Payday 3 misses expectations, controversial matchmaking issues to blame for 'soft launch'

Payday 3's launch has been hampered by a dire matchmaking issue that prevented gamers from playing the game.

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Embracer Group today published its Q2 results, showing signs of revenue growth that's being offset by higher opex (operating expenditures) and spending. Nestled in the Q2 announcement was a quick performance update on released titles, including Starbreeze's Payday 3.

According to the report, Payday 3 has missed internal expectations and is forecasted to continue delivering lower-than-expected results throughout the remainder of the year. That being said, Payday 3 is profitable, and Embracer has confirmed the game has recouped all development costs. A dollar value figure was attached to Embracer's completed and released games in Q2, which amounts to 1.120 billion SEK, or about $105 million.

Payday 3 was developed externally outside of Embracer Group by Starbreeze's Overkill studio, and then published internally via Embracer's Plaion (formerly Deep Silver) label. This miss comes at a time when Starbreeze, a company that was previously on the brink of financial troubles, needs a win.

Below we have the comments from Embracer Group on Payday 3's release:

That said, we have seen a mixed reception and performance for the externally developed game Payday 3 and a few smaller releases in the quarter. The Adjusted EBIT margin of 16 % in Q2 is impacted by these releases and by the soft performance of titles released last year.

Payday 3, developed by Starbreeze Studios and released on September 21, had a positive Adjusted EBIT contribution with the investment recouped in Q2.

We expect it to contribute positively in FY 2023/24, but below management expectations, due to a softer launch where an unforeseen error relating to external matchmaking software impacted the experience for gamers.

• The finalized value of the completed and released games during the quarter amounted to SEK 1,120 million (1,671), driven by the release of Remnant II and Payday 3

• The results are also impacted by two third-party publishing titles, Payday 3 and Trine 5: A Clockwork Conspiracy, underperforming management expectations.

Payday 3, released on September 21, saw a mixed reception from critics and users, and the studio saw an unforeseen error related to its external matchmaking software. Since October, matchmaking has been stable and has had a better performance. Payday 3 had a positive Adjusted EBIT contribution with the investment recouped in Q2.

The game is expected to contribute positively in FY 2023/24, but below management expectations.

Starbreeze is now hard at work with its live service plans for the game including frequent new releases of content, as well as quality of life improvements and added functionality to improve the player experience. Two new free "heists", or missions, are planned for launch in the near-term.