Chapter 858: I Almost Believed It!

Chapter 858: I Almost Believed It!

The interesting gameplay of Payday quickly became a hot topic among players.

In terms of scale, Payday itself is a Medium-to-Small Scale game.

Yet it delivered an extraordinary experience to players.

First, there's the thematic impact—the concept of playing as robbers and pulling off heists gave players a thrilling sense of breaking taboos.

And as a game, it allows players to act without restraint, free from the constraints of morality or law—making it the perfect outlet for releasing real-world stress.

This is also why many games under Nebula Games have acquired so many nicknames over time.

Ignoring the official Story-driven narratives, Link, under countless players' control, became Hyrule's Old Rogue; Arthur Morgan became a notorious outlaw in the Wild West…

There are countless similar cases, and this kind of behavior brings players an indescribable sense of catharsis.

Payday formalizes this feeling directly into its core Gameplay.

Second, Payday delivers a strong sense of realism.

Chen Xu and his team incorporated numerous real-world cases and studied a wealth of professional knowledge during development.

Though trying to use the game as a literal robbery encyclopedia would undoubtedly get players killed in real life, the attention to detail within the game is outstanding.

Before playing Payday, many players might not have known that banks and similar institutions typically have silent alarm buttons under their counters. Nor would they know that the display glass in banks isn't regular Glass, but bulletproof Glass—so durable that even homemade explosives like TNT can't shatter it.

Additionally, bank vaults usually have two layers of doors and don’t store nearly as much cash as players might imagine.

Furthermore, the banknotes stored inside often contain tracking chips and special dye packs designed to stain stolen money.

After playing this game, many players found themselves learning a surprising amount of real-world knowledge.

And as more and more players pulled off heists and accumulated experience and playtime, discussions around Payday exploded in popularity.

The game’s unique theme naturally spawned a variety of humorous Meme and talking points among the player base.

These became integral parts of the game’s culture, even trending on the official Weibo account’s trending search.

"This game is so fun! I go to the bank for work during the day, and then I go back at night to work overtime."

"Bought this game for my kid—he loved it. Now he’s been sentenced to death with reprieve."

"My 23-year-old son was at his lowest point in life when this game inspired him. On his very first heist, he bought a Ferrari in full and purchased an ocean-view apartment—all with his own money, not a single cent from the family. Sadly, he’s no longer with us."

"Someone once asked me, who is the most miserly person in the world? I thought of the stubborn Plyushkin, the fierce Shylock, the suspicious Harpagon, the cunning Grandet, or perhaps the deceitful Marquis Jianhe and Yan Jiansheng, who died still worrying about snuffing out an extra wick. But only after playing this game—seeing a group of billionaires risking their lives to commit robberies, refusing to replace a drill that breaks down every few minutes despite having all the money in the world—did I finally understand how to write the word ‘miserly.’"

"Bro above, that’s not miserliness—that’s loyalty, that’s staying true to your original heart! How many people, after achieving wealth and fame, still remember their original dreams? How many still recall the person they once shared coarse meals with? How many can endure hardship together, but not prosperity? These four robbers, even after hundreds of heists, even with fortunes worth billions, even as renowned hardened criminals—they’ve never forgotten that very first drill they used during their debut heist. Yes, they have better options now, but that drill, the one that carried their growth and youth, is something they’ll never abandon."

"Damn it! I almost believed all your nonsense!"

……………………

This is actually a normal phenomenon. Due to the game’s theme and scale, Nebula Games, under Chen Xu’s direction, didn’t allocate many resources toward promotion.

As a result, players who don’t actively follow the gaming industry—those who only play occasionally or just jump on the bandwagon of popular titles—were initially unaware of Chen Xu’s game titled Payday.

Second, the game’s theme is inherently niche.

Games like Elden Ring or Final Fantasy, which emphasize Story, combat, and Search & Destroy, allow players to immediately grasp their appeal upon starting.

But Payday isn’t that kind of game. At its core, it’s a grind-focused title.

So when players first start, even though they can participate in heists, these are mostly small-scale jobs—like robbing Four Stores or jewelry shops.

Only as playtime increases and experience and money accumulate do players gradually unlock deeper layers of content, with many clever mechanics revealing themselves.

For example, skill points—by investing in different Skills from various Classes and skill trees, players can evolve into elite hardened criminals with unique abilities.

Each playstyle has its purpose and underlying theory.

What to do in the early game, how to approach the mid game, what strategies to use in the late game—how to escape, how to hold a position.

How to play stealth, how to Just Go For It (colloquial) as a brute.

There are also considerations for weapon selection, attachments, items, purchasing advantages, and even choosing your position and mask before entering a heist—all of which require thought.

As heists grow more complex and decisions become harder, the game’s level of professionalism intensifies.

With rising difficulty and smarter enemies, you can no longer play as a mindless brute, charging in guns blazing.

Otherwise, you’ll quickly find yourself experiencing gameplay that makes you doubt life itself.

For instance, the 'Blademaster'—a Unit type that beats you down relentlessly while setting off a continuous Beeping Sound alarm.

Wielding a riot baton, this enemy dashes toward the player like a phantom, delivering a brutal spinning slam straight to the head.

Then there's the Internet Addiction Exterminator—a highly skilled enemy armed with a specialized taser that can paralyze players, leaving them helpless and exposed in the hail of bullets and explosions, the most handsome guy standing there as a live target.

There are many other distinct Big Bros as well, and with increasing difficulty, the game only gets tougher over time.

Therefore, to successfully escape the encirclement of these veteran enemies, players must make full use of their in-game knowledge.

Skill combinations, playstyle synergies, map exploration, and tactical planning—all become essential.

In the end, these strategic elements prove even more captivating than the initial attraction of playing as robbers pulling off heists.

<>