Whether we like it or not, Payday 3 news is pretty slim nowadays. It might not be quite as slim as most people would think, though, because we know some things about Starbreeze's upcoming heisting title after all. As you've probably guessed, this is where we'll summarize it all in one fell swoop!

To be sure, it's hardly the first time we're writing about Payday 3 here at 2Game. Almost two years ago, when the game was first announced, we assembled a bit of a wishlist on what the game might offer once it finally comes out.

That was back in 2020, and though Starbreeze is keeping a tight lid on its operations, some information has been released into the open after all. This is where you'll learn everything there is to learn about Payday 3 - simple as that.

Payday 3 News: A Comprehensive List of Announcements so far!

The Publishing Plight - Early 2020

The Payday 3 saga began with a less-than-stellar event, in that Starbreeze's leadership very narrowly avoided bankruptcy back in 2019. This was followed up with news that the company would be looking for a publishing partner to fund its work on the game.

At the time, players also got their first whiff of Starbreeze's then-future plans for Payday 2. Namely, that's pretty much when the 2013 title was revitalized. Since then, we've had a bunch of neat DLC packs released that help fund Payday 3 itself.

The Engine Affirmation - October 2020

Later in 2020, Starbreeze reiterated its dedication to producing Payday 3. At the time, the game was in its early design phases, but the key piece of information we got was that it would run on Unreal Engine. For those who may not have experience with Payday 2, that's massive news in its own right.

Namely, Payday 2 is running on Diesel 2.0, which is... less than stellar. This is the same engine that ran games such as Ghost Recon: Advanced Warfighter and the original Payday. It scales poorly and didn't run well back in 2013, either. Not to mention how shoddy Diesel was for modding. Unreal ought to be a marked improvement.

Ending the Financial Troubles - February 2021

Against all (most) odds, Starbreeze managed to pull itself out of the financial rut by the early months of 2021. "We have executed two capital raises during the year and paid off a large proportion of our debts, strengthened our financial position and thus enabling the continued successful development of Payday 3 in 2021," said Starbreeze's Q4 2020 financial report.

According to Tobias Sjögren, the then-acting CEO, Starbreeze was "hugely confident, thirsting for revenge and thrilled to be able to focus to the max on developing our IP with Payday front and center."

The Publishing Deal - March 2021

As 2021 progressed, things kept looking up for Starbreeze. Now far from its potential bankruptcy, Starbreeze finally closed its publishing deal for the upcoming Payday 3 - with none other than Koch Media. Koch Media - or THQ Nordic, as it is otherwise known - is an established AA and AAA publishing house that specializes in niche and delightfully janky titles. This is phenomenal news for fans of the series, even today.

"In addition to securing the continued development, this deal secures global publishing of Payday 3 as well as the marketing efforts through the entire game life cycle," explained Tobias Sjögren. "We now have a strong foundation for a successful launch of Payday 3."

At the same time, Koch Media CEO Klemens Kundratitz said that the company was "delighted to welcome Starbreeze as a new partner for our global publishing business." A bit of a downer, though, was the confirmation of a tentative release date for Payday 3: 2023.

Koch Media Establishes a New Publishing Branch - June 2021

To focus on its premium-tier projects, such as Payday 3, Koch Media proceeded to establish its fifth publishing label - Prime Matter. Though this isn't strictly a Payday 3 piece of news, it's curious to note the scope and quality of other projects that got bundled with Payday 3. In no particular order, here are some of them:

• King's Bounty 2
• Crossfire: Legion
• Scars Above
• Payday 3

Perhaps even more interesting is the fact that Prime Matter would eventually publish an unannounced Painkiller game, of all things. Yes, that Painkiller. All in all, Payday 3 seems to be in good hands.

The Setting Announcement - October 2021

The biggest Payday 3 reveal we've had up until now was featured as part of the series' 10th-anniversary celebrations. On Youtube, Starbreeze finally kicked off major reveals about its upcoming heist shooter.

For example, we now know that Payday 3 will take place in New York. Starbreeze wants to make its rendition of the city "enormous" and "living", with a particular note on how the team wants each heist to feel like it's just a small slice of the bigger overworld, rather than an instanced entity.

The goal, it seems, is for each "level" to be way more reactive than ever before. We're not sure yet on what the extent of these mid-level changes may be, but it's an exciting prospect, for sure.

On top of that, Payday 3 will deal with a variety of contemporary security and crime concepts. Starbreeze's representatives specifically mentioned cryptocurrency and the involvement of tech giants, as well as suggesting a more down-to-earth storyline for the game.

Finally, we also know that the original quartet of heisters would return in Payday 3: Dallas, Hoxton, Chains, and Wolf.

Stay tuned for more...

To Summarize!

So far, here's what we know about Payday 3 in the shortest order possible:

• The game has a tentative 2023 release date
• Published by Koch Media subsidiary, Prime Matter
• It's running on Unreal Engine (presumably 4)
• Set in New York
• Contemporary times, gear, and topics
• Original Payday crew makes a return
• Plans to make it significantly more interesting, immersive, and reactive than ever before

Though unconfirmed, it's also implied that the game should be more realistic and grounded than Payday 2. As a reference, Payday 2 features Hila and Ethan Klein of H3H3 fame, as well as a Goat Simulator-themed heist. It's... hard to top that, even if Starbreeze wanted to.

Closing Thoughts

And there you have it! That's about everything we have when it comes to Payday 3 news, for better or for worse. Regrettably, details are still very sparse at this stage, though with just over a year to go before the game is supposed to come out, Starbreeze is bound to start sharing some concrete information about its flagship release in the near(ish) future.

We'll keep this article all topped up with the latest news. Bookmark it for easy access, and check in every so often to see what's what and what's not.

Payday 2 is still ongoing, in the meantime!

Of course, if you're in the mood for some heisting right now, you can always check out Payday 2 on Steam. It's a pretty old and out-of-date title at this point, but Starbreeze has kept producing new content for its most loyal heisters. So, it's more than good enough for a few runs every now and then, we reckon!

We'll be seeing you around - the news is coming soon, we're sure of it.