Payday 3 is leaving Game Pass just as it started getting good and it doesn't make sense
If you've been hearing that now is a good time to jump into Payday 3, you sadly have one fewer, major avenue of accessing the game.
You’d be forgiven for entirely forgetting Payday 3 even came out, but it was, in fact, released last year. The game is coming up on its one year anniversary on September 21, and a lot has changed since that disastrous launch.
From the moment of its release, Payday 3 has been available on Game Pass for PC, console and cloud. And it’s barely lasted a year, because come September 15, the game will be leaving the subscription service. Games enter and leave the Game Pass roster all the time, but things are a little different in this case.
In Payday 3’s case, the tumultuous launch months have given way to a series of major updates that tackled matchmaking, core game mechanics, skill adjustments, unlocks and progression, and even adding a form of offline solo mode more recently.
Though some of those weren’t without their own missteps, the general consensus around Payday 3 has turned positive. Steam reviews have shifted from Mostly Negative to Mixed, and content creators and regular players on Reddit have generally been more excited to play (and advocate for it) in recent weeks.
During a recent developer livestream, one player asked the question of Game Pass extension directly, but the answer provided was a simple ‘no update to offer.’ There’s clearly an audience for the game on Game Pass, even if its Steam numbers remain quite dire compared to its predecessor, Payday 2. It’s all even more disappointing as the news arrived on the same day of the Chapter 4 - Fear & Greed teaser, which is part of the game’s anniversary update. Fear & Greed arrives September 16, one day after the game leaves Game Pass.
The decision to drop Game Pass further fuels players’ uncertainty about the game’s future. While Game Pass and console player numbers are not public, the Steam numbers don’t paint a very flattering picture. Sure, there’s a decent community of players to guarantee finding a match quickly, but it’s nowhere near the heights of Payday 2.
Speaking of which, the console version of Payday 2 never left Game Pass. It’s true that version was practically abandoned; not receiving any of the support the PC version continues to receive - but it remains part of the line-up. Ironically, that disparity in support was one of the issues the clean slate of Payday 3 was supposed to solve.
There’s a lot of uncertainty about the future of the game right now. While positive sentiments about gameplay changes and content are on the rise, the decision to not continue being part of Game Pass hasn’t been well received. Indeed, Starbreeze may simply feel good enough about all the recent changes that it wants to capitalise on them by, well, selling more copies.
We’ll have to see what the future brings, but the next few few months will likely be crucial in determining that future.