What is Den of Wolves? More info on the new game by ex-Payday devs

Den of Wolves is an ambitious project, and fans finally got more information about it at The Game Awards ceremony on Dec. 7. This new heist game made by 10 Chambers—spearheaded by former key players in Payday: The Heist and Payday 2—is finally starting to take shape.

Before the announcement, 10 Chambers kept the information close to the chest. Press tours showed the studio was “back on that heist shit” and gave broad details about the game’s technologic themes fueled by the dystopia of late-stage capitalism.

Now that the trailer has finally been released, however, eager fans finally have something concrete to look forward to—and to savor while the game releases. We caught a glimpse of Den of Wolves’ universe at a press tour with travel expenses provided by 10 Chambers, including interviews with the studio’s staff.

Everything we know about Den of Wolves so far

The makers: 10 Chambers

10 Chambers may not be a household name, but the studio has been in ascension since its foundation in 2015. Co-founder and CEO Ulf Andersson was a former creative director for Payday and Payday 2, while co-founder and narrative director Simon Viklund worked as the series’ composer. 

The studio’s only title so far is the unforgiving shooter GTFO, which has found a niche despite being what Viklund called a “detour” into hardcore territory. But with the team’s credentials, turning back to heist games has been on their minds for some time.

10 Chambers has grown exponentially since its foundation, with over 100 employees and major investments from Tencent to help set its next stage. And though its main title is unforgiving and hardcore, players can expect a difficulty more in line with Payday 2, according to Viklund.

The setting: Midway City, the “capital of capitalism”

Den of Wolves is built as a fresh new intellectual property, which offers plenty of creative freedom without having to be tied down to pre-existing concepts or real-life settings.

Den of Wolves takes place in Midway City, called the “capital of capitalism” in promotional material. After deep-learning AI threatened regular security methods, corporations flocked to establish the ultra-capitalist Midway City, where they could conduct experiments without being bound by regulations.

Corporations came up with a security system inspired by the human brain’s connections, which became the most secure way to store information. Infiltrating rivals’ minds became the way to obtain information, changing the idea of what a heist can be. Viklund mentioned Matrix, Black Mirror, Inception, and “whatever mindfuck science fiction” comes to mind as inspirations.

The world isn’t as dark and gritty as GTFO, and Viklund joked the team wanted a game where you could see the light of day every once in a while. Despite its opulence, however, the darkness in Midway City—and, by extension, Den of Wolves—doesn’t come from harrowing monsters, but “from the late-stage capitalist themes, maybe,” as he told GamesRadar in an interview.

The team also wanted a world that was “lived-in,” since Midway City had been founded decades prior in-universe. And given it’s the “capital of capitalism,” players can also see flaws in the city, including squatters, derelict buildings that were never finished, and an income gap between the city’s high-rise districts and shady back alleys.

The gameplay: From stealth to action and back

With this new universe, 10 Chambers set out to broaden the idea of heist. The team didn’t want to just go with a bank, another bank, and a bigger bank, according to Viklund. The setting and the themes help redefine what a heist can be, shifting the robbery from art galleries to neural pathways.

Den of Wolves also aims to tweak one of the most integral gameplay aspects of Payday. Once players trigger an alarm in Payday, it irreversibly sends the heist into full loud mode, and there’s no coming back from it.

In Den of Wolves, however, 10 Chambers are looking to try out more cadenced action, including “full-on action, stealth, and everything in between,” according to Viklund. It’s not unlike its sister title GTFO, which can have horrifying firefights in one room and revert to stealth a couple of doors later.

Future plans: Release, DLC, and microtransactions

Despite finally unveiling concrete details about the game, 10 Chambers hasn’t announced a release date yet. Den of Wolves is likely coming to Steam first in early access, much like GTFO, but console is on the studio’s mind as well—but after nailing the PC release.

There’s a lot on the table for Den of Wolves, and not even 10 Chambers has full, definite answers to those questions. Viklund told us the team is planning on making paid story DLC in the form of shorter storylines that would be more episodic and self-contained. (GTFO players can think of them as mini Rundowns).

The jury is still out on microtransactions as well, though 10 Chambers set a list of “don’ts” for this type of content. If Den of Wolves does embrace microtransactions, they would be cosmetic only (nothing pay-to-win) and there would be no “math-fuckery” such as buying different currencies and always having some left over from a purchase.