On completion of a public or private match, players earn an amount of "XP" depending on their result. Private multiplayer matches are created in the same way, and the creator can share the four character long "shortcode", which is required to join, with whoever they want to play with. Once the first round finishes, the players can then vote between two randomly generated configurations for the next game. Payback 2's multiplayer mode lets players create and configure multiplayer versions of the event types mentioned above, that are hosted on one of the four proprietary game servers of choice. Some of these events include: "Brawl", the objective being kill the most opponents "Gang Warfare", practically "Brawl" but with two teams "Capture the Swag", a parody of the outdoor game Capture the Flag "Conquest", where the player must claim parts of the map "Kingpin", similar to "Conquest" "Race", where the player races against the AI characters in various vehicles around various routes in the different maps "Sprint", practically "Race", but the routes are shorter and "Knockout", like "Race", but the player in last place is eliminated on an interval.
Payback 2's "campaign" mode consists of multiple "episodes", each of which contains various kinds of solo or team events played against or with the AI characters. After committing crimes, the player has to avoid being arrested or killed by the police, SWAT or army. The player may also obtain money from activities such as destroying vehicles and killing pedestrians. The mission instructions include various criminal acts such as assassination or robbery. The player receives a mission after answering a ringing payphone, where instructions from " the boss" are given via an accomplice. Payback 2 has a single-player "story" mode consisting of multiple chapters, the usual objective of each chapter being for the player to complete missions in order to obtain enough money to complete the chapter, unlocking the next.