Support us on Patreon
PayPalWhile PAYDAY 3 continues to do rather poorly, PAYDAY 2 is coming back to life to refresh it with some upgrades.
Not really a surprise when you look at PAYDAY 3, which currently has a Mixed overall rating on Steam and since it's a multiplayer game it only sees a peak of a few hundred players each day which has been trending in a downwards spiral recently. While PAYDAY 2 continues to see tens of thousands each day despite being over 10 years old.
In an announcement on Steam posted on Tuesday, Starbreeze said:
Hello heisters,
We’re excited to announce that we’re partnering with Sidetrack Games to support the PC-versions of PAYDAY 2 with quality-of-life improvements and general game fixes.Sidetrack (formerly known as the M.U.G. Team) is a talented team with deep roots in the PAYDAY modding community. Their work on RAID: World War II showed that they have the skill and perseverance to deliver quality updates over a long time. They know the PAYDAY 2 engine inside and out, and they’ve already gotten started.
The first update goes live this Thursday, October 23, and is focused on the stability of the game and improving the overall player experience.
Collaborating with Sidetrack Games allows Starbreeze to maintain full focus on PAYDAY 3, while PAYDAY 2 continues to deliver value for all players with the dedicated, expert support they deserve.
It has a pretty old Native Linux port, which I'm not personally up to speed if it works well nowadays or not. So you may be better with Proton, it always was a little buggy anyway. Valve rated it Steam Deck Verified / SteamOS Compatible with Proton.
Article taken from GamingOnLinux.com.
See more from me
You can also find comments for this article on social media: Last edited by Lofty on 23 Oct 2025 at 11:19 am UTC
Given the age & performance of the port ( pre proton ? ) they should probably pull it if they are no longer supporting the linux version consistently. Proton's performance now often exceeds native compared with the windows version.
No. They should fix the native port. Maybe add a Vulkan renderer if possible. Proton (Wine + DXVK) is a great thing for running Windows games on Linux (SteamOS), but it should not be a replacement solution for actual native ports.
If there already is a native port, it is always better to fix that port (if possible/feasible) instead of just nuking it and relying on the Windows version running using Proton.
If there already is a native port, it is always better to fix that port (if possible/feasible) instead of just nuking it and relying on the Windows version running using Proton.
I want to agree, but this is pretty idealistic, tbh. The original dev team must have had some Linux experience, because I remember enjoying this game when it became available for Linux, despite the microphone issue that was never, ever fixed. Or wasn't during the two years or so I played.
But now? Do the new modding team have the same familiarity with Linux? Will their plans for extending the game use tooling and third party libraries that run flawlessly in Linux?
I'm sceptical.
If there already is a native port, it is always better to fix that port (if possible/feasible) instead of just nuking it and relying on the Windows version running using Proton.
To me, adding new content and fixing bugs make a game better. Changing how my computer reads the 1s and 0s, does not. As such I'd rather they spend whatever resource they have making the game better, rather than the binary more linux-y.
No. They should fix the native port. Maybe add a Vulkan renderer if possible. Proton (Wine + DXVK) is a great thing for running Windows games on Linux (SteamOS), but it should not be a replacement solution for actual native ports.
If there already is a native port, it is always better to fix that port (if possible/feasible) instead of just nuking it and relying on the Windows version running using Proton.
Everything you said is true, yet I still disagree because this is not an ideal world; If they can more easily support linux through proton and are willing I think that's the better path. At the end of the day linux versions are nice, but often times when the dev teams are small I'd rather them focus on adding stuff to the game rather than focusing on making a linux version for a game that already works without one, honestly from my point of view there's no reason to make a linux version unless the performance is bad with proton or there are severe bugs or just does not work.
No. They should fix the native port. Maybe add a Vulkan renderer if possible. Proton (Wine + DXVK) is a great thing for running Windows games on Linux (SteamOS), but it should not be a replacement solution for actual native ports.
If there already is a native port, it is always better to fix that port (if possible/feasible) instead of just nuking it and relying on the Windows version running using Proton.
yea but no, It was a fairly mid port to say the least. In some circumstances you would be correct when talking about a performant native game released only a few years ago, but in the context of this game topic your not imo.
yet id go further and state that i actually prefer Proton releases over native. for a variety of reasons.
Last edited by Lofty on 23 Oct 2025 at 10:01 pm UTC
How to setup OpenMW for modern Morrowind on Linux / SteamOS and Steam Deck
How to install Hollow Knight: Silksong mods on Linux, SteamOS and Steam Deck