Payday 2 Crimewave Edition review: PS4 and Xbox One edition far from the perfect score

Release Date: June 12 (worldwide)
Platforms Available On: PS4 (reviewed), Xbox One
Developer: Overkill Software
Publisher: 505 Games
Genre: First-person shooter

What a week we've had. On Monday, we were contracted to swipe a few paintings from a high-security art gallery, before a straightforward snatch and grab degenerated into a Mexican standoff between our crew and ourselves, and the cops.

Tuesday was simple: swap the stolen artwork for sports bags full of cash with the buyers, and get out. But we were ambushed by the rozzers. Again.

Wednesday was payday, but before getting paid we were to case the home of an unscrupulous senator, swipe his hard drive, and shop him to the press. "Stealth is an option," read one of the mission parameters beforehand.

If you've spotted a theme up to now, you'll realise that this was never going to happen. SWAT teams, smoke bombs, grenades, explosions, bullets ricocheting through shattered windows, fallen comrades, spilled blood; total chaos ensued.

If you didn't pick up Payday 2 when it first launched in 2013 (which we originally reviewed on Xbox 360) this is an average shift in Overkill Software's heist-'em-up. If you did, then you'll find the perpetual carnage all very familiar, which, depending on how you took to its previous console outings, is either a good or a bad thing.

In what is almost certain to turn away prospective PS3 and Xbox 360 progressors, profiles are non-transferable from generation to generation, meaning you'll need to start from scratch should you chose to upgrade.

Although the PC version remains the definitive iteration, Payday 2: Crimewave Edition for PS4 and Xbox One floods its next-gen appearance with new features previously absent from its PS3 and 360 versions.

Aside from including all the DLC, the roster of playable characters has been doubled - including Clover, the series' first female safecracker - a selection of new heists has been added, and a multitude of additional melee weapons and masks are now available - including those of the Hotline Miami cast that were previously exclusive to PC.

In fact, Dennaton's ostentatious and uber violent puzzle shooter features heavily in Crimewave Edition by virtue of the Hotline Miami DLC - including a shamelessly brutal and bastard-hard mission inspired by its hedonistic source material.

This, alongside a diamond heist mission - whereby our team haphazardly descended on a museum - are some of the best measures Payday 2's upgrade has to offer simply because it feels good revelling in what the game does best - unrelenting carnage - but within the bounds of shiny new locales.

What's more, much fun is to be had sampling the array of new weapons - such as taking on shield-bearing SWAT teams armed with boxing gloves, or the Hitchcock-themed kitchen knife which plays the perennial, off-key Psycho theme as it recoils in slow motion. I can personally guarantee that the latter never gets old.

Although somewhat expected, another welcome bonus the Crimewave Edition offers is increased framerates and 1080p resolution. That said, the step up visually from last to current gen isn't quite as striking as other franchise upgrades such as The Last of Us or Tomb Raider.

Crime.net is back as the mission-selection server-cum-map and whilst local single player works as a platform to teach yourself the ropes, you'll soon tire of your lacklustre computer-controlled teammates.

Swap them for online companions and you'll find this mode is, again, where the game shines. Although each online mission scenario is relatively scripted, the randomly-generated parameters keep you on your toes.

For example, the aforementioned break-in involved me tracking down the elusive senator's PC that was housed in a room somewhere within his three-story abode. During my first incursion, this room was located towards the back of the second floor.

On my second assault I headed straight there, spent five minutes drilling the lock whilst fending off the boys in blue, before being met with an empty room. To my dismay, the PC was now tucked away in a cupboard on the basement floor. That'll teach me to get complacent.

But these slight unpredictable alterations aside, missions play out very much as they did before: wave after wave of police, security guards, SWAT teams and military personnel charging the scene, hell-bent on decimating everything in sight, shoot to kill. It's messy, crude, and self-indulgent, but it's fun - particularly if you're accompanied by a good, hard-working team.

Once you finally reach payday, you're now able to spend your hard-earned skill points on an updated skill tree. In line with its comprehensive PC counterpart, Crimewave Edition offers a slew of additional unlockable perks, not to mention easier access to weapon and armour enhancements compared to the at-times obstructive last-gen setup.

Payday 2: Crimewave Edition has been given a spit shine and a sprinkling of new features, but unfortunately the nuance ends there

Unfortunately, the cons that let the original version of Payday 2 down remain largely unchanged. Inexplicable invisible walls are still present, halting any sense of credible exploration in its tracks; computer intelligence oscillates between being either ultra-smart, or frustratingly stupid; and even though certain elements are randomly generated, missions can become predictable - particularly before unlocking more challenging outings at higher skill levels.

In what is almost certain to turn away prospective PS3 and Xbox 360 progressors, profiles are non-transferable from generation to generation, meaning you'll need to start from scratch should you chose to upgrade.

Furthermore, environment interaction is very limited - for example doors are unclosable once opened - and power drills are constantly breaking down mid-heist, forcing you to fill a slow-moving reticule in order to kickstart the thing, which proves infuriating when a policeman is shooting at your head simultaneously.

I know it's said that a good tradesperson doesn't blame their tools, but this is something which becomes very disheartening.

Which is a shame because these drawbacks ultimately abrogate the features Payday 2: Crimewave Edition does well. They don't quite undo the good entirely, but we are left with a mediocre game which really could, and probably should, be better - especially given this is a new-gen rendition and a supposed improvement on its last-gen forerunner.

Payday 2: Crimewave Edition has been given a spit shine and a sprinkling of new features, but unfortunately the nuance ends there. If you already own the original on PS3 or Xbox 360 there's not an abundance to write home about. If you don't, Crimewave Edition is still worth your time, but it's far from the perfect score.

3