My heart is thumping as we chuck the last bags of cash into the back of the waiting van. Heist shooter Payday 3's frantic firefights could get the heart-rate racing anyway, but I’ve gone method and missed a night of sleep for an early flight to Stockholm to visit the developers Starbreeze. As I hit 27 hours without sleep, I'm running on thready adrenaline that's making each shootout feel legitimately life or death.
This must be how Robert De Niro's character felt as things came crashing down around him in Heat. Payday 3 is excellent, but the intensity of the combat was borderline-nauseous. Still, I was able to play two of the FPS game's heists in four-player co-op, during which we cracked safes, and robbed a bank and an art gallery, with both the latter having their own distinct character and feel. Better yet, there wasn't a drill in sight.
