PAYDAY 2
PAYDAY 2 screenshot 1PAYDAY 2 screenshot 2
ActionRPGCo-opFPSHeistMultiplayerLooter Shooter

18,281 playing#58 on Steam by players#58 on Steam

Peak in the last 24 hours: 20,740

Peak in the last 7 days: 21,128

PAYDAY 2 Steam store

Game description

PAYDAY 2 is an action-packed, four-player co-op shooter that once again lets gamers don the masks of the original PAYDAY crew - Dallas, Hoxton, Wolf and Chains - as they descend on Washington DC for an epic crime spree.

Basic info

DeveloperOVERKILL - a Starbreeze Studio., Sidetrack Games
PublisherStarbreeze Entertainment
PlatformsWindows
Steam DeckVerified
Release dateAug 13, 2013
Price

Prices by IsThereAnyDeal

Minimum specs

OSWindows 10
Processor2 GHz Intel Dual Core 64-bit Processor
Memory4 GB
GraphicsNVIDIA & AMD (1GB VRAM)
Storage32 GB
steamyze

Review Analysis Score

Based on 348 reviews from the past 1 year

78.7/ 100
Bottom 50%

Steam rating: Very Positive (89%)

Metacritic: 79 /100

Review analysis summary (Reviewed Oct 20, 2026)

Co-op heists remain the draw of this long running shooter, but pricing changes weigh on its score of 78.7.

👍 Strengths

98 reviews say it is fun, describing chaotic heists, great guns and the thrill of pulling off a bank job. 46 say it shines when playing together with friends, where teamwork and loud failures create memorable moments. Multiplayer ranks 94th of 642. 13 praise the depth of its builds, saying skills and perk decks let them plan around a chosen playstyle. Content Volume ranks 109th of 1351, and Gameplay ranks 389th of 1396.

👎 Where it falls short

Pricing & Fairness appears in 41% of analyzed reviews and ranks 1288th of 1399. 136 reviews object to the price changes, citing a subscription added to an old game, higher DLC prices and much of the content behind paid packs. 22 report bugs and crashes, and a few say an update stopped the game from launching on older processors. 10 say performance got worse after an engine update, with stutters, freezes and lag even on low settings. Tech & Support ranks 888th of 1399, and Visuals & Sound ranks 947th of 1249.

Representative reviews Original reviews ↗

“subscription added to 12-year-old game, DLC prices increased 1.5x, predatory pricing” · 136 reviews
“peak horde shooter with great guns and fantasy fulfillment” · 98 reviews
“fun when hitting the right sequence with friends despite complexity” · 46 reviews

How it holds up

−50+5

Controls, difficulty, progression and depth
Mentioned in 36% of reviews · Top 30% of the games we've analyzed

Strategy +3.33 · Depth of builds, tactics, and meaningful choices
Positive “30+ viable build combinations with deep synergies” · 13 reviews
Negative “AI crew is not so useful as personally wished” · 1 review

Progression 12% · Difficulty 7% · Onboarding 6% · Freedom 4% · Controls & feel 5%

Plot, characters and the world

Not enough data — only 8% of reviews mention this.

World +2.39 · Lore, atmosphere, and how immersive the setting is

Story 3% · Characters 2%

How much there is to do, variety and replay value
Mentioned in 31% of reviews · Top 10% of the games we've analyzed

Volume +3.44 · How much there is to play, including endgame, for the price
Positive “massive content with weapon variety, difficulty tiers, infamy system and themed heists” · 10 reviews
Negative “payday 2 has more weapons and heists, payday 3 crashes more” · 2 reviews

Variety 10% · Replayability 5%

Graphics, art style, music and sound
Mentioned in 20% of reviews · Bottom 30% of the games we've analyzed

Audio +3.28 · Music, sound effects, and voice acting
Positive “music really turns decent gameplay into awesome shootouts” · 8 reviews

Visuals 10%

Playing with others, the community and servers
Mentioned in 41% of reviews · Top 20% of the games we've analyzed

Playing together +3.75 · Fun of playing with friends, teammates, or rivals
Positive “fun when hitting the right sequence with friends despite complexity” · 46 reviews
Negative “multiplayer cooperation breaks down with more players, escalating conflict” · 3 reviews

Community 10% · Servers & Connection 3%

Pricing, cheaters, balance and matchmaking
Mentioned in 41% of reviews · Bottom 10% of the games we've analyzed

Pricing -1.05 · Whether the price, DLC and microtransactions are reasonable, and how much paying gives you an edge
Negative “subscription added to 12-year-old game, DLC prices increased 1.5x, predatory pricing” · 136 reviews

Anti-cheat 1% · Balance 6% · Matchmaking 0%

Bugs, performance and developer support
Mentioned in 29% of reviews · Bottom 40% of the games we've analyzed

Developer support -0.14 · Updates, patches, and how devs respond to players
Negative “engine update killed most mods for minimal benefit” · 10 reviews
Positive “devs actively support and update the game engine” · 4 reviews

Stability 13% · Performance 11%

Grey means too few reviews mention it to trust. — means almost no reviews mention it.

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