Payday 2: Crimewave Edition Guide - Tips For Playing Solo

Payday 2 originally released back in 2013, but now has received the new definitive version on consoles as Payday 2: Crimewave Edition. The game itself is for the most part the same outside of having some DLC that was previously exclusive to PC, but for any newcomers to the game, we thought we’d put together a guide with some tips on how to survive your various heists and missions, this time for those playing solo with AI bots.

Case Your Surroundings

Payday 2 is definitely not like games such as Metal Gear Solid where you can truly be stealthy and such, but you do have the ability to case your surroundings before each heist. This can be as advanced as finding viewpoints or just looking where video cameras are in the area you will be performing a heist. This is even more vital than when playing with others online, as you basically know this mission is going to be you all alone, as your AI partners are useless.

Never Rely On The AI

As you can see in our review for Payday 2: Crimewave Edition, the friendly AI in the game is absolutely horrid. Just about the only thing they will do correctly is kill the police for you, but they will not help with the job otherwise at all. This means you must strategize and plan how to go about completing a job without them. They are typically okay at killing the enemies, so use them as a shield for that sometimes and go about completing your tasks.

Take Your Time

This also goes back to just how useless the AI can be. In certain missions where you may have to drill through numerous places to access the inside of a cage or truck, take your time and focus on one at a time if you are playing solo. With the way the drills break, precious time can be lost when they break every 5 seconds at times, so best to try and focus on one spot so you can also protect yourself better.

Fine Good Drop Spots

While you are in most every mission, there will be a point where you will need to pick up some sort of item or items and transport them to a van or helicopter. For the ones where you must transport multiple, it is a really good idea to find somewhat halfway points or drop spots. When robbing a jewelry store, get together multiple bags and drop them in an easily accessible. This means they can be picked up quickly and typically closer to your goal.

Avoid The Higher Difficulties Early

There are always going to be gamers that want to tackle the highest difficulties from the start, but my recommendation is to hold off on that for a few reasons. First, you need to get acclimated to the various job and heist types that you will be performing. Second, playing these solo is a chore with the AI being so bad. You will definitely want to level up your abilities and weapons before trying these, unless you like pain.