Starbreeze Takes Back Control of Payday 3, Plans to Speed Up Game Improvements

Starbreeze Studios has bought back the publishing rights to their game Payday 3, which has been struggling since its release. The company believes this move will help them develop new content faster and create more opportunities for the entire Payday series.

When Payday 3 launched in September 2023, it faced many problems. Players couldn't connect to matches properly, and many were unhappy that the game required an internet connection at all times. The first major update was delayed several times, frustrating fans even more.

As player numbers dropped dramatically, Starbreeze admitted that far fewer people were playing than they had hoped for. The game's popularity has remained well below that of Payday 2, its older predecessor. These problems led to big changes at the company, with CEO Tobias Sjögren being removed by the board in October 2023. By December, a new creative team was put in charge of fixing the game.

Now, Starbreeze and former publisher Plaion have come to a "mutual agreement" allowing Starbreeze to take full control of publishing. To pay for this deal, Starbreeze is creating new company shares worth 33 million Swedish kronor. About 29 million kronor (roughly £2.3 million) will go to Plaion to end their previous agreement and settle any outstanding issues between the companies.

Board member Thomas Lindgren explained that this acquisition would let Starbreeze "significantly accelerate [its] content development roadmap" and explore wider opportunities for the Payday franchise.

Despite Payday 3's troubles, Starbreeze hinted that more Payday games might be coming in the future. The studio noted that while this deal ends the current publishing arrangement, it "lays the groundwork for a long-term partnership between Starbreeze and Plaion on future Payday franchise projects."

Starbreeze is also currently developing a Dungeons & Dragons game alongside their work on Payday.

Source: Eurogamer