Like the hoards of bugs and automaton in the game Helldivers 2 has exploded with new players.

The sequel to, big surprise helldivers sees a radical shift in game play. The fear and immersion the gameplay offers is still there, however the shift from top down to 3rd person has added a whole new level of terror.

Helldivers 2 released on February 8th, 2024 is the latest game to come out of Arrowhead studios, an independent game studio founded in 2008. Despite only having five games published, they’ve had several successful games. There first game Magicka won game of the year in Swedish. There most popular game however was the predecessor to our featured game Helldivers. It was nominated for action game of the year and won mobile game of the year in 2016.

The game revolves on a live solar system. Where several planets are actively getting invaded by other races. These very from gigantic bugs, to cybermen. All planets have an accurate player count and show the liberation process of a planet. These planets have different landscapes and have different objectives, along with different enemy types.

The gameplay is still as intense as helldivers 1, with the the overwhelming number of enemies and horrific aliens. With improved graphics and gunplay the intense shooter gets you completely immersed. Its a feeling like no-other, along with the stylized American propaganda it feels as if you are really dropping into war.

Not only the game is terrifying, but the lack of server space is equally as scary. The game has seen an unprecedented levels of success, completely maxing out server capacity. The game has been out for around two weeks, yet has around 450,000 current players, stressing the servers to there capacity.

CEO of Arrowhead Game Studio Johan Pilestedt, the creators of Helldivers and Helldivers 2 has acknowledged this issue. However they he has taken a unique and refreshing take on the issue.

The Tweet below is in reference to someone asking if they should buy the game now with the server issues.

This move has gained Pilestedt popularity, along with the $40 price point. This is another popular move with the community. Speaking personally the price of modern games has been leaving my wallet hurting, with a new triple A game costing around $70. Not only is helldivers more polished that most modern games, but the price is another reason it has exponentially grown.

With all these positives it would be difficult to image any flaws with Helldivers 2. This however is not the case, while slim they’re still some issues with the game. Some have noted lags and dropped frames are plentiful. This comes as no surprise as most games deal with optimization issues around launch. However the server issues and older PC’s seem to have the majority of complaints.

The other complaint that has echoed through the community is the single player. While the game is completely playable, some have complained that its not geared towards the single player aspect. The game is obviously geared towards multiplayer. Some say that without playing with others the missions seem empty or not as enjoyable.

The game developers solution to this was to allow solo players to spawn in on groups of players. Each planet has different enemy’s and different numbers of active players, if your a solo player you can spawn in/around fellow players.

Despite these negatives, the game is overwhelmingly positive. This game has a profound impact on the gaming community. The fun and endless gameplay loop, the fair pricing, and solid and open communication between the developers and community make this game a breath of fresh air. Despite the server issues the community seems to only grow and grow. I would highly recommend you give this a try, and spread some freedom!