GTA Online: Is it worth grinding Cayo Perico Heist after major payout nerfs?

Know about the nerfs made to the popular Cayo Perico Heist

GTA Online: Is it worth grinding Cayo Perico Heist after major payout nerfs?

Image Via: Rockstar Games

The Cayo Perico Heist in GTA Online was released on the 15th of December, 2020. The heist was being teased in-game for almost a month. It is the best heist in the game that can be completed solo. It pays really well, making it a fan favourite. The mission sends players on a task to infiltrate a fortified island to fetch sensitive documents for the Madrazo family.

With GTA Online’s 10th anniversary right around the corner on October 1st, Rockstar Games has spoiled the party mood for many of its players. The Cayo Perico heist was nerfed heavily in the GTA Online weekly update released on September 28th. Not only has the payout for the heist been heavily nerfed, but the setup cost has also seen a significant rise.

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Popular Rockstar Games insider known as Tez2 took to Twitter/X recently to announce the changes made to the heist. According to him, the changes have been made to promote the co-op variation of the heist. While the entire heist payout has taken a hit, the nerf seems to be more severe for solo players. Some believe that rather than promoting co-op play, this is just a way of punishing solo players.

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Changes Made to the Cayo Perico Heist in GTA Online

You may be wondering what exactly the changes made to the heist that has the community in such a frenzy. And if they really are that bad, is grinding the heist still worth it in GTA Online? For starters, the setup cost has quadrupled since before the update. The heist previously cost $25,000 to set up. The number now stands at a whopping $100,000.

Image Via: Rockstar Games

The payouts of primary targets such as Sinsimito Tequila, Ruby Necklace, and Bearer Bonds have been nerfed by 30%. Thankfully, primary targets such as the Pink Diamond and Madrazo Files still pay $1,300,000 and $1,100,000 respectively. This amount remains unchanged after the update. Note that the Madrazo files are only available on your first playthrough of the heist.

Additionally, secondary target payouts have taken a hit as well. Every secondary target other than gold has gone through a 10% reduction. The Safe Cash’s minimum value has been lowered by 60%. Furthermore, Rockstar has decreased the chances of finding cocaine at any location from the previous 40% to 30%. It is interesting to note that the chances of it spawning at some locations accessible by only two players have been increased to 60%.

This is where the argument comes from about whether or not Rockstar is trying to promote co-op mode in the heist. While this is an added advantage for co-op players, the overall take is still highly reduced from the original. This has led people to believe that Nerf is just a way of making people buy more Shark Cards in the game, GTA Online’s version of microtransactions.

Is Cayo Perico in GTA Online still worth it?

So, is the heist still worth it? The answer probably depends on how you’re going to play it. Now with new nerfs, the solo grinding of the heist is less valuable. If you bring a friend or two, you can get subpar value. This is because the value of gold in the room is still worth the same however, opening those rooms requires an additional player.

These nerfs also reduce the value of buying the Kosatka submarine as it costs $2,200,000 to buy and can take up to $9 million to fully upgrade it. So it will be very tiresome to get all the money back if you are playing solo. However, players can skip most of the upgrades except buying the Sparrow as it will save them a lot of time while completing preparation missions.

It may favour you to first go for money-making methods that either have less of an investment or a higher rate of return. You can perhaps try some of the Auto Shop Contracts in the game but only for bonus weeks. Players can now also try Diamond Casino Heist or Dr. Dre contract which can also pay them well playing solo. The Cayo Perico nerfs have upset a lot of players, and rightly so.

A lot of players relied on this heist to make money, especially players who prefer doing missions solo. The game has faced harsh criticism for its microtransaction-related purchases in-game. This nerf just seems to solidify that argument further.

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