Payday 3 will be getting an offline mode relatively soon in response to sales and player activity that are at “significantly lower levels” than developer Starbreeze would like. The offline mode is part of an updated comprehensive roadmap of improvements and new content that will be made to the game throughout 2024.
Payday 3 offline mode is part of Operation Medic Bag
Starbreeze has promised that its priority for Payday 3 is “that the game lives up to expectations.” As such, it has created the Operation Medic Bag roadmap that includes “some of the most impactful changes to PAYDAY 3,” like offline mode and improved game stability.
Offline mode will be implemented in two different stages. The first stage is a local stand-alone solo mode that players can access without having to go through matchmaking. This will still require an internet connection for progression and unlocks.
The second phase will remove the need for that internet connection all the time, although players will still have to connect “intermittently” to upload progression. More details on this will be revealed in the future.
In terms of co-op play, Starbreeze recognizes that the Payday 3 matchmaking isn’t enough. Not only will they be rebuilding matchmaking “into a much more robust system”, but there are also new social and co-op features planned for 2024 like a Crime.Net-style server browser. In the meantime, quickplay functionality will be added to support the current system.
The current challenge-based progression system will be removed and replaced with infamy progression tied to heist completion. As such, all heist payout values will be revisited to add scaling per bag secured for Infamy Points and a new bonus for loud playstyles. Challenges won’t be going away completely, though, as they’ll give cosmetic rewards instead.
All of the above features need some preparation before they can be implemented but there are others on which work can start immediately. These are the more immediate improvements that they aim to complete by this summer:
- Quickplay v1
- Loadout Renaming
- Recurring Smaller Content Drops
- Controller Improvements
- Vote Kick
- Rotating Stealth Modifiers
- Unready Button
- Play Again Feature
- Merge Players into Party Post Match
- Daily Activities with Rewards
- Mask Vendor with Weekly Rotating Inventory
- Communication Wheel Improvements v1
Despite this plan, there is still three DLCs planned for 2024 as well as a free heist. In response to complaints about DLC pricing, the price of the upcoming content will be reviewed. More details on all of these plans will be revealed soon.
