In a 'quick update' shared to its blog, Payday 3's developer Starbreeze has apologised for its recent silence. The team assured players that it’s hard at work on patches and has heard cries for major reworks.
The post comes a month after the game's rocky launch, with Steam reviews being firmly mixed at time of writing. We've covered the game's controversial always-online requirements and repeatedly delayed patches, and Payday's developer Starbreeze Studios has decided to speak up at last.
The post begins with an apology while showing they're well aware of the player base's outrage. "When are the patches coming to Payday 3?" is half-answered with news that the first patch has been sent off for testing and certification. It's admirable that the developers are dedicated to keeping the PC and console versions of Payday 3 up to date simultaneously, especially after Payday 2's console versions quickly fell by the wayside.
Despite this, getting updates out on console can only add to the long wait that players are expected to endure. Many have simply stuck with Payday 2, but the blog post outlines some hope for the future. It says that the first patch was effectively a special case, with "significant risk to player progression being wiped if we didn't address [our update pipeline] and ensure a solid test environment".
Beyond bug fixes and patches, new content is promised via free updates that are set to arrive "before the end of the year." The game's progression systems are also addressed, with designers "looking at how the system can be adapted to balance [challenges] and offer infamy points for each heist". More information on these changes will supposedly be revealed soon.
Read more: Is Payday 3 cross platform?
Game development is a difficult and thankless process, so we can only hope that players are satisfied with this update for the time being. On Twitter, the official Payday account has been interacting with fans to "win back your trust", so this may mark the start of a change in luck for Payday 3.