Super Earth’s warriors are back to cleanse the universe of space insects and robots asHelldivers 2’splayer count triples after its recent update.
Helldivers 2 Player Reminds Community That “Female Patriots Exist” So Stop Making It Weird
Helldivers 2 doesn’t seem to be hitting the mark when it comes to making some female players feel comfortable while using voice chat.
After the game’s latest patch,player numbers have reached a post-release peak of68k concurrent players— 44k as of writing.
The actual patch details can befound hereas they’re too extensive to list out. Surprisingly, the most popular update didn’t add new maps, enemies, or guns, itsimply buffed weapons and nerfed enemies.
Player comebacks like this one are rare, if not unheard of, for the most part. Generally, when a game loses steam after launch due to some meta-breaking update, the player count drops and stays around the new average, rarely increasing.
Only giants likeMinecraft,Destiny, andWarcrafthave managed to bring players back consistently.
Arrowhead, the game’s studio,might have just pulled off one of the greatest player rebounds in gaming history.
They finally realizedwhy gamers lovedHelldivers 2: it’s everyone’spower fantasy to slay endless hordesof aliens and declare humanity’s superiority.
A Love-Hate Dev-Player Relationship
TheHelldivers 2community has had a troublesome time with the game’s studio.
Back in May, publisherSony tried to force players to create PSN accountsto play the game— likely done to artificially increasePlayStationnumbers.This change netted the game 200k negative reviews and a player drop count.
The decision was backtracked alongside an apology,but it set the tone for this tumultuous player-dev relationship.
Helldivers 2 Studio Compares Future Challenges To Frodo And Sam’s Journey To Mordor
Helldivers 2 developer, Arrowhead Games, believes the studio’s strength is in “camaraderie”.
August marked the true turning point with the controversial “Escalation of Freedom Update.“While there were some welcomed new locations and enemy types, that’s where the positives ended.
Nerfed weapons and the general erosion of the beloved sense of overpowering might every helldiver craved made players turn to old faithful,review bombing.
However, in a movereminiscent of game studios of old, Arrowhead took this criticism in stride and did better.Ina Reddit post, the devs responded to players' concerns and outlined a 60-day plan to fix everything.
All of that is on us and we are going to own that. As many of you have pointed out, and we agree, what matters most now is action. Not talk.
-Game Director Mikael Eriksson
Most importantly, and probably why so many players came back, they put thecreation of a “beta-test environment” and “regular player surveys” as chief goals. This ensured that future changes would be player-focused and tested.
It’s truly a surprise that players return after what they asked for is implemented.Who knows, maybe the success ofHelldivers 2and the goodwill Arrowhead has cultivated will move other studios to be as transparent.
While this update is promising, and the fanbase’s feedback is overwhelmingly possible,it remains to be seen if Arrowhead will maintain its momentum into the future and keep the game afloat.
EA Reveal Future Plans & Are All-In On Generative AI
In their Investor Day presentation, EA presented multiple AI technologies to shape their latest games and new online social projects.
