Re-Route Masters: Payday 2's Dynamic Maps
What promise of gaming's future has failed to materialise for you? What was the most exciting feature that's only been half thought out, or tried once and then abandoned? For me, it's multiplayer shooters levels with dynamic elements. Left 4 Dead 2 was supposed to feel like you were crawling over different routes depending on the difficulty selection, but what it amounted to was the player being squeezed a few steps in one direction or another. Will Payday 2 be the first game to successfully pull it off? I have the beta, but I've not had enough time with it to find out. However, the new trailer claims your decisions will affect one playthrough to the next, perhaps even selecting a different map for to play on. If that happens, I'll be one fun lovin' criminal.
What I have noticed, in my very brief time with the beta, was one same level having different loot drops and guard selections on the second run. The first time we played it, we were spotted a pair of guards in an alleyway who caught us popping our masks on behind a wall. We restarted and planned an elaborate double-takedown of those gumshoe wannabes, but they weren't in the same position. They were inside the jewelry store, mocking our crappy attempt at 'planning'. I have to say, it's kind of neat. I hope it's the sort of thing that can keep Overkill's online shooter interesting. They seem to think so.
The game goes live on August 13th.