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Payday: The Heist Announced and Shown at E3

Lots of game announcements at E3 are drowned out by the bigger announcements by companies like Microsoft and Sony, but I’m determined to make sure that Payday: The Heist gets the attention it deserves. Payday: The Heist is an upcoming multiplayer-focused shooter by developers Overkill Software. The name might not sound familiar but the studio is actually comprised of ex-GRIN employees (who developed the recent Bionic Commando games as well as the PC ports of the last two Ghost Recon games).


Payday: The Heist could almost be described as a fusion of the SWAT games and Valve’s Left 4 Dead series. In the game you and three friends control a team of criminals pulling off a bank robbery. Much like Valve’s Left 4 Dead, Payday puts a large focus on working as a team. Each player in the team chooses from one of four characters and then chooses a role on the team. They then get to choose and customize their weapons and equipment. Overall the system sounds fairly reminiscent of the customization options in Alien Swarm.

 

In Left 4 Dead you had to work as a team to fight off hordes of ravenous zombies; in Payday you have to work together to fight off ever increasing police forces. While you’ll start out fighting against fairly weak bank guards, as your bank robbery progresses you’ll fight harder and harder enemy types. Eventually you’ll go up against a SWAT Team, the members of which act similarly to the Special Infected of the Left 4 Dead games. The teamwork elements are also very prevalent in Payday and you have to help revive each other up if you are incapacitated, and should one of your team be captured by the police then you are able to trade a hostage for his return.


One thing that Payday has that Left 4 Dead doesn’t is an XP and leveling system that is sure to add a whole new dimension to play, especially since leveling-up fully restores your health. Leveling-up in Payday gives access to various parks and abilities that allow you to customize your character.


Payday: The Heist is definitely one of the more original and unique multiplayer games I’ve seen announced during this year's E3 and it’s set to come out later this year as a downloadable title for both the PS3 and PC.


Check out the trailer below:


 

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