (Starbreeze said it hopes to have that straightened out in time for the next patch), and there’s also no word on the studio’s earlier musing about a possible offline mode: The Payday 3 FAQ still states that “we haven’t ruled it out as a possible safeguard to ensure Payday 3 will remain always playable,” but as of now no work has begun on that front. There also doesn’t appear to be any of the promised changes to Payday 3’s progression system.
Still, it’s a step in the right direction, and in the few hours since the patch went live, Payday 3’s concurrent player count has seen a bump—a small bump, yes, but it seems that despite all the doubt and despair, at least some players are eager to see just how much this patch really improves things. If it delivers as promised, maybe Starbreeze can finally start taking meaningful steps toward turning its fortunes.
The full patch notes are below.
GENERAL
- Added pre-order and edition specific items to everyone
- Last radio call will now provide a last warning before alarm goes off, and will not be interrupted by other radio dialogues
- Players can now not turn the camera during the full tased effect
- Added a fix for the “Cleanin’ It Out” achievement to pop up when the criteria is met
- Fixed an issue where the player doesn’t gain “Rush” when masking up while sprinting
- Fixed an issue where the player could bind “Throw item” and “Request overkill weapon” to the same keybind
- Updated the aim assist function for PS5 controllers
- Closing or opening doors will no longer push/move players in close proximity
- Fixed a crash caused when answering a radio
- Fixed a crash that could happen when vaulting near the heist end
- Fixed an issue where players got stuck in crouch when playing with high ping
- Added a fix so Overkill weapons don’t fall through vehicles
- Fixed so the tutorial scroll box is scrollable the second time you open a tutorial popup
- Added a fix for a crash caused by multiple explosions
- Fixed an issue where the “Closing the Account” trophy didn’t unlock properly
- Fixed so the achievement “Cleanin’ it out” needs to be done on Overkill
- Fixed issue with marking though some windows
- Added a fix to prevent players from getting stuck when using a human shield that dies
- Fixed a DLSS related crash
- Fixed an issue where the player can get stuck and not proceeding to menus after failing a heist
- Removed a state check to fix issue with AI placed bags having wrong rotation
- Added a fix so game won’t crash when joining another player through social or shell
- Fixed an issue with the social list not filling up
- Fixed an issue where a party couldn’t matchmake if the former party leader had left the party
- Fixed an issue where social list didn’t populate after reestablishing an internet connection
- Changing languages should now work
- Fixed a crash related to getting a random character when joining a game
- Fixed a crash related to IP address
- Closed the weapon experience exploit in 99 Boxes
BALANCE
For this patch, we wanted to primarily address minor fixes.
We are aware that Last Man Standing and Armor Up are performing a bit too well, so we plan to give them a few tweaks that keep them effective, but require a bit more setup compared to the benefits they offer. This will be in the next big patch. Outside of these two skills, we don’t expect any big nerfs coming to skills in the next patch, but given players are still getting used to the game, we’ll be keeping a close eye on the meta.
We are also aware that armor is considered the most desirable resource compared to ammo and health. We are happy with how armor itself works, but we want to put in a few more ways for players to restore it in the game. We also think health is underperforming right now, but addressing that will be a gradual change over the first year of updates, rather than one sweeping update.
SKILLS
- Using Manipulator Basic Skill will no longer cause an interaction interference when players do multiple interactions in a row
- “Battering Ram” skill can no longer be used to open blue keycard door on “Rock the Cradle”
- “Battering Ram” skill can no longer be used to open the front door on “Touch the sky”
WEAPONS
- Added ability for knives to be thrown through broken shield visors.
- Fixed an issue where throwing knives couldn’t be picked up when the equipped primary or secondary weapon had full ammo
- Adjusted the Vertical Grip spawn point on weapon PC9
- Moved the magazine release lever on SA A144
- Fixed an issue with weapon recoil in lower FPS
ENEMIES
- Dozers will now get closer before engaging heisters with their shotgun
- Updated the enemy flashbangs to apply flash effect more consistently
- Player can no longer open doors leading to enemy spawn locations
TECHNICAL
The real meat of this update, the tech stuff! There’s a wide variety of fixes and changes on this list. Continue to let us know if you find any bugs and we’ll keep smashing them!
UI
- Added a “Keep these display changes?” message after changing screen resolution.
- Fixed a minor typo in the loadout section
- UI update for favor reward in result screen
- Reduced description text size, in skill line menus
- Added ability for players to review the EULA again after creating their accounts
- Fixed an issue causing player names, and infamy levels, to not load correctly and displaying wrong information
- Fixed translation issue related to the whiskey bottle in “Touch the Sky”
- Fixed overlapping text in heist overview
- Added icons for when buffs are blocked due to certain skills
- Dropdown for offline friends in social screen should now be displayed correctly
- Added a fix for the camera zooming out of screen when inspecting an item from the vendors
- Fixed an issue showing an incorrect amount of remaining radio calls when a player joins an ongoing heist
- Added a fix for overlapping weapon mod names to make them more readable
- Player stats are now shown in result screen when failing a heist
- Added a fix so a joining player’s name is displayed in the chat
- Added a button prompt showing how to exit the safe cracking mini-game
- The phone hacking visualization should now always reach full when completing
- Fixed locked story videos to properly reset color values when initialized
- Adjustments made to fonts in settings menu
- Fixed an issue with the “report player” option not appearing
- Fixed an issue where the user could interact with the menus when the report text box was open
- Added a fix for stock mods “TQ” and “HQ”, their titles are now aligned in the loadout
- Tool input is now shown as blocked when interacting with loot
- Resized the loadout selection bar
- Fixed an issue with joining a friend in the social menu when spamming the join button
- Fixed an issue on with friends not to appear properly
AUDIO
- A sound of dropping a dead body onto the ground will now be played when players drop bodies
- The sound effect of sliding will now stop playing when players stop sliding
- Added sound effect for closed windows being destroyed
- Cinematic audio volume is now also affected by master volume
- Removed “break” VFX from throwing knives that don’t break when Retriever skill is equipped
- Added a fix for smalltalk between civilians and employees not triggering
- Added more small talk conversations between civilians
- Shade voice over will no longer play, when players return to the main menu after canceling matchmaking
- Improved the sound effect for opening crates
- Disabled the Shade VO about file clues when the actual documents have already been picked up
- Wolf now whisper instead of screams for medic bags during stealth gameplay
- Fixed an issue where dye packs would loop the audio when breaking while being disarmed
- Fixed an issue where civilian cellphone ringtones would loop forever
- Fixed an issue that could cause eye scanner to play incorrect VO when scanning the correct NPC
- Audio balancing for enemy VOs
- Added more door sounds
- Added sound effects for NPC animations
- Fixed an issue where the human shield takedown sound effect would not stop if you reload your gun while choking someone out
VISUALS
- Fixed a visual issue with deployables placed on moving objects that wouldn’t sync up for players joining an ongoing heist
- Fixed deployables floating in the air when placed on a surface that then moved, deployables will now fall to the ground.
- Fixed an issue with deployables floating when placed on certain doors
- Fixed multiple minor graphical issues on the front part of the bank on “No Rest of the Wicked”
- Fixed weapon animation issue when looking upwards and using tools
- Added a fix so that switching between sprinting and placing tools wouldn’t cause issues when sprinting.
- Fixed animation issue when SWATs are freeing hostages appearing as taking damage
- Fixed an issue on lower graphical settings causing the door of the escape helicopter to appear broken. (PC)
- Fixed a bug where the player could get inside the transport van in one of the pot holes in “Road Rage”
- Fixed a bug where standing on the van would cause the player positions to glitch
- Realigned The Butcher’s contractor image with the bottom of the screen
- Subtitle fixes for story videos
- Fixed a animation issue when using microcamera
- In-game heist info screen now scales properly across aspect ratios
- Adjusted enemy sabotage animation
- Optimized foliage LODs
HEIST
- Melee damage no longer affects environment details that should only take damage from explosions/gunfire in Gold & Sharke
- Fixed missing collision, in a small area on the bank roof, on “No Rest for the Wicked”
- Removed an area that was tagged as “public” on the roof in “Under the Surphaze”
- Fixed a bug that led guards to sometimes walk through a closed door on “No Rest for the Wicked”
- Added a fix for the Security Door that was openable without a Blue keycard on “99 boxes”
- Added a missing out of bounds screen filter in “Under the Surphaze”
- Deployables no longer disappear when thrown through vents on “Touch the Sky”
- Added a fix for canceling sliding into panic room’s door on “Touch the Sky”
- Fixed the texture of the panic room’s door on “Touch the Sky”
- “Favors” and “Difficulty” are no longer visible in tutorials when holding Tab
- Players will no longer stutter when jumping and sprinting inside the truck on “99 Boxes”
- Added collision to block players from getting stuck behind a curtain on “Under the Surphaze”
- Added collision to prevent bags from being thrown outside of the playable area on “Road Rage”
- Fixed a vent navigation issue in “Rock the Cradle”
- Fixed an issue where bags would get stuck in the forklift on “Road Rage”
- Fixed an issue where loot bags would disappear when throwing them into the zipline on “Touch the Sky”
- Fixed an issue where AI crew could get stuck in “99 Boxes”
- Fixed issues where you could throw bags out of reach on “Dirty Ice”
- Fixed an issue where some jewelry trays are clipping in the VIP room on “Dirty Ice”
- Added so the drill option appears during Stealth on “Touch the Sky”
- Disabled all interaction for placed planks once all four have been placed on “Road Rage”
- Added a fix for where the Escape Objective sometimes didn’t appear on “Dirty Ice”
- The “Enter the Workshop”-objective will get disabled if players secure maximum loot
- Fixed an issue where Mason gets poisoned despite not being delivered the poisoned drink on “Touch the sky”
- Fixed an issue where the armored truck would get stuck before the final ramp on “Road Rage”
- Fixed an Overkill difficulty issue where the bouncer wouldn’t let you proceed after showing him the VIP invitation on “Rock the Cradle”
- Adjusted the ambush setup timer on “Road Rage”
- Added collision to prevent cage bags falling through the ground on “Rock the Cradle”
- Added a fix so players cannot throw the zipline bag in the escape van on Gold & Sharke
KNOWN ISSUES
- Challenge stuck at 1/1 can now be unlocked by completing the challenge again or completing the highest difficulty challenge in the sequence
- The weapon charms and death wish reward from the PAYDAY 2 to PAYDAY 3 cross promotion campaign haven’t been properly granted. We hope to have this issue fully resolved by the next patch
www.pcgamer.com