Let's talk about the writing in the Reservoir Dogs heist

[Malidictus]

For the sake of argument, let's ignore the fact that the days are set backwards. That a stylistic choice which has no impact on the quality of the writing. I want to examine Reservoir Dogs as an example of storytelling done right in this game. Yes, I've said a lot of ♥♥♥♥ about the writing in Payday 2, and to be fair - Heat Street and especially the H3H3 DLC really deserved it. Reservoir Dogs, however, is a very nice surprise.

Let's open with Locke's involvement. For starters, I like that he didn't turn into Hector 2.0. There were some very heavy hints that this wasn't going to be the case, but it's still nice to see Overkill go the more creative route. The exact plan he had isn't what I thought it was going to be, but I like what Overkill came up with more and more as I think about it. Locke had to make a show of betraying the Payday Gang to mask his further involvement with us. He's genre-savvy enough to know what happens to people who ♥♥♥♥♥ with us, and would be counting on that to throw suspicion off himself. Surely he can't still be helping us if we want him dead, right? I don't think him running his plan past Bain was necessary, but it's a good save for some pretty underwhelming Bain voice lines in the Alaskan Deal.

I REALLY like how self-aware Locke is, and how well he knows the Payday Gang. He knew that leading us into a cop ambush would be little more than a temporary speed bump for the unstoppable killing machines that we are, and he DID arrange for us to be in a train car full of guns and ammo when the trap was sprung. It's understandable that he wouldn't be glib, but I like that Locke points this out to us. Yeah, he set us up, but we made it out just fine, didn't we? Like that was ever in doub! Not like a few cops can really threaten us, after all. And it really was a few cops. There's an FBI Files e-mail from a police chief in Anchorage ♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥ at Garrett about not being prepard for a fight with the Payday Gang. So not only did Locke leave us in a train full of guns with a ship ready to sail, but he sent the local pencil-pushers after us, too. Could he have made it any easier for us?

I also have to give credit to the actor playing Locke. I can't find any info on this person's name or cerdentials, but he's doing a TERRIFIC job. I hated Locke initially over the Point Break heists as his thick South African accent felt like a gimmick, but he's grown on me since with his mixture of off-hand remarks and odd sense of humour in tough situations. I like the dialoge Locke was given in the Reservoir Dogs heist, but more than that I like the actor's ability to deliver it in a convincing, believable manner. He managed to pull off a mix of humility and bravado that's kind of hard to describe. It's shame I can't find credits for him on either IMDB or the Payday wiki.

The writing quality in general is surprisingly good, as well. From pure technical quality (spelling, grammar, sentence structure) to style (each character speaks in their own voice) to word-building (there seems to have been some manner of forward planning, giving characters things they can reference). I'm generally cautious of calling writing "good" on face value, but I genuinely find the Reservoir Dogs heist to be very well written, all things considered. It doesn't have that same "someone's trying to destroy the Payday Gang" or "Hila was in the military, I guess" nonsense. I'd like to go on a limb and assert that this isn't the same writer responsible for Heat Street and H3H3. Whether Overkill hired a freelancer or that writer suddenly got MUCH MUCH better in the span of a few weeks having not done so in the span of several month, I can't say, but the narrative is a definite step up.

Let me put it this way - I CARED about the narrative of the heist, confusing as it is on a first run. I cared about what Loche had to say, I cared about what Bain had to go through, I cared about the overarching story arc. I cared, because the narrative was well-written, well-planned-out and definitely well-delivered. Payday 2 doesn't sell itself on its amazing storytelling, but I can appreciate the extra effort that goes into giving us cool and interesting stories regardless - at least when they're done right.

[Mojo Forever]

Here is the Twitter page for the VO of Locke: https://twitter.com/LockePayday

[Malidictus]

Ian Russel it is, then. Thanks for the heads-up. The man deserves more credit than he's getting.

[VxWolf]

lore so heavy the host doesn't skip the payout screen

[Mojo Forever]

Originally posted by Malidictus:

Ian Russel it is, then. Thanks for the heads-up. The man deserves more credit than he's getting.

Indeed. I've always loved Locke since he first appeared and i'm so glad he isn't going to be killed oFF.

[HeavyPayback]

how the hell cops know bain location?? did he dead??

[∴ Snake ∴]

These last heists have been really lore-packed. And it's good storytelling, too. You can tell they're setting up for PD3.

This update in general was probably one of the best the game has had, and the crossover itself is on par with Hotline Miami.

[Tuffcooke]

Originally posted by Malidictus:

Ian Russel it is, then. Thanks for the heads-up. The man deserves more credit than he's getting.

He's great. If you follow him on Twitter you can tell he loves Payday. He interacts with the community nearly every day. I've had the pleasure of bantering with him multiple times, he's a really nice dude.

Originally posted by VxWolf:

lore so heavy the host doesn't skip the payout screen

Guilty as charged

[Malidictus]

Originally posted by ❄ Xmas Snake ❄:

This update in general was probably one of the best the game has had, and the crossover itself is on par with Hotline Miami.

I don't know if I'd go quite as high as Hotline Miami. Reservoir Dogs has no meth-cooking :) Narratively speaking, though, I agree. This is one of the most well-written, well-acted and well-put-together heists. I'll pick up the almost inevitable mod which flips the days around when that comes out, but that's just about my only real complaint. Ian Russel does a lot of the heavy lifting, but the general quality of the writing itself is pretty good. Whoever wrote that, give that person a cookie! :)

[agent0125]

I think I liked the part where Locke covers for Bain as the "announcer" (telling the start and end of assaults, lines for hostage trading etc.)

[thebritishvoice]

Thanks for your kind words. I'm delighted you like my performance as Locke. I really enjoy the challenge of bringing him to life for you. You can follow him on twitter @lockepayday
best to you all Ian Russell

[Unreliable Derpy]

Originally posted by HeavyPayback:

how the hell cops know bain location?? did he dead??

I don't think it's the cops, even Bain said it for the vault been eletrocuted (even if the cops did in Firestarter day 3) and the first hack, Bain said it's strange, but he proceded anyways.
So it's not the cops who take Bain. And I don't think Bain is dead, he's a big source of info.

[Dallas]

What if its a preparation for payday 3?
(speculation) Simon doesnt want to voice Bain anymore, so they have to make a new mastermind
PogChamp?

[Malidictus]

Originally posted by Dall:

What if its a preparation for payday 3?
(speculation) Simon doesnt want to voice Bain anymore, so they have to make a new mastermind
PogChamp?

Yeah, a friend of mine speculated about that. I somewhat doubt that's the case as Simon Viklund has been pretty good about working with Overkill as the voice of Bain, but it's a possibility.

[whalecrown]

Originally posted by thebritishvoice:

Thanks for your kind words. I'm delighted you like my performance as Locke. I really enjoy the challenge of bringing him to life for you. You can follow him on twitter @lockepayday
best to you all Ian Russell

Godspeed.

[Strider]

Couldn't have said it better, the writing quality just took a massive nosedive during the Locke and Load series and now we've just got this out here. My only question now is how will Dragan and The Butcher tie in into what just happened.