Payday 3 launched on September 21, 2023. Now nearing the end of its first year, Starbreeze Entertainment has made a huge reshuffle that they hope will turn around the fortune of the cooperative first-person shooter.
In an announcement on X on Wednesday, September 11, 2024, Starbreeze said the game’s director Miodrag “Mio” Kovačević will be stepping aside as the game director and will now serve as a designer in the project.
“As we are nearing our first anniversary for PAYDAY 3, and the start of our second year, we wanted to give a brief update on the PAYDAY 3 leadership,” Starbreeze wrote in the official statement published on X.
“Going into year 2, Mio will be stepping away from his former role as Game Director and focusing his efforts as a designer elsewhere in the project. In the interim while researching and planning year 2, Andreas and Almir will be the creative force behind the upcoming updates we hope you keep enjoying and playing.”
ALSO READ: Starbreeze Fires CEO Over Payday 3’s Poor Performance, Payday 2 Still Performs 85X Better
The sentiments in the comment section under the announcement showed that the majority of Payday 3 fans were pleased that Mio has been demoted from the role of game director. One comment that captured our attention claimed Mio did not connect with the community.
“It’s for the best Mio showed he just doesn’t connect well with the community and how him and his partner have a hatred for them,” wrote @NikolaiDrunk. “Can’t be a leader of a group you hate.”
A post from @iWanabeAsnipa read, “This could not give me any more hope that Year 2 will be a banger. Can’t wait to see what ya’ll are gonna cook up!”
Sharing the official statement by Starbreeze announcing the shuffle, Almir Listo said he had been a part of the Payday franchise for over a decade and was excited about the upcoming content.
Heisters, @PAYDAD_ and I have worked on the PAYDAY franchise for the past 12 years together, and I am thrilled about the upcoming content we are preparing for you all! 👊😎
Thank you for your continued support – we salute you. https://t.co/c08Z5J4Lxs
— Almir Listo (@almirlisto) September 11, 2024
Payday 3 is believed to have largely underperformed, partly due to the buggy and connectivity issues that plagued the game from the start. In comparison to the previous release, Payday 3 only sold 1.1 million units and earned the company $32.7 million while Payday 2 sold 25.9 million units and earned the company $232 million—that’s according to VGInsights. To date, Payday 2 sees more daily concurrent players than Payday 3.
Do you see yourself jumping back on Payday 3 when the second season starts? Share your thoughts in the comment box below.
