Hey, can I just say I'm sorry for being one of those people who nagged on you about "quitting" PAYDAY years ago? As I've gotten older, I've moved to agree with people like Gene that this kind of constant content production is draining to people. I'm genuinely sorry for any pain I might have contributed to years back. I knew about Bo being a bad investor with StarVR and such, but genuinely hurting Ulf like that and breeding this kind of a community... why did I never see this when I was younger? Was I too naive to care about other people like you and their health? I know, it's not exactly appropriate to go on about this after you've poured so much of your time and effort to even peel back the curtain for just a minute, to let us in on what was happening... but I'm genuinely sorry for contributing to that toxic mentality years ago. I'm glad I also decided to watch that B4B video as you recommended it around the 40 minute mark. Really accentuates the rest of this.
Ex-Overkill Cinematic Animator here who used to do all the trailers between Sept 2014 to March 2018. Just wanna say, this is a good video. 02:07:55 - Fun fact, in late 2014 Bo grabbed me from my desk and pulled me to a screen with a white-boxed third person game and asked me "Do you think this is the kinda game people would play on TH-cam and stream?". In hindsight, it was definitely pre-alpha Dead By Daylight. He asked me because at the time I was very involved with TH-cam and I had a big channel at the time (with this name, I closed it down in 2020, this one is just an archive). I said yeah, definitely, and went back to animating. Funny how that goes. 02:23:00 - Those trailers were not made in Valhalla, by the way. They were done in whatever GBK uses, likely Maya. Render-wise, I think Valhalla only ended up being used for a few headshots of Payday 2 characters like Sangres, and eventually there was a playable "thing" in the engine, but ultimately it was just not worth it. 02:30:19 - Honestly I retain the opinion that Bo's banking on VR was the one major good idea he had, but he messed up by insisting production should be handled internally and catered to making it an arcade device. You can see remnants of StarVR in headsets like the Pimax 5K. He was just a bit too early technologically, and surprisingly UN-ambitious about the place VR could have in peoples homes.
The whole thing about the pace of releasing updates is exactly the issue I have with. I don't really care getting lots and lots of updates or new heists within a few weeks. Instead I want one big thing, or something that just keeps me entertained long-term and not for a single week. Heists and weapons are nice and all but they keep you entertained for like what, a week? PD2 just had SO MUCH STUFF already, that a heist and some weapons were actually good value after some time. For PD3 it doesn't cut it since you can't really do much else by completing those heists. You complete them a couple times to check out the different like 2 RNG seeds and play with the guns a little (since the mods on the guns are pointless) and that's about it. In regards to the ARGs, I've never been sort of into the "ARG story" thingy, more like the challenge behind it. Essentially a big puzzle fan. It's how I got into PAYDAY to begin with. Some random dude during my apprenticeship essentially just said to me "hey, there's this easter egg thing you can do in this game, it takes 2 hours and you have to do it on the highest difficulty". I literally was like "wtf.? How have I never heard of that game?".
Jesus [expunged] Christ. This... explains so much. I feel guilt hearing what happened during your time in Payday because your DLC reviews got me into the game to begin with. All I can say that thank you for posting this and im glad to hear that you're in a much better place. Edit: fixed typo
don't feel guilty, trying to make something good out of terrible circumstances is how a lot of artists end up with great works they have trouble looking back on after. and im just some youtuber but seriously, thank you. don't feel bad, be happy things can always improve no matter how dire it seems
I read it as 'Sham' because of the timing of the video and when I read this comment and then looked at Connor's name and assumed Shaw was Sham and then for a split-second considered whether or not Connor was AllShamNoWow. Then I realized I was trippin.
@@imaroadcone6207 - I didn't really go anywhere, just people stopped watching and this year, life REALLY got in the way. I'm on ADHD meds now and I've got my own side to this story I'm working on (as you probably guessed given how frequently I pop up in this parable lmao) but to cut a long story short I've got miles to go before I sleep, and promises to keep.
@@imaroadcone6207 - I didn't go anywhere, I've been posting all the same, too! Life has been in my way the whole year so far but I'm on ADHD meds now and I'm plugging away at my own perspective on this whole thing. I've got miles to go before I sleep, and promises to keep.
as someone who has done some work for Notoriety thank you for mentioning how the game was breaking out of its mold, and thank you for sharing your story for us i loved your videos and still do, coming back every now and then to check up on what's been happening, and i've been relieved almost every time to know you're way less stressed doing content you actually enjoy now try and keep things fun, take it easy cheers to the future.
I nearly wrote you off just as a knee-jerk reaction to seeing anyone return to dunk on Payday 3 but I'm so glad I didn't. This was incredibly entertaining and well-produced and I'm so impressed by the sheer amount of research and all the unearthed context that's been missing. Really looking forward to the follow up and beyond. I'll definitely have to read that Trevor Project deep dive too. Side note, "'No politics' is, itself, a political opinion. It is a deference of leadership to a system which isn't actively hostile to you." is handily among the hardest things I've ever heard and I was gobsmacked hearing it in the middle of a Payday 3 video essay
i will make payday players listen to theory so help me and thank you very much. i got into payday 3 expecting to hate it, wound up liking it and being sad at what happened to it, then deciding i had to be careful about how i did this video *because* of how easy the narrative of "its bad let's all dunk on it" is. i wish i could've gotten the rest of the video in, because as it was originally written it was gonna end on a more optimistic note. still, tried my best to write kind for those who deserve it.
Haven't seen the video yet, gonna give it a chance, but hear ME out. "No politics IS politics" is one of those slogans that lose meaning as people apply it to everything they think they can. I agree with the logic, but there is that stinky subtext that lingers around it's usage. I think you know what I mean. The idea that no politics == politics, therefore everything is political, therefore nothing is apolitical, therefore no one can know peace from the news cycle destroying their mind as they desperately attempt to engage in media that DOESN'T make them want to... "engage in government work." Tomato is a fruit in the garden, but a vegetable in the kitchen. I assume the video mentions how Payday 2 is L4D2 with guns, but something more significant at the same time. I respect the analysis. My bet would be that Payday, under all the cheese, could say something about the prevalence of corruption in government and police, and how helping people is secondary to upholding legitimacy. If the video calls the game gutless for not endorsing some faction or concept despite having both exist as masks or something, I'm turning it off epic style. I've seen it before, it happens all the time. Sometimes a cigar is just a corporate shooter game marketed as cops & robbers to 15 year old boys. YT analysts like to not have fun.
@@ArchSchizo bro delete this you are shadow boxing. you could not be farther off what happens in the video. dont make specific comments about a video without knowing whats in the video.
If you're gonna talk about Deep Silver and how terrible they are, then you HAVE to talk about IdolNinja and the Saints Row 2 PC patch. The TL;DR is that their community manager volunteered to fix their broken SR2 port for PC while he was literally dying of cancer, and then when they closed down the studio that made the game, Volition, they still haven't released the patch. Even though they made a promise to finish it, and a man died for it. If you're not invested in the Saints Row space, I recommend watching Flippy or SaintsGodzilla's videos on the subject. Deep Silver are absolute fucking monsters, and every Saints Row fan hates them.
now... NONE of that i knew. good lord. i will certainly remember that and look into it, i always wondered why the story around the SR2 pc port seemed to get weird and sad later
@ConnorShawVA what made it worse is that Mike Watson (IdolNinja), specifically got the job because of his community modding work. His "Gentlemen of the Row" mod for SR2 is part of the reason the game is even remotely playable on PC, and the patch was gonna package all the extra content he made into the final product. This wasn't just some parasocial relationship with a corporate figurehead. This was a close friend to a lot of community members who they miss dearly. And now the thing he died for is sitting in a vault somewhere, if it hasn't already been deleted in an accidental server wipe.
At the core of this video, this is a very solid look into Starbreeze and Bo Andersson and all of the weird scummy shit him and that company have done over this year, however im very hung up on the connections to the Payday 2 ARG to QAnon beliefs and eventually Jan 6th. I feel like your fascination on the more supernatural elements especially in the story beats that predate it is strange to me. Alt-Right conspiracy theories and ARGs have existed for much, much longer than Payday 2 and while I don't doubt it might have pushed someone into thinking more radically or making someone more easily be able to fall for things like this, I do not think it was designed with any malicious intent or served as any real "programming" for any individual. The sad thing to see with, especially with alt-right conspiracies, is that they target the vulnerable who want to feel more "special" in the world. I do not think a really hokey story in a video game that is grasping at every single straw imaginable for "Ohh fuck how do i make this an Engaging Fantasy Thing" is really going to be the radicalizer compared to people who have made a whole job and profession over telling people the lies they want to hear to suck them into this really toxic cycle of abuse and power that these people eventually grow over them which allow them to insert whatever beliefs they want. I am truly sorry for what happened to your friend, and what they went through is horrible, but using that as an excuse to make frankly conspiracy-tier connections to this and the American Alt-Right is similarly drenched in the same aesthetics of conspiracy that they preach to those who fall into their pipelines. I am curious about your take on Nazi occultism too, I do not feel like it is a particularly uncommon trope in things and while I do agree that it kind of legitimizes a lot of the bad fanatic occultism that the Nazis had, you also bring up Wolfenstein in the same comparison, a game that is ALSO very heavily drenched in that, even if its not exactly prominent in the MachineGames reboots of wolf. I understand that was a very turbulent and emotional part of your life, seeing someone you know slip deeper and deeper into hatred for others and slowly being changed into someone who can only be consumed by hate for others, but I do not think any part of that video was particularly well-founded or thought out. I do think the connections and what the story leads to especially with the White House heist is Unfortunate especially in modern times, but I'd feel it'd carry that weight with it no matter if it had a frankly ridiculous ARG or not, considering that the White House heist was basically teased and hinted at for ages in the game. Overall, a good video that I liked a good bit, I simply think your reasoning and insight into the ARG and its story elements was perhaps not helped due to it being quite emotionally charged, but I wish you well regardless.
As someone who used to be a fan back in the old payday 2 days, I wish youtube would've told me sooner that the stuff you're making now is THIS good. This video was paced excellently, written brilliantly, and the visuals kept me engaged the whole time. All of the jokes landed like a professional acrobat, and all of the commentary was as pointed as a blade. Really phenomenal work, you knocked it outta the park! The followup will take as long as it takes, if you can't hit that first half of 2025 estimate, that's okay. I can only speak for myself but I don't mind waiting as long as I need to for quality this high. I'll be certain to check out your other non-payday output, too, because evidently I've been missing out.
Fantastically crafted video! There was a lot in there that I hadn't heard before. The information regarding the obligation to provide 33% of Payday 3's profit was new to me, very interesting to learn that. I'll be eagerly awaiting the next chapter, tremendously excited to hear your thoughts on Payday 3 from both the perspective of the game and its development. I also wanted to take a moment to mention that, as someone who played Payday 2 on console and was unfortunately locked out of a significant chunk of the game's content, I always found your coverage of updates, DLCs, and especially events to be invaluable. Your content made it much easier for me to stay up-to-date with the game and follow the story as it unfolded, even when I couldn't access everything first-hand. I have no doubt that your older Payday 2 videos have in part contributed to my decision to make Payday 3 content. 💜
You say there is no proof of Bo getting shot, BUT when he was going on an insane ramble in the Crime Boss Discord server, when he was still in that server, he actually did post x rays of the bullet. The x rays look to be authentic, but who knows, maybe they're also fake. He said A LOT of other shit on the server, like how his wife could beat up David Goldfarb, how he is working on Storm (still) with Joe (who is Wordsmith apparently), calling Almir a poser, how the Swedish government tortured him for 3 days and stole his family??? He said a lot of different shit, and I have some screenshots of the stuff he said. It's kinda funny, but at the same time really depressing
(pretty certain thats his second ex wife now) i didn't realize just how candid he got, i didn't want to enter the discord cuz i saw it as blowing up my spot but i heard he was there being a hypeman. i didn't realize he was going through a late-life crisis live in posts damn. also the swedish government tortured him by investigating him for three days?? this man wouldn't last two seconds in silicon valley goddamn
Thank you, Conner. The content of this video shocked me. I had no idea that Bo was the mastermind behind Crime Boss: Rockay City, and I finally understand why Almir was in such a hurry to urge players to support Payday 3. Thanks again!
This was a goddamn bombshell of a video. When I saw your name attached to a payday video again, i immediately clicked on it before realising it was as long as it was. I expected an analysis of payday 3, i don’t think anyone was quite prepared for a dissection of the entire history of the companies and people involved, but i can tell you put an immense amount of effort into each part of this video. i can’t imagine the amounts of research that must have gone into each part of this video, even though i knew bits and pieces of the history, this video managed to piece it all together masterfully and showcased just how much of a loop this whole studio has been in forever. I admit, i was one of the many people who stopped tuning into the channel after you stopped working on payday content, even though i was a big fan. I feel bad now for just seeing you as the silencer skills person for all these years, i wasn’t aware of all the mental health issues and i don’t think anyone could blame you for your jaded view of the series and departure from making videos about it now. I feel like i should give some more of your non payday videos a shot, now.
I've followed Payday since The Heist, and I didn't know about a whole lot of this. Holy f. I love Payday 2 so much, but I don't think I can ever be cool with half this shit. I could never imagine treating my own brothers so soullessly. I do feel you have a point with the 'conspiracy-theory' angle of The Secret, but I do sincerely feel that The Secret (and ARG's of its kind) aren't inherently responsible for people falling to their own hubris and prejudice, as well wishing harm upon others. Also, I can't believe this is how, as a Monty Python adorer since childhood, I learn that John Cleese is transphobic. Not that this is even on the list of reasons that starting to transition this year is rough, but that's a gutpunch I didn't need. My disappointment is immeasurable. I thought he was better than that. But, I am incredibly glad to learn that you didn't actually disappear off the planet, and ya went and found something you love to do. I feel quite silly for not looking for your channel in the last few years; you should be proud of what you've accomplished! I hope your line goes up after this (I imagine not-easy-to-create) long-form, and that you found making this, in some way, cathartic.
the fact that you uploaded this two days before it was revealed the second year of payday 3 is gonna have a budget cut is absolutely insane timing lmao
Just watched this all in one sitting, thanks TH-cam recommendation. Really put into perspective the last almost decade I've spent with the franchise and all your videos I'd watch about PD2. Stay safe, excited to stick around again.
I completely understand why Payday is a hard topic to talk about, I followed you on twitter and TH-cam for years after you stopped your payday content and I've seen the way this game and the community made you feel (to a small extent at least). However, that part where you started talking about January 6th was completely insane. Alt Right conspiracy weirdos and dumb ARGs have existed for decades and they both can coexist without crossing paths. That segment made me feel like I was watching a leftist Alex Jones parody and it completely threw me off.
Funny enough Square Enix also published a game that had some gameplay elements like Payday that was developed by IO Interactive. It was Kane & Lynch: Dead Men and Dog Days. However, much like with Grin the games got mediocre sales and reviews. On a more positive note some people actually look at that game with nostalgia and some call it a hidden gem in the crime game genre.
i actually came across that while making this video and thought about mentioning it but when i realized how long the video was gonna be decided not to, but i do think there being a history of "bad" movie-esque heist games set up payday's success further. people were very used to that subgenre sucking, so one that was "actually pretty good" was a huge deal
@@ConnorShawVA I think Kane & Lynch is okay, oddly enough I made a joke post about Kane & Lynch needing to be in Payday 3, in the Payday subreddit and got hundreds of upvotes of people going like hell yeah.
This is one of the best essays I've ever watched, a snarly dissection of a company and a game, as well as a fascinating reflection on your own relation to them. I used to watch your payday content, used to love it, but it's even more inspiring to see you work through it this way as you've moved on to more
me realizing how lucky i was that, despite me being in my prime teenage years, i was able to take "the secret" as it's own fictional thing and not as, well christ. this hurts.
I clicked on this video because I couldn't sleep wand wanted something to watch while bored in bed. I did not recognize the you or your channel name at first. I was so utterly enthralled by the video, its content and presentation that for a solid half hour I had no idea whose video I was watching. I then realized "wait I minute, I know that voice!" and only then I realized that the "Don't buy the shitty youtuber tie-in DLC." guy had the world's largest fucking glowup imaginable and has turned into a more energetic HBomberGuy. Just waiting for your views to skyrocket. After that, it's time for to follow the legacy of the aforementioned H Burger Lie to destroy the careers of several very shitty people, preferably all in 1 single video that will live on in the history of youtube forever.
You know I often joke that the horde shooter genre after L4D2 is cursed with poor launches or just poor games in general. I didn't really expect that to be the case, well ok, its not a supernatural phenomenon the work of one guy. 1:58:30, Connor that's just gun nerds being gun nerds. You put any gun in front of a gun nerd, they'll tell you whatever they know about it, for hours in some cases.
I can't say I was expecting this. Has been years and years since I've seen any of your content, and for lack of better words, life has changed so damn much since then, and it seems it has for you as well. This was a very thorough and concise breakdown of everything that's happened before and to an extent since, and just leaves me with a lot to say. Above all else though, I'm glad you're seemingly in a better place now. So, from one person who was once stuck in the bubble, to another? Thank you for this.
Your right. You are just correct. Only after taking years and years away from payday 2, no videos, no community connection, nothing, did I realize it was killing me. I myself had a hospital trip and while payday wasn't the thing that put me there, it was a significant portion of the damage. Toxic, top to bottom, CEO to in-game hype men. I want to say thank you. I've been saying it to myself for so long but, it's good to hear it from someone else, to be reminded that it's not me "losing interest" or "it no longer being designed for my taste" but that I'm breaking a bad cycle. That I'm making a healthier choice for my mind. That I'm burning a bridge that needed to years ago. Take your time with the next part, I think people are going to need to chew on this information a bit anyways. Don't feel bad for not talking as much about payday 3 in this part as you would have liked, I think the background and setting us up with the info regarding how we got here is much more important than the game itself, it explains why this position exists in the first place. As for right now, take care of you and the people around you. I'm saying this because I worry this stir some crap with the community so a strong network of people who care about you might come in handy.
I absolutely loved the video, Bo and Starbreeze being awful wasn't anything new but christ i didn't know it was that bad. But the whole Payday 2 ARG section was kinda scary, i don't think a silly lil ARG from a heisting game made by a bunch of swedes had any thing to do with Jan 6th or fascism. But i got really worried and hope you are doing okay, cuz (to me at least) it kinda came off as mental breakdown (as someone whos had a lot of them). Trying to see connections where they're aren't any. You are a good person and I hope you know i didn't say that to be mean. I may not have watched you when you were doing payday dlc reviews. But i am fan now. And as a payday fan and fellow LGBTQ+ member, stay safe k? I'm eagerly waiting for part 2
A few months back before boys in blue came out I watched a payday livestream, now I never watch these kinds of things and I was pretty disappointed with the game so idk why I watched it. But in the bit I watched Almir asked if we were excited for the dlc and the way he asked it felt so sad. Like it legit sounded like someone who has been through it and I felt sorry for him. That guy has to be the public face for the disappointment that is Payday 3 and has to drum up hype for a dlc because he knows everyone's wages depend on it, and he has to sit there and take abuse and pretend everything is cool. With the added context now that he probably knows that he would have to do the impossible or everyone else looses their jobs. I really hope the workers get out of the mess and that Bo's teeth rot.
Like 13 minutes in but this video is so well made and really really captivating, this will be my designated youtube video to eat food over a couple days. Gonna be a real interesting watch so thanks Sheri.
Holy hell Sheri (gonna take me a minute to get used to the new name, don't tell me it's fine to use Connor, to spin Bo's infamous statement in a more positive light: your opinion, my choice) you abso-fuckin-lutely cooked with this! I'll be honest I haven't really watched your content since Payday 2's (first) ending, but I'm glad to see you back, even if only for a little bit, and if your writing on the videos I've missed is even a sliver of the quality this one had, then I'm excited to catch up on the backlog! Your PD2 videos honestly carried me through my late high school years and I look back on them incredibly fondly, and hearing your voice again was like a blast to the past. Funnily enough I was talking with a friend about how I had missed you talking about the game with what I had assumed to be a brilliant passion. Now that I've seen the whole video, I sincerely hope you're doing much better! Even though I haven't kept up with your content, you still got a lot of respect from this ole Payday vet, regardless of the stance you take on the franchise, actually having gained incomprehensible amounts from your experiences you had the bravery to share alone! Regardless of the broken promises and lies I let myself believe, I still kept trucking, enjoying the parts of the game that made it fun for me, which is how I've been approaching Payday 3, playing the game when the new stuff drops, and taking breaks from it when the content drought runs. I only just recently started the grind to level 100 and I'm really taking my time to savor the things I enjoy, and letting the rest go with some mild irritation. Granted, I let myself be sucked into the equally as terrible Destiny 2 and once again rode the hype train for years which didn't really break down on me until this year, all it took was a few bad day one raid experiences in that game to make me realize that I needed to step back and focus my hobbies elsewhere. Payday 2 (eventually) taught me the lesson of balancing something's impact on my life, Destiny 2 reinforced it. I'll cut my piece short here because I could ramble incoherently about everything I soaked in, and some of the stuff that made me have to pause the video and think back a bit, and while admittedly I found some points to not necessarily resonate with me, I can respect the stances you took and understand them wholeheartedly. Instead, I just want to say, please please PLEASE take your time to cook the next part to perfection. If Payday 3 tanks before you're done, then so be it, I'll be here waiting patiently to see it! Here's hoping for a decent 2025 and better beyond! Quick edit: Wanted to point out that I loved the detail of you in different outfits and backgrounds that had colors that represented each game/era for Grin/Overkill/Starbreeze/etc. The concept wasn't lost on me!
part 1 of video: wow! payday was really hurting a lot of developers part 2: wow! bo anderson was really hurting a lot of people part 3: the contradictions of capitalism will lead to the inevitable rise of monopoly’s, and the destruction of man kind, the predictions of karl marx ring true today, just as they did in the 1800s
I like that you used the Heat shootout as an example of the physically impossible, when it's famous for being one of the most realistic, believable shootouts in movies, between the lack of foley work, using on-site gunshot reverberations, the real life tactics of suppressing and covering fire which the actors trained for themselves and would allow a smaller better armed group to do so, to the point that it inspired a real 97 shootout.
It is quite the bombshell to come back to payday with, showing off some real reasons to be worried about the series. Props to clearifying some myths about the company/Bo too like the safes. Hearing what it was like being a creator in those times does make me feel bad for wanting more of it at the time and hope you've been doing well since. Though i can't agree on basically anything about the ARG situation about PD2s ending, outside of it being nonsensical story wise. It wasnt your fault, nor the players who got invested, nor the devs for anything that happened after the fact. Secret hunting has been a part of payday since The heist and you know that too. ARGs have been a thing for ages past and since payday 2 and The heist. I understand your pain of your friend going down the conspiracy hole and seeing January 6th but that cannot be blamed on the game and trying to connect those things to Payday/Overkill/SBZ is a consipracy in itself.
Holy its incredible the takes you have on this. I feel like this video made me learn something. Even if I disagree with some of it I feel like this has educated me on the history of payday and everything else. Incredible video and I cant wait to see the next part and whatever else you make next!
just rechecked the footage and i absolutely was the one who got spotted by the guard, you nearly salvaged the situation. the whole time i was grinning like an idiot tho cuz it looked so perfect, running into the vault right as the alarm sounded
You know the meme about Payday (2) being the center of the multiverse? This is how OVK and Starbreeze feel. They're like a song you never noticed, but when you hear it, you can't unhear it from everywhere. I never even saw Payday 2 before I was gifted it on Steam, and thought it was pretty niche. Yet the game crossed over with not just well-established series, it was used as promotion for a movie that never happened(Scarface remake). The fact that its developers worked on not just other games, but Tom Clancy ones is surprising. Everybody knows developers for all their games, and controversies. The....whatever the fuck Andersons are doing feels like it's going from controversy to controversy, not the classic story of "Humble begginings, success, and downfall" Whenever AI takes over or fails and dooms us all, I won't be surprised that Bo had his hand in it
Even morbidly funnier is how much it innovated. Esspecially with DLC. In fact, its weapon modification system, DLC hell and crossover chaos is awfully simmilar to what some of modern day top series are doing So, in a sense, Bo did built the future
i don’t think i’ll be able to watch this fully until the weekend but i’m DROOLING at the thought of a three hour video essay of high quality about an interest subject
Good to hear you talk about this shit show we all love hate that is payday again … Who knows if you’ll stick around for it but it’s always nice to hear your takes, keep up the high quality work :3
holy shit... *he's back.* *edit: just watched the video, and wanted to say that honestly, i had no idea (and probably most other people too) of the mental struggles you were going through at the time. but im glad you're feeling better these days and having fun with what you're making now. since then, ive grown too and i too have had my fair share of mental struggles, so i relate to your description of the emotions you went through at the time. for what its worth, i have very fond memories of watching your videos at the time and they definitly had a positive impact on me. i assure you that despite the struggles, all that effort wasn't for nothing. not for me at least.
A name I haven't heard in forever and a video that honestly feel stupid for not realizing just how... dumb we were back then. I hope you're doing better now. It sucks that my fondest memories of Payday 2 were the hype, the crossovers and the constant updates that I just expected. I never questioned it since I had friends who would funnel their cash to me to get it all. Never questioned it. Older now, its weird seeing just how used to all of it we were. I'll admit I probably stopped watching when the content stopped showing up, but its nice to see what I missed in the meantime Edit: IDK if its a fair shake on the "best of people instead of worst of people" since Walking Dead has a lot of both in it. Its kinda the big point that the end will bring out the best and worst of us. Its why zombie stories are nice, because it lets writers explore all aspects. That is if they actually want try and do more than just be doomer about it. Love Romero, but every movie usually has such a downer tone because it always ends on the worst. Last guy dies, only 2 get out, the city gets overrunned, the last ones get locked in? Its always some level of depressing as hell. Zomboid RP servers actually let us really get deep into the good and bad of it all. Just ramblin at this point so sorry bout that
Wow, this was honestly one of the most engaging videos i have seen in a while. Had me tuned in for the whole video! I never knew almost any of the behind the scenes stuff, i remember the police raid on starbreeze but i think that's it. I don't think i have ever oscillated so fast between almost tears hearing about all the rough shit you went trough and laughing at some joke or absurd piece of information you throw in right after. You really made a great video here, so information dense but still not overwhelming. Also with the context of how you stopped doing payday videos it was great to hear in the end that you try not to promise too fast of a turnaround on the 2nd part and give yourself flexibility on the timeframe. I hope you will keep doing better every day in all aspects of your life!
Having listened further into this video, really solid recounting of the community and the history of SBZ and all I gotta say is whenever you discussed not playing a game if you're only around for a sunk cost fallacy I could only think of my own experience with Destiny 2 which I cut off a year ago after 4k-ish hours, I'm glad I haven't reached there with PAYDAY just yet but I respect you for being 100% yourself in this video and not just simply mirroring many things the current community of PD3 are saying.
i was really hoping i could, without saying it, let people realize this about themselves and games they're sunk into but not having fun with. a gentle nudge. and thank you so much, this video was the most me thing i've ever made!
@@ConnorShawVA yeah it's completely fair, this video is definitely one of your best. (considering I haven't been around since the 2018 era this could be biased) I'd personally love to see more videos of this caliber documenting the history of different game studios if possible but either way thanks for replying to my comment and take it easy ❤
thank you for sharing, i had a mental break as well that came from a manic episode, it haunts me to this day, and besides the meds i was given the psych ward did not help me. this was also how i found out i had bipolar. hearing your experience i feel for you, no ones experiences are the same and there were no fights where i was but at some level i know how it feels. everything was a bit of a blur for me and its further blurred by willingly supressing those memories. thank you for being brave enough to share
I used to watch your old payday 2 content and i remember enjoying them back in the day. I never knew the STRESS you had to go through and all of that mental heath stuff, and honestly i feel bad for not watching your other content, you seem like the type of person who puts A LOT of effort researching things and trying your best to make content.
I appreciate you returning to this difficult topic to talk about it, even beyond all the horrific behind the scenes stuff for the games I think its important to hear you get into your own struggles with producing content back then. Im so happy that youre in a better place these days c:
Wow that was a good video. The amount of passion and emotion is insane. Thank you for your hard work and dedication. You shouldn’t feel bad about having to splitting this into two parts. Take all the time you need to make it right and take care of yourself. I can’t wait to see what else you have to say no matter how long it takes. Besides, releasing something unfinished and adding the rest in later, seems pretty fitting eh?
Insane video honestly, and damn, I do remember hearing about the deal digital bros made with SBZ some time back, but never went into details, and didn't know it was actually this bad. I won't speculate much on the terms of the deal that you mentioned in the end, and it is easy to assume the worst (and, well, there is no reason not to do that, I guess?). Just to me it kind of reminds how the playerbase went a bit into "panic mode" regarding news that Plaion had signed only 18 months of support for the game, and where people immediately jumped to assumptions "that's it, PD3 dies once this contract runs out". But it is still pretty damning nonetheless. A bit of a repeat of what some other commenters said, but I also found the correlation you made regarding PD2 ARG and Jan 6, and all the conspiracy theory stuff as kind of grasping at straws, I'm not american however, and Overkill/Starbreeze were quite vocal about having the largest steam community gathering on the platform, and who knows what kind of people were in there (regular interactions on steam forums even nowadays suggest they are kind of awful, but that's way off-topic). Not to mention Bo's personality and the "mysterious" writer they had, so I kind of see the point of bringing it up, as being a potentially another bad influence of Bo's approach (or the the media stuff at the time influencing Bo since it was, after all, during Trump's presidency), but honestly maybe it could've been left on the cutting room floor. And the last bit, I would love if you went a bit into more details regarding current PD3 publishing situation (I assume you will, but just to mention it). Since it's a bit confusing to me with the whole Plaion/Deep Silver/Embracer/Prime Matter kerfuffle, and you mostly, at the end, mentioned Deep Silver specifically. My understanding till now was that Prime Matter was supposed to be main publisher for PD3 (and it was under some sort of new initiative at the time of announcement, prior to that the deal was signed with Koch Media, which later on was renamed to Plaion), but then it switched to Deep Silver on steam page (notable, after some time when it was already live, not immediately) and then switched again to Plaion. And I saw barely any mentions of what Deep Silver actually did as a publisher, as most stuff seems to be handled by Plaion? Pre-launch promotions, physical editions, merch, influencer marketing etc. So it's confusing to me, who's the "main" company here (or if it even matters)
Glad to see you posting Connor, missed your amazing videos ❤️. Edit: Also skip this part I’m about to write since it might be slightly triggering: I used to be in such a depressive state up until last year when I had finally went to therapy consistently, mainly through toxicity with family and friends, it led me to eventually go into a psychiatric ward and it costed loads of money to finally repay hospital fees as well as the ambulance. I can’t imagine the pain you and Ulf went through, and I truly hope you guys know that you are amazing and that we all love you guys no matter what.
Your videos are what got me into Payday 2 in 2018, it's also what let me to making some of the best (ex)friends and (ex)partners since. And I got heavily burned on the game because of it so I haven't actively played it since I've hit 1k hours. And as much as my experience with the game went from fun to hurt, hearing how horrible you're journey has been made me feel, I was one of the people asking for more Payday vids from you and I just feel bad about it, I'm sorry. To feel such anxiety and fear based on just playing a game sounds horrifying, I couldn't even imagine how it feels, especially since for me the internet and games are that escape from anxiety and fear. I wish you all the best, and I'm happy to finally be reminded of your channel your new vids look really fun
Hey Sheri. I firstly wanted to say that this video is fantastic and I'm very proud of not only you, but the work that Jay (E3K) put into this as well, but I also wanted to share some thoughts of mine to you. I bought and downloaded Payday 2 on April 5th, 2019, My now Ex-Partner had given me money for my at the time 15th birthday. I downloaded Payday and played a few games and was instantly hooked on the replay-ability, and bountiful missions the game came with. Along with that, came me researching and doing videos on Payday, looking for information on the game and learning it's core mechanics, missions, weapons, etc. The first channel I found was you, and I remember spending literal nights finding playlists of your first Payday video to your last video, being a guide on the secret ending along with your "Let's take a look", "Here's what's new" and "Here's a build to try" videos. Your videos had astounded me and I remember scrolling through your channel and seeing less of it. Now me being the young, impressionable teen at the time, I had seen so many comments basically shitting on you for even thinking about quitting Payday, and I'm ashamed to admit that I was like that as well. Now this wasn't mainly because I was apart of the sinking ship that was late 2018's StarBreeze and OverKill's financial mistakes or terrible directions with games and payday as well, if anything it was more or less that I had just arrived to see the aftermath of said sinking ship and all I saw were strawman arguments about how you stopped making Payday content and that you were bad for doing so, and me not understanding the kind of situation StarBreeze and Overkill had been in, I had went along with the crowd thinking that they were making sense. Now I'm 20, approaching 21 next year, Having now logged 1100 hours into Payday 2, I watched both this and E3K's video essay on Payday 2, Being the respective "Let's talk about Payday 2" and "We're still talking about Payday 2"... Oh! And "We were never talking about Payday2". After years and years of playing Payday, It had eventually clicked to me that as I grew older, I never really understood... Why did the community hate you so badly? Was it because of who you are? What you did? It had finally occurred to my little brain that I never really figured out why the community hated you so much, You didn't do anything wrong other than provide content for others, What the fuck is there to hate? Watching this video really did make me realize that the result of a sinking ship and lack of understanding companies in and out of gaming really will make people blame anyone for the sake of their self righteous ego's. But what your along with Jay's videos did for me, was inspire me to be a genuine beacon for Payday players, be someone that another player can look at and be like "Hey! Thank you, you're cool!" Instead of being off putted by ego centric maniacs who desire substance to even breathe. My conclusion with all this is that I thank you, not just for being a real bright beacon for Payday, but also just branching out and adventuring more then just Payday. But this also comes with my apologies, I wish I did understand a little more sooner, what kind of suffering you've been through, I pray and hope your recovery has been well and that you continue to live on, leaving a mark on the world for others to admire. Much love.
This game had a community that was really insulated, which is fine if you don’t intend to leave the fandom bubble and the parasocial relationships people have between each other stay positive, but the tumultuous period the game was in and the content creators wanting to save their skin and branch out, I think, made a ton of people within the fandom panic and lash out. Maybe it just looked like betrayal to them? I don’t know and trying to dissect their motives has genuinely haunted me for five years now. The people who turned back to see how we’re doing, trying to divorce from this thing we’ve been inexorably tied to, are genuinely some of the nicest, coolest people to answer comments from or just occupy the same space as.
@@E3kHatena I wanna imagine it like this. We all were betrayed, but since the community likely didn't know better or didn't keep up much with the devs and how this game was a bonfire rising in flames, they just needed a scapegoat to blame since their beloved game was gonna die. Just like you, I don't entirely understand the hostility, like I said in my text, what is there to hate? Sheri didn't do nothing, so why did the community become so hateful? My only assumption is that the community wasn't ready for this game to fall, the community was not prepared and therefore, when it all came and crashed, all they could do was yell at the closest person to Payday that isn't the devs.
I'm relieved you're still around Shaw. Happy to see you and hear your wonderful voice. The jokes and editing is top-notch, no doubt. Would love to see more whatever content you make. Edit: wow. I didn't know. I hope you're feeling better now.
I'm very glad you got Part 1 out when you did, now I know I don't need to collect material for a franchise retrospective. And you knocked it out of the park, fantastic job! There was so much I didn't even know about, and I'm glad you can read between lines and don't just keep it surface level. Very excited for part 2, but please take your time. I phased in and out of Payday 2, more out than in after the secret, so I never saw what you were cooking up after you wisely left it behind. Gotta check out some of your other work now!
I still don't get it why people dislike PAYDAY 2 secret. Prior to it the game didn't have any story at all and White House gave us at least some closure. It's kinda stupid, but fun.
Watched the entirety of the video here, and I wanted to say thanks for adding in context to events that I did not understand entirely. Regarding the Crime Boss section of the video, I believe the term you were looking for when a movie or video game hires celebrities in order to have them act as the draw for the audience is referred to as 'stunt casting'. Also, I want to say that Touchdown using racial slurs towards Italians may have been removed outright, but I can't say for sure 100%. I must be a masochist, because my source for this is me having beaten the game 100% and having played the single player campaign 16 times. The Italian Mafia used to be a faction in the game led by Don Barbaro, with them being replaced when the Cagnali's Order DLC was released. Cagnali, strangely enough, is Don Barbaro's niece, which is information that I couldn't find in the game and had to check elsewhere to locate it. Both factions use the word 'Scudo' to name their in-game gangster armies. Scudos itself is a word referring to gold or silver coins used in Italy from the 16th century all the way to 19th century.
the gang names and that line from touchdown was the original thing that made me include the "paid yondu to say some slurs?" line, but i didn't know any of that about the context for the italian faction changing, so they possibly removed any instance of the really bad slurs playing i just like, got audibly flashbanged by that line when scanning the video for the worst of touchdown's shit. also, goddammit you're right "stunt casting" is the phrase i needed!!
This was a great video, learned a lot that I wasnt aware of in this. Finding out Lion Game Lion's involvement with Crime Boss, how exactly Bo was involved with the game as well. Hell, just seeing how raw a wound covering Payday 2 was for you, I couldn't even imagine how it was for Ulf being treated like that by his own blood. It's a very good reminder how much disdain that I have for Bo, how Starbreeze has survived that is crazy and with the news that Payday 3 is being invested in less with more staff focused on Project Baxter is so aggravating. On another note, I'm glad you're in a better state and focusing on the projects you want to make. I remember specifically loving the Jeff video you made on Half Life Alyx that pushed me towards getting the game. Thank you ❤
hi, long time viewer, first time commenter, just wanna say as someone who also has bipolar 2 i am grateful and thankful that you gave us amazing content in spite of a majority of problems arising, personally speaking i can't begin to fathom the sheer stress of it all, so thank you alot for both the payday content kept preserved in the past, and your own personal scripted pieces towards the future. thank you!
I'm going to be honest it's my first time on this channel and I've been a payday fan since 2 but not as long as most people subbed for sure. Though personally your story about burnout and dangers of overdedication to games and similar hits home and I'm so happy for you that you've gotten out of such an awful, toxic cycle and environment and I hope you're thriving today after all that cuz the panic, misery and frustration of reflecting on that time was palpable to say the least and again hit home as I only recently had the epiphany of "not doing things i hate because I should". Love the video, I'll definitely stay for more and hope you have a wonderful day 💜 (Also croatia proud lol)
I'm not a fan of your work for a list of reasons and I may disagree with some opinions in this video (I think you were overreacting a bit over the secret but I'm not American and never had a former friend like yours so I understand it) but the level of time and research put into this I applaud. I knew bits and pieces of the rabbit hole that is how much of a dirtbag asshole Bo is, from the comments from his co-workers and that email the eurogamer article showed and his involvement with Crime Boss but never the whole story like Crime Boss being a LGL prototype or his insane posts on LinkedIn. I also never knew about the 40 million, and wow, if the past year hasn't already been rough for me as Payday fan that enjoys parts of 3 and wanted it to succeed, the next few months are gonna be scary depending on how quick and aggressive Digital Bros want to act once the deadline is up. Basically, I think the video was pretty solid.
It is so awesome to see a content creator I remember following years ago, and I get reminded of their videos. Only to learn they are also non-binary and creating incredible video essays. I am very excited to see part 2, please do not make the mistakes of the past and give yourself time to work on this. This is probably in my top list of video essays for this year, great fucking job.
great to see you back! i think i’ve played with you at least 2-3 times throughout my year of playing payday 3 so far, and i’d always check your channel or twitch to see if you were playing/if it was really you, but i saw how long it’d been since you posted
The thing that's most annoying about how Payday 3 and Overkill turned out is just how much leniency they had from the community. Payday 2 was by the time of 2017-2018 still a total jank mess of a game with absurd amounts of DLC spread around, but everyone loved it and was loving it, because it was still a fun co op shooter with tight shooting and just general wacky goofy action. Payday 3 could have been just as jank as Payday 2 as long as it had the heart and it had the content and people would have have ate it up without a thought, but the devs decided to take the most shallow, most generic low budget anti consumer way to do a sequel, and I'd argue Payday 3 can never be fixed because it wasn't made to be good, it wasn't made even to be made good later on through updates. It was just made to get some very quick DLC/Season Pass money to keep Starbreeze afloat. Payday 2 had its issues before it involved into a geniunenly fun experience but even earlier on with all the DLC launches, the game was clearly looking to make money, but it was still something that was improving and getting constant new and good stuff. It was a game that was actually meant to be built upon, Payday 3 just isn't. Also, yeah, the fact ur back is a bit of a poetic thing to the video. Starbreeze and Payday hasn't changed, and ur random completely unnecesary inserts about "omg guys 2011 stuff is so bad and evil its so good that we have evolved from then." In that sense gaming is probably just the most annoying snake eating its own tail metaphor. Okay, big edit since this is actually quite shocking and I've been watching this vid while playing Code Vein. Connor, you really didn't have to make an entire vid that's basically at its core just you having an emotional breakdown about some of the most egotistical things I've seen a youtuber complain about and disguise it as a Payday 3 rant/Payday retrospective. Payday 3 is shit, Starbreeze is shit, everyone knows. The moment you started putting the blame on fans enjoying the game's lore and puzzles for the series's downfall and compared the Payday 2 secret hunt directly to QAnon shit was the moment this video got super gross and then you compare that shit to the fucking US capital Riot???? Everyone except some randos in the community forgot about you man, why even come back just to do this? You're clearly mentally unwell whenever you come back to this franchise.
What a beautiful video, I decided to grind a long time tonight in a different game but I saw the video and I didn't realize who uploaded it but I was intrigued (Long video game essay sign me the eff up) and instantly hearing your voice i was pleasantly surprised, it went so fast and was so captivating; you really made me hate this guy in 3 hours for a game that because of your earlier videos i bought but was so jank that I could never play for more then an hour without crashing. A game that I was never more interested then just watching your videos, but something I was upset to see the quality constantly dip in. For years I saw the decline with the paid DLC coming back and the 10 year wait for 3 just for the game to come out horrendous, questioning why people were buying it and why every youtuber promoting it mostly stayed silent, but to know now a sizeable chunk of the games behind the scene story it just fits all into place. I'm glad that I learned of the 10 chamber story cause I like GTFO its another game I silently watch but not partake but I can see the soul in it, more soul then Bo could ever put into anything nowadays, just thank you so much for this video it was done so well and masterfully my god Im gonna be thinking and saying stuff from this video for a long time, especially to some of my friends who have played payday, its just so amazing.
the fucking tragedy that is Starbreeze is astronomical, you have so many people capable of doing some damn good fucking work if you just let them cook, and then you try to fucking compress water.
I didn't know ANY of that shit about Crime Boss gd. I scored it during the cheapsss steam release. It explains the AI art in the newest update. Hope you've been doing well most importantly of all.
@@robin32111the hoarde mode has posters that are all clearly AI generated, and they replaced a lot of other posters in the game with newer ones that look like the telltale AI art style but may not be
Welcome back, Connor. I'm always glad to hear your take on Payday, whether it be constructively positive or constructively negative. I just think this is a good moment to say that even though the Payday content is what kept me most interested, I dropped in here and there to watch your other videos and I was always pleased with them. It's just usually I avoid content about games I haven't played because I'm afraid I'll be spoiling myself. I've picked up on the troubles you've expressed throughout the video and all I can say is, take good care of yourself out there. Thank you for being a huge part of something I've cared deeply about over the years. I hope your Payday phase one day becomes a fond memory rather than trauma that was caused by the community because it was just the right medium for you to show me how talented you are as a content creator and I'm sure it was a good outlet for you to express yourself at the time.
I have asked for more Payday content back in the day and had I known that you were going through those things I would've never sent those comments in the first place. Kind of makes me feel like crap, but I really hope things are going better for you now. Though I do have to admit that the connection between the Payday's conspiracy stuff and QAnon/Jan 6th is a little far-fetched. It's one thing to find the hidden meaning in a game or a piece of media knowing it's all fictional (entertaining but fictional) and genuinely believing the stuff that was being spread by the MAGA/QAnon cult. I'm writing this comment on the mobile web version of TH-cam since my version of the TH-cam client does not allow for posting comments. To make up for all the adblocking I've done (right now and in the past) I'm donating 5 bucks via Ko-Fi. Have a good one.
thank you very much, and please dont feel bad. people couldn't have known and i wouldn't have been making videos if i didn't at least appreciate the craft, and i'm still proud of my work from them. glad we can see middle ground on the game, and thank you so much for the tip. it really does make a difference!
This was literally the last thing I'd have ever expected to see in my TH-cam feed, but I'm definitely here for it, looking forward to these next 3 hours, whatever they bring. edit at the half way point: Love the Van Gogh art
![F.HERO Ft. JSPKK x ลำไย ไหทองคำ x M-PEE - ไม่สนิทบิดหมด (Thai Riders Anthem) [Official MV]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/kPJZ0UihBfk/mqdefault.jpg)
if you can without putting yourself out, spare change for the work is appreciated. no worries either way! ko-fi.com/connorshawva
Hey, can I just say I'm sorry for being one of those people who nagged on you about "quitting" PAYDAY years ago? As I've gotten older, I've moved to agree with people like Gene that this kind of constant content production is draining to people. I'm genuinely sorry for any pain I might have contributed to years back.
I knew about Bo being a bad investor with StarVR and such, but genuinely hurting Ulf like that and breeding this kind of a community... why did I never see this when I was younger? Was I too naive to care about other people like you and their health?
I know, it's not exactly appropriate to go on about this after you've poured so much of your time and effort to even peel back the curtain for just a minute, to let us in on what was happening... but I'm genuinely sorry for contributing to that toxic mentality years ago.
I'm glad I also decided to watch that B4B video as you recommended it around the 40 minute mark. Really accentuates the rest of this.
Ex-Overkill Cinematic Animator here who used to do all the trailers between Sept 2014 to March 2018. Just wanna say, this is a good video.
02:07:55 - Fun fact, in late 2014 Bo grabbed me from my desk and pulled me to a screen with a white-boxed third person game and asked me "Do you think this is the kinda game people would play on TH-cam and stream?". In hindsight, it was definitely pre-alpha Dead By Daylight. He asked me because at the time I was very involved with TH-cam and I had a big channel at the time (with this name, I closed it down in 2020, this one is just an archive). I said yeah, definitely, and went back to animating. Funny how that goes.
02:23:00 - Those trailers were not made in Valhalla, by the way. They were done in whatever GBK uses, likely Maya. Render-wise, I think Valhalla only ended up being used for a few headshots of Payday 2 characters like Sangres, and eventually there was a playable "thing" in the engine, but ultimately it was just not worth it.
02:30:19 - Honestly I retain the opinion that Bo's banking on VR was the one major good idea he had, but he messed up by insisting production should be handled internally and catered to making it an arcade device. You can see remnants of StarVR in headsets like the Pimax 5K. He was just a bit too early technologically, and surprisingly UN-ambitious about the place VR could have in peoples homes.
The whole thing about the pace of releasing updates is exactly the issue I have with. I don't really care getting lots and lots of updates or new heists within a few weeks. Instead I want one big thing, or something that just keeps me entertained long-term and not for a single week. Heists and weapons are nice and all but they keep you entertained for like what, a week?
PD2 just had SO MUCH STUFF already, that a heist and some weapons were actually good value after some time. For PD3 it doesn't cut it since you can't really do much else by completing those heists. You complete them a couple times to check out the different like 2 RNG seeds and play with the guns a little (since the mods on the guns are pointless) and that's about it.
In regards to the ARGs, I've never been sort of into the "ARG story" thingy, more like the challenge behind it. Essentially a big puzzle fan. It's how I got into PAYDAY to begin with. Some random dude during my apprenticeship essentially just said to me "hey, there's this easter egg thing you can do in this game, it takes 2 hours and you have to do it on the highest difficulty". I literally was like "wtf.? How have I never heard of that game?".
Now THIS is a Payday video! Awesome production, loved every minute of it
Jesus [expunged] Christ. This... explains so much. I feel guilt hearing what happened during your time in Payday because your DLC reviews got me into the game to begin with. All I can say that thank you for posting this and im glad to hear that you're in a much better place.
Edit: fixed typo
don't feel guilty, trying to make something good out of terrible circumstances is how a lot of artists end up with great works they have trouble looking back on after. and im just some youtuber
but seriously, thank you. don't feel bad, be happy things can always improve no matter how dire it seems
Shaw on Payday again? This is like your dad coming back with the milk and cigarettes
LMAO GODDAMN
I read it as 'Sham' because of the timing of the video and when I read this comment and then looked at Connor's name and assumed Shaw was Sham and then for a split-second considered whether or not Connor was AllShamNoWow.
Then I realized I was trippin.
1:32:49
"Ulf Andersson, and Simon Viklund got the fuck out of that den of wolves"
I see what you did there. Clever.
Made me chuckle too
@@10Chambersno fucking way
Lmao
@@10Chambersoh my GOD
I was not expecting this... but I am very much here for it.
i do feel like i kinda farted in your proverbial elevator, or maybe material to work with? good luck, much love
@@ConnorShawVA nonsense, far as I'm concerned the more the merrier! We should chat some time if you want to connect, my door's open :)
Glad I got to be the small domino on this one. Thanks for having me as a friend and colleague; getting to see this all come together has been a trip.
We miss you too… hope you’re doing well :3
@@imaroadcone6207 - I didn't really go anywhere, just people stopped watching and this year, life REALLY got in the way. I'm on ADHD meds now and I've got my own side to this story I'm working on (as you probably guessed given how frequently I pop up in this parable lmao) but to cut a long story short I've got miles to go before I sleep, and promises to keep.
@@imaroadcone6207 - I didn't go anywhere, I've been posting all the same, too! Life has been in my way the whole year so far but I'm on ADHD meds now and I'm plugging away at my own perspective on this whole thing. I've got miles to go before I sleep, and promises to keep.
peakhatena
Praise be to Ballsy.
as someone who has done some work for Notoriety
thank you for mentioning how the game was breaking out of its mold, and thank you for sharing your story for us
i loved your videos and still do, coming back every now and then to check up on what's been happening, and i've been relieved almost every time to know you're way less stressed doing content you actually enjoy now
try and keep things fun,
take it easy
cheers to the future.
I nearly wrote you off just as a knee-jerk reaction to seeing anyone return to dunk on Payday 3 but I'm so glad I didn't. This was incredibly entertaining and well-produced and I'm so impressed by the sheer amount of research and all the unearthed context that's been missing. Really looking forward to the follow up and beyond. I'll definitely have to read that Trevor Project deep dive too.
Side note, "'No politics' is, itself, a political opinion. It is a deference of leadership to a system which isn't actively hostile to you." is handily among the hardest things I've ever heard and I was gobsmacked hearing it in the middle of a Payday 3 video essay
i will make payday players listen to theory so help me
and thank you very much. i got into payday 3 expecting to hate it, wound up liking it and being sad at what happened to it, then deciding i had to be careful about how i did this video *because* of how easy the narrative of "its bad let's all dunk on it" is. i wish i could've gotten the rest of the video in, because as it was originally written it was gonna end on a more optimistic note. still, tried my best to write kind for those who deserve it.
Haven't seen the video yet, gonna give it a chance, but hear ME out. "No politics IS politics" is one of those slogans that lose meaning as people apply it to everything they think they can. I agree with the logic, but there is that stinky subtext that lingers around it's usage. I think you know what I mean. The idea that no politics == politics, therefore everything is political, therefore nothing is apolitical, therefore no one can know peace from the news cycle destroying their mind as they desperately attempt to engage in media that DOESN'T make them want to... "engage in government work."
Tomato is a fruit in the garden, but a vegetable in the kitchen. I assume the video mentions how Payday 2 is L4D2 with guns, but something more significant at the same time. I respect the analysis. My bet would be that Payday, under all the cheese, could say something about the prevalence of corruption in government and police, and how helping people is secondary to upholding legitimacy.
If the video calls the game gutless for not endorsing some faction or concept despite having both exist as masks or something, I'm turning it off epic style. I've seen it before, it happens all the time. Sometimes a cigar is just a corporate shooter game marketed as cops & robbers to 15 year old boys. YT analysts like to not have fun.
@@ArchSchizo bro delete this you are shadow boxing. you could not be farther off what happens in the video. dont make specific comments about a video without knowing whats in the video.
If you're gonna talk about Deep Silver and how terrible they are, then you HAVE to talk about IdolNinja and the Saints Row 2 PC patch. The TL;DR is that their community manager volunteered to fix their broken SR2 port for PC while he was literally dying of cancer, and then when they closed down the studio that made the game, Volition, they still haven't released the patch. Even though they made a promise to finish it, and a man died for it. If you're not invested in the Saints Row space, I recommend watching Flippy or SaintsGodzilla's videos on the subject. Deep Silver are absolute fucking monsters, and every Saints Row fan hates them.
now... NONE of that i knew. good lord. i will certainly remember that and look into it, i always wondered why the story around the SR2 pc port seemed to get weird and sad later
@ConnorShawVA what made it worse is that Mike Watson (IdolNinja), specifically got the job because of his community modding work. His "Gentlemen of the Row" mod for SR2 is part of the reason the game is even remotely playable on PC, and the patch was gonna package all the extra content he made into the final product. This wasn't just some parasocial relationship with a corporate figurehead. This was a close friend to a lot of community members who they miss dearly. And now the thing he died for is sitting in a vault somewhere, if it hasn't already been deleted in an accidental server wipe.
At the core of this video, this is a very solid look into Starbreeze and Bo Andersson and all of the weird scummy shit him and that company have done over this year, however im very hung up on the connections to the Payday 2 ARG to QAnon beliefs and eventually Jan 6th.
I feel like your fascination on the more supernatural elements especially in the story beats that predate it is strange to me. Alt-Right conspiracy theories and ARGs have existed for much, much longer than Payday 2 and while I don't doubt it might have pushed someone into thinking more radically or making someone more easily be able to fall for things like this, I do not think it was designed with any malicious intent or served as any real "programming" for any individual. The sad thing to see with, especially with alt-right conspiracies, is that they target the vulnerable who want to feel more "special" in the world. I do not think a really hokey story in a video game that is grasping at every single straw imaginable for "Ohh fuck how do i make this an Engaging Fantasy Thing" is really going to be the radicalizer compared to people who have made a whole job and profession over telling people the lies they want to hear to suck them into this really toxic cycle of abuse and power that these people eventually grow over them which allow them to insert whatever beliefs they want. I am truly sorry for what happened to your friend, and what they went through is horrible, but using that as an excuse to make frankly conspiracy-tier connections to this and the American Alt-Right is similarly drenched in the same aesthetics of conspiracy that they preach to those who fall into their pipelines.
I am curious about your take on Nazi occultism too, I do not feel like it is a particularly uncommon trope in things and while I do agree that it kind of legitimizes a lot of the bad fanatic occultism that the Nazis had, you also bring up Wolfenstein in the same comparison, a game that is ALSO very heavily drenched in that, even if its not exactly prominent in the MachineGames reboots of wolf.
I understand that was a very turbulent and emotional part of your life, seeing someone you know slip deeper and deeper into hatred for others and slowly being changed into someone who can only be consumed by hate for others, but I do not think any part of that video was particularly well-founded or thought out. I do think the connections and what the story leads to especially with the White House heist is Unfortunate especially in modern times, but I'd feel it'd carry that weight with it no matter if it had a frankly ridiculous ARG or not, considering that the White House heist was basically teased and hinted at for ages in the game.
Overall, a good video that I liked a good bit, I simply think your reasoning and insight into the ARG and its story elements was perhaps not helped due to it being quite emotionally charged, but I wish you well regardless.
As someone who used to be a fan back in the old payday 2 days, I wish youtube would've told me sooner that the stuff you're making now is THIS good. This video was paced excellently, written brilliantly, and the visuals kept me engaged the whole time. All of the jokes landed like a professional acrobat, and all of the commentary was as pointed as a blade. Really phenomenal work, you knocked it outta the park!
The followup will take as long as it takes, if you can't hit that first half of 2025 estimate, that's okay. I can only speak for myself but I don't mind waiting as long as I need to for quality this high. I'll be certain to check out your other non-payday output, too, because evidently I've been missing out.
this is the kind of video that stays dormant for years until 1 month after the game get shut down in which it gets 1 million views
hey, you couldn't have possibly finished the video yet! go back and watch it first! :) (edit: okay ur good now)
nuh uh
no ;)
I didn't ask to be attacked like this
ITS LOADING GIVE ME A SECOND ARGGHHHH!!!!!
BUT UR BACCCC
Fantastically crafted video! There was a lot in there that I hadn't heard before. The information regarding the obligation to provide 33% of Payday 3's profit was new to me, very interesting to learn that. I'll be eagerly awaiting the next chapter, tremendously excited to hear your thoughts on Payday 3 from both the perspective of the game and its development.
I also wanted to take a moment to mention that, as someone who played Payday 2 on console and was unfortunately locked out of a significant chunk of the game's content, I always found your coverage of updates, DLCs, and especially events to be invaluable. Your content made it much easier for me to stay up-to-date with the game and follow the story as it unfolded, even when I couldn't access everything first-hand. I have no doubt that your older Payday 2 videos have in part contributed to my decision to make Payday 3 content. 💜
You say there is no proof of Bo getting shot, BUT when he was going on an insane ramble in the Crime Boss Discord server, when he was still in that server, he actually did post x rays of the bullet. The x rays look to be authentic, but who knows, maybe they're also fake. He said A LOT of other shit on the server, like how his wife could beat up David Goldfarb, how he is working on Storm (still) with Joe (who is Wordsmith apparently), calling Almir a poser, how the Swedish government tortured him for 3 days and stole his family??? He said a lot of different shit, and I have some screenshots of the stuff he said. It's kinda funny, but at the same time really depressing
(pretty certain thats his second ex wife now) i didn't realize just how candid he got, i didn't want to enter the discord cuz i saw it as blowing up my spot but i heard he was there being a hypeman. i didn't realize he was going through a late-life crisis live in posts damn.
also the swedish government tortured him by investigating him for three days?? this man wouldn't last two seconds in silicon valley goddamn
I can second this ive seen the xrays
Thank you, Conner. The content of this video shocked me. I had no idea that Bo was the mastermind behind Crime Boss: Rockay City, and I finally understand why Almir was in such a hurry to urge players to support Payday 3. Thanks again!
This was a goddamn bombshell of a video. When I saw your name attached to a payday video again, i immediately clicked on it before realising it was as long as it was. I expected an analysis of payday 3, i don’t think anyone was quite prepared for a dissection of the entire history of the companies and people involved, but i can tell you put an immense amount of effort into each part of this video. i can’t imagine the amounts of research that must have gone into each part of this video, even though i knew bits and pieces of the history, this video managed to piece it all together masterfully and showcased just how much of a loop this whole studio has been in forever.
I admit, i was one of the many people who stopped tuning into the channel after you stopped working on payday content, even though i was a big fan. I feel bad now for just seeing you as the silencer skills person for all these years, i wasn’t aware of all the mental health issues and i don’t think anyone could blame you for your jaded view of the series and departure from making videos about it now. I feel like i should give some more of your non payday videos a shot, now.
I've followed Payday since The Heist, and I didn't know about a whole lot of this. Holy f. I love Payday 2 so much, but I don't think I can ever be cool with half this shit. I could never imagine treating my own brothers so soullessly. I do feel you have a point with the 'conspiracy-theory' angle of The Secret, but I do sincerely feel that The Secret (and ARG's of its kind) aren't inherently responsible for people falling to their own hubris and prejudice, as well wishing harm upon others.
Also, I can't believe this is how, as a Monty Python adorer since childhood, I learn that John Cleese is transphobic. Not that this is even on the list of reasons that starting to transition this year is rough, but that's a gutpunch I didn't need.
My disappointment is immeasurable. I thought he was better than that.
But, I am incredibly glad to learn that you didn't actually disappear off the planet, and ya went and found something you love to do. I feel quite silly for not looking for your channel in the last few years; you should be proud of what you've accomplished! I hope your line goes up after this (I imagine not-easy-to-create) long-form, and that you found making this, in some way, cathartic.
the fact that you uploaded this two days before it was revealed the second year of payday 3 is gonna have a budget cut is absolutely insane timing lmao
Just watched this all in one sitting, thanks TH-cam recommendation.
Really put into perspective the last almost decade I've spent with the franchise and all your videos I'd watch about PD2. Stay safe, excited to stick around again.
I completely understand why Payday is a hard topic to talk about, I followed you on twitter and TH-cam for years after you stopped your payday content and I've seen the way this game and the community made you feel (to a small extent at least). However, that part where you started talking about January 6th was completely insane.
Alt Right conspiracy weirdos and dumb ARGs have existed for decades and they both can coexist without crossing paths. That segment made me feel like I was watching a leftist Alex Jones parody and it completely threw me off.
Agreed. Whole thing made me feel - above anything else - concerned.
7:40
>Looks at captions
>the word Diesel is capitalized
peak
This didn't feel like the history of overkill this feel like someone slowly losing there mind because of payday 2.
There is a VERY Unraveled quality to this, yeah.
Funny enough Square Enix also published a game that had some gameplay elements like Payday that was developed by IO Interactive.
It was Kane & Lynch: Dead Men and Dog Days. However, much like with Grin the games got mediocre sales and reviews.
On a more positive note some people actually look at that game with nostalgia and some call it a hidden gem in the crime game genre.
i actually came across that while making this video and thought about mentioning it but when i realized how long the video was gonna be decided not to, but i do think there being a history of "bad" movie-esque heist games set up payday's success further. people were very used to that subgenre sucking, so one that was "actually pretty good" was a huge deal
@@ConnorShawVA I think Kane & Lynch is okay, oddly enough I made a joke post about Kane & Lynch needing to be in Payday 3, in the Payday subreddit and got hundreds of upvotes of people going like hell yeah.
Also, here’s a fun fact. Kane & Lynch is in the same universe as the Hitman games, and both characters actually appear in Hitman: Absolution.
K&L2 reminds me of PDTH in terms that while both games aren't the most shining examples of a game , their aetsthetic carries them
This is one of the best essays I've ever watched, a snarly dissection of a company and a game, as well as a fascinating reflection on your own relation to them. I used to watch your payday content, used to love it, but it's even more inspiring to see you work through it this way as you've moved on to more
me realizing how lucky i was that, despite me being in my prime teenage years, i was able to take "the secret" as it's own fictional thing and not as, well
christ. this hurts.
I clicked on this video because I couldn't sleep wand wanted something to watch while bored in bed.
I did not recognize the you or your channel name at first. I was so utterly enthralled by the video, its content and presentation that for a solid half hour I had no idea whose video I was watching. I then realized "wait I minute, I know that voice!" and only then I realized that the "Don't buy the shitty youtuber tie-in DLC." guy had the world's largest fucking glowup imaginable and has turned into a more energetic HBomberGuy.
Just waiting for your views to skyrocket. After that, it's time for to follow the legacy of the aforementioned H Burger Lie to destroy the careers of several very shitty people, preferably all in 1 single video that will live on in the history of youtube forever.
You know I often joke that the horde shooter genre after L4D2 is cursed with poor launches or just poor games in general. I didn't really expect that to be the case, well ok, its not a supernatural phenomenon the work of one guy.
1:58:30, Connor that's just gun nerds being gun nerds. You put any gun in front of a gun nerd, they'll tell you whatever they know about it, for hours in some cases.
Hey Hey, that's me as Chains at the 1:01:36 mark in Undercover XD. I never made the connection that Sheri! was you lol. Good vid mate!
I can't say I was expecting this. Has been years and years since I've seen any of your content, and for lack of better words, life has changed so damn much since then, and it seems it has for you as well. This was a very thorough and concise breakdown of everything that's happened before and to an extent since, and just leaves me with a lot to say. Above all else though, I'm glad you're seemingly in a better place now. So, from one person who was once stuck in the bubble, to another? Thank you for this.
Your right. You are just correct.
Only after taking years and years away from payday 2, no videos, no community connection, nothing, did I realize it was killing me. I myself had a hospital trip and while payday wasn't the thing that put me there, it was a significant portion of the damage.
Toxic, top to bottom, CEO to in-game hype men. I want to say thank you. I've been saying it to myself for so long but, it's good to hear it from someone else, to be reminded that it's not me "losing interest" or "it no longer being designed for my taste" but that I'm breaking a bad cycle. That I'm making a healthier choice for my mind. That I'm burning a bridge that needed to years ago.
Take your time with the next part, I think people are going to need to chew on this information a bit anyways. Don't feel bad for not talking as much about payday 3 in this part as you would have liked, I think the background and setting us up with the info regarding how we got here is much more important than the game itself, it explains why this position exists in the first place.
As for right now, take care of you and the people around you. I'm saying this because I worry this stir some crap with the community so a strong network of people who care about you might come in handy.
A 3 hour upload, damn Connor, that's wild
Christ i didn't even realize it was 3 hours lol
Guess im hunkering down with some snacks 😂
make Wished I Was Bread 2, chop chop.
back to the ol roots... excited to watch :)
I absolutely loved the video, Bo and Starbreeze being awful wasn't anything new but christ i didn't know it was that bad.
But the whole Payday 2 ARG section was kinda scary, i don't think a silly lil ARG from a heisting game made by a bunch of swedes had any thing to do with Jan 6th or fascism. But i got really worried and hope you are doing okay, cuz (to me at least) it kinda came off as mental breakdown (as someone whos had a lot of them). Trying to see connections where they're aren't any.
You are a good person and I hope you know i didn't say that to be mean. I may not have watched you when you were doing payday dlc reviews. But i am fan now. And as a payday fan and fellow LGBTQ+ member,
stay safe k?
I'm eagerly waiting for part 2
Connor Shaw making a new payday video before GTA 6
A few months back before boys in blue came out I watched a payday livestream, now I never watch these kinds of things and I was pretty disappointed with the game so idk why I watched it. But in the bit I watched Almir asked if we were excited for the dlc and the way he asked it felt so sad. Like it legit sounded like someone who has been through it and I felt sorry for him. That guy has to be the public face for the disappointment that is Payday 3 and has to drum up hype for a dlc because he knows everyone's wages depend on it, and he has to sit there and take abuse and pretend everything is cool. With the added context now that he probably knows that he would have to do the impossible or everyone else looses their jobs.
I really hope the workers get out of the mess and that Bo's teeth rot.
and the forgotten one returns, banger video, cant wait for the 2nd part
The second half of this video is a mental health crisis.
45:20 Almir looks fed up there because I believe Ice T was saying "You should have known, you should have had 10 times more servers for this"
Jesus christ. Every Payday fan needs to see this
i think most people watching either aren't or now wont be Payday fans
yes connor, the secret from the clown robbery game with ethan of h3h3 caused the jan 6 insurrection
Is this the same machine they used to put the wife in the arm had me howling
Like 13 minutes in but this video is so well made and really really captivating, this will be my designated youtube video to eat food over a couple days. Gonna be a real interesting watch so thanks Sheri.
Holy hell Sheri (gonna take me a minute to get used to the new name, don't tell me it's fine to use Connor, to spin Bo's infamous statement in a more positive light: your opinion, my choice) you abso-fuckin-lutely cooked with this! I'll be honest I haven't really watched your content since Payday 2's (first) ending, but I'm glad to see you back, even if only for a little bit, and if your writing on the videos I've missed is even a sliver of the quality this one had, then I'm excited to catch up on the backlog!
Your PD2 videos honestly carried me through my late high school years and I look back on them incredibly fondly, and hearing your voice again was like a blast to the past. Funnily enough I was talking with a friend about how I had missed you talking about the game with what I had assumed to be a brilliant passion. Now that I've seen the whole video, I sincerely hope you're doing much better! Even though I haven't kept up with your content, you still got a lot of respect from this ole Payday vet, regardless of the stance you take on the franchise, actually having gained incomprehensible amounts from your experiences you had the bravery to share alone!
Regardless of the broken promises and lies I let myself believe, I still kept trucking, enjoying the parts of the game that made it fun for me, which is how I've been approaching Payday 3, playing the game when the new stuff drops, and taking breaks from it when the content drought runs. I only just recently started the grind to level 100 and I'm really taking my time to savor the things I enjoy, and letting the rest go with some mild irritation. Granted, I let myself be sucked into the equally as terrible Destiny 2 and once again rode the hype train for years which didn't really break down on me until this year, all it took was a few bad day one raid experiences in that game to make me realize that I needed to step back and focus my hobbies elsewhere. Payday 2 (eventually) taught me the lesson of balancing something's impact on my life, Destiny 2 reinforced it.
I'll cut my piece short here because I could ramble incoherently about everything I soaked in, and some of the stuff that made me have to pause the video and think back a bit, and while admittedly I found some points to not necessarily resonate with me, I can respect the stances you took and understand them wholeheartedly. Instead, I just want to say, please please PLEASE take your time to cook the next part to perfection. If Payday 3 tanks before you're done, then so be it, I'll be here waiting patiently to see it! Here's hoping for a decent 2025 and better beyond!
Quick edit: Wanted to point out that I loved the detail of you in different outfits and backgrounds that had colors that represented each game/era for Grin/Overkill/Starbreeze/etc. The concept wasn't lost on me!
part 1 of video: wow! payday was really hurting a lot of developers
part 2: wow! bo anderson was really hurting a lot of people
part 3: the contradictions of capitalism will lead to the inevitable rise of monopoly’s, and the destruction of man kind, the predictions of karl marx ring true today, just as they did in the 1800s
Glad to be a part of this! I haven't actually finished the video yet while I'm typing this, but the video is fantastic Sheri, fantastic job!
I like that you used the Heat shootout as an example of the physically impossible, when it's famous for being one of the most realistic, believable shootouts in movies, between the lack of foley work, using on-site gunshot reverberations, the real life tactics of suppressing and covering fire which the actors trained for themselves and would allow a smaller better armed group to do so, to the point that it inspired a real 97 shootout.
you're back and with a 3 hour video simply incredible! :D
Edit: also just part 1?!??!?!!?
😂 you were one of the only ones to notice that
It is quite the bombshell to come back to payday with, showing off some real reasons to be worried about the series. Props to clearifying some myths about the company/Bo too like the safes. Hearing what it was like being a creator in those times does make me feel bad for wanting more of it at the time and hope you've been doing well since.
Though i can't agree on basically anything about the ARG situation about PD2s ending, outside of it being nonsensical story wise. It wasnt your fault, nor the players who got invested, nor the devs for anything that happened after the fact. Secret hunting has been a part of payday since The heist and you know that too. ARGs have been a thing for ages past and since payday 2 and The heist. I understand your pain of your friend going down the conspiracy hole and seeing January 6th but that cannot be blamed on the game and trying to connect those things to Payday/Overkill/SBZ is a consipracy in itself.
Holy its incredible the takes you have on this. I feel like this video made me learn something. Even if I disagree with some of it I feel like this has educated me on the history of payday and everything else. Incredible video and I cant wait to see the next part and whatever else you make next!
was writing for an audience im expecting to disagree with me, glad to see you're willing to hear me out
@@ConnorShawVA Def gave the brain food for thought!
A shaw video on payday 3!? cool!!
2:38 oh that's me failing stealth.. ohh...
At the time I thought it was someone pretending to be you, but no
just rechecked the footage and i absolutely was the one who got spotted by the guard, you nearly salvaged the situation. the whole time i was grinning like an idiot tho cuz it looked so perfect, running into the vault right as the alarm sounded
@@ConnorShawVA Damn, I'm misremembering then. Was quite perfectly timed, yeah 😄
You know the meme about Payday (2) being the center of the multiverse? This is how OVK and Starbreeze feel. They're like a song you never noticed, but when you hear it, you can't unhear it from everywhere.
I never even saw Payday 2 before I was gifted it on Steam, and thought it was pretty niche. Yet the game crossed over with not just well-established series, it was used as promotion for a movie that never happened(Scarface remake).
The fact that its developers worked on not just other games, but Tom Clancy ones is surprising. Everybody knows developers for all their games, and controversies. The....whatever the fuck Andersons are doing feels like it's going from controversy to controversy, not the classic story of "Humble begginings, success, and downfall"
Whenever AI takes over or fails and dooms us all, I won't be surprised that Bo had his hand in it
Even morbidly funnier is how much it innovated. Esspecially with DLC. In fact, its weapon modification system, DLC hell and crossover chaos is awfully simmilar to what some of modern day top series are doing
So, in a sense, Bo did built the future
i don’t think i’ll be able to watch this fully until the weekend but i’m DROOLING at the thought of a three hour video essay of high quality about an interest subject
Good to hear you talk about this shit show we all love hate that is payday again …
Who knows if you’ll stick around for it but it’s always nice to hear your takes, keep up the high quality work :3
holy shit... *he's back.*
*edit: just watched the video, and wanted to say that honestly, i had no idea (and probably most other people too) of the mental struggles you were going through at the time. but im glad you're feeling better these days and having fun with what you're making now. since then, ive grown too and i too have had my fair share of mental struggles, so i relate to your description of the emotions you went through at the time. for what its worth, i have very fond memories of watching your videos at the time and they definitly had a positive impact on me. i assure you that despite the struggles, all that effort wasn't for nothing. not for me at least.
The last time you uploaded a Payday video I still thought I was cis and straight
yo same
PART 1??? Tabarnak!
You made a legendary video here.
i'm so happy this came out. thank you connor. or sheri. whichever you prefer. ms. shaw. or mr. shaw. i dont know
any, all, really ive gotten over myself at this point. sheri's fine
WE ARE SO FUCKING BACKKKKK
Glad to see you posting again friend!
I had no clue the DLC after ultimate was 170! Holy fuck thank god I looked for the unlocker after I heard they were charging again
A name I haven't heard in forever and a video that honestly feel stupid for not realizing just how... dumb we were back then. I hope you're doing better now. It sucks that my fondest memories of Payday 2 were the hype, the crossovers and the constant updates that I just expected. I never questioned it since I had friends who would funnel their cash to me to get it all. Never questioned it. Older now, its weird seeing just how used to all of it we were. I'll admit I probably stopped watching when the content stopped showing up, but its nice to see what I missed in the meantime
Edit: IDK if its a fair shake on the "best of people instead of worst of people" since Walking Dead has a lot of both in it. Its kinda the big point that the end will bring out the best and worst of us. Its why zombie stories are nice, because it lets writers explore all aspects. That is if they actually want try and do more than just be doomer about it. Love Romero, but every movie usually has such a downer tone because it always ends on the worst. Last guy dies, only 2 get out, the city gets overrunned, the last ones get locked in? Its always some level of depressing as hell. Zomboid RP servers actually let us really get deep into the good and bad of it all. Just ramblin at this point so sorry bout that
Wow, this was honestly one of the most engaging videos i have seen in a while. Had me tuned in for the whole video!
I never knew almost any of the behind the scenes stuff, i remember the police raid on starbreeze but i think that's it.
I don't think i have ever oscillated so fast between almost tears hearing about all the rough shit you went trough and laughing at some joke or absurd piece of information you throw in right after. You really made a great video here, so information dense but still not overwhelming.
Also with the context of how you stopped doing payday videos it was great to hear in the end that you try not to promise too fast of a turnaround on the 2nd part and give yourself flexibility on the timeframe.
I hope you will keep doing better every day in all aspects of your life!
Having listened further into this video, really solid recounting of the community and the history of SBZ and all I gotta say is whenever you discussed not playing a game if you're only around for a sunk cost fallacy I could only think of my own experience with Destiny 2 which I cut off a year ago after 4k-ish hours, I'm glad I haven't reached there with PAYDAY just yet but I respect you for being 100% yourself in this video and not just simply mirroring many things the current community of PD3 are saying.
i was really hoping i could, without saying it, let people realize this about themselves and games they're sunk into but not having fun with. a gentle nudge. and thank you so much, this video was the most me thing i've ever made!
@@ConnorShawVA yeah it's completely fair, this video is definitely one of your best. (considering I haven't been around since the 2018 era this could be biased)
I'd personally love to see more videos of this caliber documenting the history of different game studios if possible but either way thanks for replying to my comment and take it easy ❤
thank you for sharing, i had a mental break as well that came from a manic episode, it haunts me to this day, and besides the meds i was given the psych ward did not help me. this was also how i found out i had bipolar. hearing your experience i feel for you, no ones experiences are the same and there were no fights where i was but at some level i know how it feels. everything was a bit of a blur for me and its further blurred by willingly supressing those memories. thank you for being brave enough to share
I used to watch your old payday 2 content and i remember enjoying them back in the day. I never knew the STRESS you had to go through and all of that mental heath stuff, and honestly i feel bad for not watching your other content, you seem like the type of person who puts A LOT of effort researching things and trying your best to make content.
I appreciate you returning to this difficult topic to talk about it, even beyond all the horrific behind the scenes stuff for the games I think its important to hear you get into your own struggles with producing content back then. Im so happy that youre in a better place these days c:
Wow that was a good video. The amount of passion and emotion is insane. Thank you for your hard work and dedication. You shouldn’t feel bad about having to splitting this into two parts. Take all the time you need to make it right and take care of yourself. I can’t wait to see what else you have to say no matter how long it takes. Besides, releasing something unfinished and adding the rest in later, seems pretty fitting eh?
Insane video honestly, and damn, I do remember hearing about the deal digital bros made with SBZ some time back, but never went into details, and didn't know it was actually this bad.
I won't speculate much on the terms of the deal that you mentioned in the end, and it is easy to assume the worst (and, well, there is no reason not to do that, I guess?). Just to me it kind of reminds how the playerbase went a bit into "panic mode" regarding news that Plaion had signed only 18 months of support for the game, and where people immediately jumped to assumptions "that's it, PD3 dies once this contract runs out". But it is still pretty damning nonetheless.
A bit of a repeat of what some other commenters said, but I also found the correlation you made regarding PD2 ARG and Jan 6, and all the conspiracy theory stuff as kind of grasping at straws, I'm not american however, and Overkill/Starbreeze were quite vocal about having the largest steam community gathering on the platform, and who knows what kind of people were in there (regular interactions on steam forums even nowadays suggest they are kind of awful, but that's way off-topic).
Not to mention Bo's personality and the "mysterious" writer they had, so I kind of see the point of bringing it up, as being a potentially another bad influence of Bo's approach (or the the media stuff at the time influencing Bo since it was, after all, during Trump's presidency), but honestly maybe it could've been left on the cutting room floor.
And the last bit, I would love if you went a bit into more details regarding current PD3 publishing situation (I assume you will, but just to mention it). Since it's a bit confusing to me with the whole Plaion/Deep Silver/Embracer/Prime Matter kerfuffle, and you mostly, at the end, mentioned Deep Silver specifically.
My understanding till now was that Prime Matter was supposed to be main publisher for PD3 (and it was under some sort of new initiative at the time of announcement, prior to that the deal was signed with Koch Media, which later on was renamed to Plaion), but then it switched to Deep Silver on steam page (notable, after some time when it was already live, not immediately) and then switched again to Plaion.
And I saw barely any mentions of what Deep Silver actually did as a publisher, as most stuff seems to be handled by Plaion? Pre-launch promotions, physical editions, merch, influencer marketing etc. So it's confusing to me, who's the "main" company here (or if it even matters)
I also remember hearing about the deal digital bros made with SBZ some time back...
Glad to see you posting Connor, missed your amazing videos ❤️.
Edit: Also skip this part I’m about to write since it might be slightly triggering:
I used to be in such a depressive state up until last year when I had finally went to therapy consistently, mainly through toxicity with family and friends, it led me to eventually go into a psychiatric ward and it costed loads of money to finally repay hospital fees as well as the ambulance.
I can’t imagine the pain you and Ulf went through, and I truly hope you guys know that you are amazing and that we all love you guys no matter what.
Your videos are what got me into Payday 2 in 2018, it's also what let me to making some of the best (ex)friends and (ex)partners since. And I got heavily burned on the game because of it so I haven't actively played it since I've hit 1k hours. And as much as my experience with the game went from fun to hurt, hearing how horrible you're journey has been made me feel, I was one of the people asking for more Payday vids from you and I just feel bad about it, I'm sorry. To feel such anxiety and fear based on just playing a game sounds horrifying, I couldn't even imagine how it feels, especially since for me the internet and games are that escape from anxiety and fear.
I wish you all the best, and I'm happy to finally be reminded of your channel your new vids look really fun
Hey Sheri. I firstly wanted to say that this video is fantastic and I'm very proud of not only you, but the work that Jay (E3K) put into this as well, but I also wanted to share some thoughts of mine to you.
I bought and downloaded Payday 2 on April 5th, 2019, My now Ex-Partner had given me money for my at the time 15th birthday. I downloaded Payday and played a few games and was instantly hooked on the replay-ability, and bountiful missions the game came with. Along with that, came me researching and doing videos on Payday, looking for information on the game and learning it's core mechanics, missions, weapons, etc. The first channel I found was you, and I remember spending literal nights finding playlists of your first Payday video to your last video, being a guide on the secret ending along with your "Let's take a look", "Here's what's new" and "Here's a build to try" videos.
Your videos had astounded me and I remember scrolling through your channel and seeing less of it. Now me being the young, impressionable teen at the time, I had seen so many comments basically shitting on you for even thinking about quitting Payday, and I'm ashamed to admit that I was like that as well. Now this wasn't mainly because I was apart of the sinking ship that was late 2018's StarBreeze and OverKill's financial mistakes or terrible directions with games and payday as well, if anything it was more or less that I had just arrived to see the aftermath of said sinking ship and all I saw were strawman arguments about how you stopped making Payday content and that you were bad for doing so, and me not understanding the kind of situation StarBreeze and Overkill had been in, I had went along with the crowd thinking that they were making sense.
Now I'm 20, approaching 21 next year, Having now logged 1100 hours into Payday 2, I watched both this and E3K's video essay on Payday 2, Being the respective "Let's talk about Payday 2" and "We're still talking about Payday 2"... Oh! And "We were never talking about Payday2". After years and years of playing Payday, It had eventually clicked to me that as I grew older, I never really understood... Why did the community hate you so badly? Was it because of who you are? What you did? It had finally occurred to my little brain that I never really figured out why the community hated you so much, You didn't do anything wrong other than provide content for others, What the fuck is there to hate?
Watching this video really did make me realize that the result of a sinking ship and lack of understanding companies in and out of gaming really will make people blame anyone for the sake of their self righteous ego's. But what your along with Jay's videos did for me, was inspire me to be a genuine beacon for Payday players, be someone that another player can look at and be like "Hey! Thank you, you're cool!" Instead of being off putted by ego centric maniacs who desire substance to even breathe.
My conclusion with all this is that I thank you, not just for being a real bright beacon for Payday, but also just branching out and adventuring more then just Payday.
But this also comes with my apologies, I wish I did understand a little more sooner, what kind of suffering you've been through, I pray and hope your recovery has been well and that you continue to live on, leaving a mark on the world for others to admire.
Much love.
This game had a community that was really insulated, which is fine if you don’t intend to leave the fandom bubble and the parasocial relationships people have between each other stay positive, but the tumultuous period the game was in and the content creators wanting to save their skin and branch out, I think, made a ton of people within the fandom panic and lash out.
Maybe it just looked like betrayal to them? I don’t know and trying to dissect their motives has genuinely haunted me for five years now. The people who turned back to see how we’re doing, trying to divorce from this thing we’ve been inexorably tied to, are genuinely some of the nicest, coolest people to answer comments from or just occupy the same space as.
@@E3kHatena I wanna imagine it like this.
We all were betrayed, but since the community likely didn't know better or didn't keep up much with the devs and how this game was a bonfire rising in flames, they just needed a scapegoat to blame since their beloved game was gonna die.
Just like you, I don't entirely understand the hostility, like I said in my text, what is there to hate? Sheri didn't do nothing, so why did the community become so hateful?
My only assumption is that the community wasn't ready for this game to fall, the community was not prepared and therefore, when it all came and crashed, all they could do was yell at the closest person to Payday that isn't the devs.
this video is like a 3 hour long panic attack. 10/10
Hope this was cathartic not chaotic to work on. Enjoy the holidays
I'm relieved you're still around Shaw. Happy to see you and hear your wonderful voice. The jokes and editing is top-notch, no doubt.
Would love to see more whatever content you make.
Edit: wow. I didn't know. I hope you're feeling better now.
I'm very glad you got Part 1 out when you did, now I know I don't need to collect material for a franchise retrospective.
And you knocked it out of the park, fantastic job! There was so much I didn't even know about, and I'm glad you can read between lines and don't just keep it surface level. Very excited for part 2, but please take your time.
I phased in and out of Payday 2, more out than in after the secret, so I never saw what you were cooking up after you wisely left it behind. Gotta check out some of your other work now!
that Polybius and Radical Heights joke was fucking good
I VERY NEARLY CUT IT in favor of a much more boring gas station weed blunt rotation joke
(it was hideo kojima, palmer luckey, kid rock, and cliffy b)
I still don't get it why people dislike PAYDAY 2 secret. Prior to it the game didn't have any story at all and White House gave us at least some closure. It's kinda stupid, but fun.
We didn’t really NEED a narrative for the game and it was silly and stupid but the actual content was fun so it worked out
@@KayQue404 lack of any narrative is something that i personaly complained about so in the end i was very pleased with results.
@@CoOportal that’s good though I didn’t really mind it since it was just a game about robbing places and other cool stuff
@@CoOportal the narrative isn't cohesive.
Watched the entirety of the video here, and I wanted to say thanks for adding in context to events that I did not understand entirely.
Regarding the Crime Boss section of the video, I believe the term you were looking for when a movie or video game hires celebrities in order to have them act as the draw for the audience is referred to as 'stunt casting'.
Also, I want to say that Touchdown using racial slurs towards Italians may have been removed outright, but I can't say for sure 100%. I must be a masochist, because my source for this is me having beaten the game 100% and having played the single player campaign 16 times.
The Italian Mafia used to be a faction in the game led by Don Barbaro, with them being replaced when the Cagnali's Order DLC was released. Cagnali, strangely enough, is Don Barbaro's niece, which is information that I couldn't find in the game and had to check elsewhere to locate it. Both factions use the word 'Scudo' to name their in-game gangster armies. Scudos itself is a word referring to gold or silver coins used in Italy from the 16th century all the way to 19th century.
the gang names and that line from touchdown was the original thing that made me include the "paid yondu to say some slurs?" line, but i didn't know any of that about the context for the italian faction changing, so they possibly removed any instance of the really bad slurs playing
i just like, got audibly flashbanged by that line when scanning the video for the worst of touchdown's shit. also, goddammit you're right "stunt casting" is the phrase i needed!!
This was a great video, learned a lot that I wasnt aware of in this. Finding out Lion Game Lion's involvement with Crime Boss, how exactly Bo was involved with the game as well. Hell, just seeing how raw a wound covering Payday 2 was for you, I couldn't even imagine how it was for Ulf being treated like that by his own blood. It's a very good reminder how much disdain that I have for Bo, how Starbreeze has survived that is crazy and with the news that Payday 3 is being invested in less with more staff focused on Project Baxter is so aggravating.
On another note, I'm glad you're in a better state and focusing on the projects you want to make. I remember specifically loving the Jeff video you made on Half Life Alyx that pushed me towards getting the game. Thank you ❤
hi, long time viewer, first time commenter, just wanna say as someone who also has bipolar 2 i am grateful and thankful that you gave us amazing content in spite of a majority of problems arising, personally speaking i can't begin to fathom the sheer stress of it all, so thank you alot for both the payday content kept preserved in the past, and your own personal scripted pieces towards the future. thank you!
I'm going to be honest it's my first time on this channel and I've been a payday fan since 2 but not as long as most people subbed for sure. Though personally your story about burnout and dangers of overdedication to games and similar hits home and I'm so happy for you that you've gotten out of such an awful, toxic cycle and environment and I hope you're thriving today after all that cuz the panic, misery and frustration of reflecting on that time was palpable to say the least and again hit home as I only recently had the epiphany of "not doing things i hate because I should". Love the video, I'll definitely stay for more and hope you have a wonderful day 💜
(Also croatia proud lol)
I'm not a fan of your work for a list of reasons and I may disagree with some opinions in this video (I think you were overreacting a bit over the secret but I'm not American and never had a former friend like yours so I understand it) but the level of time and research put into this I applaud. I knew bits and pieces of the rabbit hole that is how much of a dirtbag asshole Bo is, from the comments from his co-workers and that email the eurogamer article showed and his involvement with Crime Boss but never the whole story like Crime Boss being a LGL prototype or his insane posts on LinkedIn. I also never knew about the 40 million, and wow, if the past year hasn't already been rough for me as Payday fan that enjoys parts of 3 and wanted it to succeed, the next few months are gonna be scary depending on how quick and aggressive Digital Bros want to act once the deadline is up.
Basically, I think the video was pretty solid.
appreciate the honesty, and I'm glad you can get the information out from behind my ramblings heh
It is so awesome to see a content creator I remember following years ago, and I get reminded of their videos.
Only to learn they are also non-binary and creating incredible video essays.
I am very excited to see part 2, please do not make the mistakes of the past and give yourself time to work on this. This is probably in my top list of video essays for this year, great fucking job.
I'm happy to see you back.
quite the emotional video, hope things will be going ok for ya
I’ve heard rumblings of this and it will be a delight to actually sit down and see it with kitty and stormy.
great to see you back! i think i’ve played with you at least 2-3 times throughout my year of playing payday 3 so far, and i’d always check your channel or twitch to see if you were playing/if it was really you, but i saw how long it’d been since you posted
The thing that's most annoying about how Payday 3 and Overkill turned out is just how much leniency they had from the community. Payday 2 was by the time of 2017-2018 still a total jank mess of a game with absurd amounts of DLC spread around, but everyone loved it and was loving it, because it was still a fun co op shooter with tight shooting and just general wacky goofy action. Payday 3 could have been just as jank as Payday 2 as long as it had the heart and it had the content and people would have have ate it up without a thought, but the devs decided to take the most shallow, most generic low budget anti consumer way to do a sequel, and I'd argue Payday 3 can never be fixed because it wasn't made to be good, it wasn't made even to be made good later on through updates. It was just made to get some very quick DLC/Season Pass money to keep Starbreeze afloat. Payday 2 had its issues before it involved into a geniunenly fun experience but even earlier on with all the DLC launches, the game was clearly looking to make money, but it was still something that was improving and getting constant new and good stuff. It was a game that was actually meant to be built upon, Payday 3 just isn't.
Also, yeah, the fact ur back is a bit of a poetic thing to the video. Starbreeze and Payday hasn't changed, and ur random completely unnecesary inserts about "omg guys 2011 stuff is so bad and evil its so good that we have evolved from then." In that sense gaming is probably just the most annoying snake eating its own tail metaphor.
Okay, big edit since this is actually quite shocking and I've been watching this vid while playing Code Vein. Connor, you really didn't have to make an entire vid that's basically at its core just you having an emotional breakdown about some of the most egotistical things I've seen a youtuber complain about and disguise it as a Payday 3 rant/Payday retrospective. Payday 3 is shit, Starbreeze is shit, everyone knows. The moment you started putting the blame on fans enjoying the game's lore and puzzles for the series's downfall and compared the Payday 2 secret hunt directly to QAnon shit was the moment this video got super gross and then you compare that shit to the fucking US capital Riot???? Everyone except some randos in the community forgot about you man, why even come back just to do this? You're clearly mentally unwell whenever you come back to this franchise.
What a beautiful video, I decided to grind a long time tonight in a different game but I saw the video and I didn't realize who uploaded it but I was intrigued (Long video game essay sign me the eff up) and instantly hearing your voice i was pleasantly surprised, it went so fast and was so captivating; you really made me hate this guy in 3 hours for a game that because of your earlier videos i bought but was so jank that I could never play for more then an hour without crashing. A game that I was never more interested then just watching your videos, but something I was upset to see the quality constantly dip in. For years I saw the decline with the paid DLC coming back and the 10 year wait for 3 just for the game to come out horrendous, questioning why people were buying it and why every youtuber promoting it mostly stayed silent, but to know now a sizeable chunk of the games behind the scene story it just fits all into place. I'm glad that I learned of the 10 chamber story cause I like GTFO its another game I silently watch but not partake but I can see the soul in it, more soul then Bo could ever put into anything nowadays, just thank you so much for this video it was done so well and masterfully my god Im gonna be thinking and saying stuff from this video for a long time, especially to some of my friends who have played payday, its just so amazing.
This is gonna take me sometime to digest.
It has been awhile regarding PD content.
Thank you for doing this.
the fucking tragedy that is Starbreeze is astronomical, you have so many people capable of doing some damn good fucking work if you just let them cook, and then you try to fucking compress water.
I didn't know ANY of that shit about Crime Boss gd. I scored it during the cheapsss steam release. It explains the AI art in the newest update. Hope you've been doing well most importantly of all.
the AI art happened so late into production of this vid that i didnt really have time to harp on it but god its so gnarly lmao
Hey, do you happen to know which piece of artwork is AI? I'm just curious
@@robin32111the hoarde mode has posters that are all clearly AI generated, and they replaced a lot of other posters in the game with newer ones that look like the telltale AI art style but may not be
Welcome back, Connor. I'm always glad to hear your take on Payday, whether it be constructively positive or constructively negative. I just think this is a good moment to say that even though the Payday content is what kept me most interested, I dropped in here and there to watch your other videos and I was always pleased with them. It's just usually I avoid content about games I haven't played because I'm afraid I'll be spoiling myself.
I've picked up on the troubles you've expressed throughout the video and all I can say is, take good care of yourself out there. Thank you for being a huge part of something I've cared deeply about over the years. I hope your Payday phase one day becomes a fond memory rather than trauma that was caused by the community because it was just the right medium for you to show me how talented you are as a content creator and I'm sure it was a good outlet for you to express yourself at the time.
I have asked for more Payday content back in the day and had I known that you were going through those things I would've never sent those comments in the first place. Kind of makes me feel like crap, but I really hope things are going better for you now. Though I do have to admit that the connection between the Payday's conspiracy stuff and QAnon/Jan 6th is a little far-fetched. It's one thing to find the hidden meaning in a game or a piece of media knowing it's all fictional (entertaining but fictional) and genuinely believing the stuff that was being spread by the MAGA/QAnon cult.
I'm writing this comment on the mobile web version of TH-cam since my version of the TH-cam client does not allow for posting comments. To make up for all the adblocking I've done (right now and in the past) I'm donating 5 bucks via Ko-Fi. Have a good one.
thank you very much, and please dont feel bad. people couldn't have known and i wouldn't have been making videos if i didn't at least appreciate the craft, and i'm still proud of my work from them. glad we can see middle ground on the game, and thank you so much for the tip. it really does make a difference!
The video we've been waiting for!!
This was literally the last thing I'd have ever expected to see in my TH-cam feed, but I'm definitely here for it, looking forward to these next 3 hours, whatever they bring.
edit at the half way point: Love the Van Gogh art