Payday 2 giving away 5 million free copies

Hey, you. Do you own co-op heist FPS Payday 2 [official site]? If not, go to Steam, click 'Install Game', and it'll be yours for keepsies. It's a steal!

This comes as developers Overkill Software stop selling Payday 2's DLC, in preparation for the launch of an 'Ultimate Edition' including its 40-odd paid DLCs. Overkill haven't announce a release date for that yet. For now, do swipe a copy of the base game.

All you have to do is hit Steam, click that button, and its yours forever. It'll be the regular edition and you won't be able to buy any DLC for now - because it's no longer sold, remember? However, Payday 2 is hardly short of content and the game does let everyone play DLC heists as long as one member of a party owns 'em.

Payday 2: Ultimate Edition will cost $45, which is a whole lot cheaper than buying all the DLC separately. People who already own Payday 2 will be able to upgrade.

"The price to upgrade will depend on several factors," Overkill say, which would suggest a discount for people who've bought DLC.

The only DLC that Payday 2 will sell after this will be a character pack of people from a YouTube channel I've never heard of because I'm old. The proceeds will support h3h3 Productions' legal battle with a chap who objected litigiously to their 'reaction' video making fun of his own video. The Internet is weird, maaan.

I have quite liked Payday 2's DLC strategy. As with Paradox's add-ons, Payday 2 DLC has funded years of free additions, giving the game many more heists, weapons, and characters. I've bought a dozen or so DLC packs over the years and been happy with 'em, especially as they were often cheap in sales. I do dislike that some DLC packs contained weapons that were straight-up improved versions of original guns, that Overkill flubbed it with microtransactions before reversing course, and that some DLCs were paid ways to reduce the grind for unlocks. But by and large, as an irregular player, I'm happy if me occasionally buying a loud Australian lady or Hotline Miami heist helps fund free maps.