Payday 2 Devs Address Console Disparity And What Heists They Won't Be Getting

Payday 2 developer Overkill Software has recently restarted work on their co-op shooter after a rough year that began in December 2018 when their office was raided. The team is now in a better place to discuss what is happening with the game going forward, including with the PS4, Xbox One, and Switch versions of the game.

In a post on Overkill Software's site, CEO Mikael Nermark has opened up about the console versions of the game, admitting that the disparity that exists between them and the PC version (which has received numerous updates and heists that have not come to consoles) will remain. Although update 1.5 is now live for PS4 and Xbox One, it does not bring the console version in line with the PC release.


"We’ve had to look at the future console updates from our situation as it looks today, with the limitations that we have, rather than looking back at what has been said and done before and make choices accordingly, even though they might not be what we wish," Hermark admits. "We simply have too many constraints in available manpower to be able to fix the situation in the short term."

The following heists and features are not available in console versions, and are unlikely to be made available in the future:

• Shacklethorne Auction Heist (part of Icebreaker Campaign)
• Reservoir Dogs Heist
• Hells Island Heist (part of Breaking News Campaign)
• No Mercy Heist (part of Breaking News Campaign)
• The White House Heist (part of Breaking News Campaign)
• The Safe House feature

Because of this, "The Secret" storyline will remain inaccessible on consoles. Nermark says that the team is investigating bringing over the masks, weapons, and mods associated with these heists, though. "Some additional content has licensing and collaboration restrictions attached to them, which unfortunately will make them challenging to release," he notes. It's also unclear whether the upcoming Silk Road campaign will be exclusive to PC or not.

The Switch version, meanwhile, is "very unlikely" to receive further updates. Because the Switch version was developed externally, the team is not in a position to continue work on it in their current form, so Switch players will miss out on future content. The Switch port of Payday 2 received a 5/10 in our review, with reviewer James Swinbanks finding that in this version of the game "almost every aspect is outdated or diminished in some way."

Nermark says that Overkill Software is "very unwilling to close the door completely on some of these issues," but for now, it's likely that the PS4 and Xbox One versions of the game will lag behind the PC version, and the Switch will not receive updates. The silver lining here is that Nermark says that the changes are being made internally to ensure that, with Payday 3, they can "do it right" from launch onwards.