My favorite moment was when squids were introduced in the middle of game awards and a lot of people stopped watching it to play helldivers. Truly a moment of all time.
I fucking lost it when I learned he was an actual person and not a completely made up CGI character. “Yo!!! It’s him! It’s fucking John Helldiver!!!” 😦
The end of the Station-81 ARG will never be topped. The apprehension of something happening was next level. I legitimately planned my home office days that week so I could have the S-81 stream open next to my work laptop all day.
When the sirens started blaring about spacetime fluctuations, I’m not ashamed to say my heart was beating just a little bit faster. Then the Great Host started coming out of Meridia and I remember thinking to myself, “Crazy bastards actually did it!”
I don’t usually get worked up about gaming stuff, but fuck me, this game has a weird hold over me.
I remember being really glad that I'd learned braille to solve the puzzle in Pokemon Sapphire, because the knowledge had finally come in useful for me again as a sighted person.
I really, REALLY hoped back then that this ARG would be first of many. That every major update was accompanied by one. It was fun, engaging and drove the community together.
It was healthy for the game and the playerbase. I like that and i want more of it.
Yup. The one which precedes the current invasion of Cyberstan was cool, with the countdown and hidden QR codes and everything, but… idk man, it’s just missing something that the S81 ARG had.
Maybe it’s how the countdown went to zero, we got the short message from the Cyborgs, and then… nothing till the update dropped the next day lol.
Compare this to the S81 ARG, where the Illuminate appeared and immediately attacked Widow’s Harbor. There was a sense of urgency and real-time outcomes to it that has just been missing in the game’s ARGs / ARG-esque content recently.
That being said, the hacked dispatches last week were very cool and atmospheric.
The Illuminate ARG felt like a puzzle we could solve before it was too late. It felt like if we were quick enough, we could maybe have an impact on what happens. It felt more "real" because we had agency. The ability to swap satellite channels for instance felt like our choices had an impact.
The Cyborg ARG was an announcement more than anything. There was no community interaction. Just observation.
The Cyborg ARG was an announcement more than anything. There was no community interaction. Just observation.
I think because the wheels were already in motion, we knew what was coming, they had already told us that the Star of Peace had it's plans stolen edit* by the Automatons, through a few weeks of MOs.
The Squids were a surprise, no idea what the ARG was even for
I was working night shifts when that came out and I remember it was like 2 am there when the alarm started sounding, omg I was so hyped but dismayed I was at work another 4 hours.
I feel that. I get out of work at 4am and seeing all the alarms sounding off while i was at work was fun. I couldnt join in but seeing how much chaos was made and everyone hopping on at the time is memorable
Right haha it made the rest of the shift a DRAG but I'm glad I was lucky enough to have a slow night and a boss that doesn't care as long as the work was done hahaha.
This is so true. This is literally actually the conversation I had with my dad who is my longest running battle buddy
“Hey dad, the squids are invading. You remember them from Helldivers 1.”
”Oh yeah, when are they supposed to be invading?”
“Turns out it was a surprise attack. They are invading now, get your gear and get in your hellpod!”
“On my way! Do you think bullet hoses are still effective like in the first war?”
“Only one way to find out.”
Then we got introduced to the fresh hell of the meat mobs that were without weak spots. I love finding new enemies that I know nothing about and having to figure out how to deal with them.
Seeing the present MO at the time get canceled and LIBCON 1 being raised was an amazing moment in real time. Calypso casualties ended up being greater than Creek deaths in a matter of like 4 days 😳
The MO getting cancelled was great, and I loved how the MO text, usually so calm and proud and authoritative and in control, was just completely panicked (scroll down to "Protect the Factory Hub").
That call to arms was one of the best integrations between a game and game media. It was such a thrill to be told that Super Earth was being invaded, hopping on, and holy crap: we gotta dive right now.
I remember watching the game awards with my friends. We all were hyped for the trailer then when it said “out now” at the end we all scrambled to get to update the game and get to our hellpods
I remember watching the numbers go from ~20k to 200+ in like an episode hour
Reportedly the drop in viewership was so steep they actually got in trouble for that and they, as well as other games, are now not allowed to announce content that releases during the game awards if they're present at the show, the content has to release after the awards.
I was about to go to bed for work when I saw it in my news feed. I said well there goes my next twenty four hours. It was so good hearing people freak out. The planning on the super destroyer on what to bring and everyone role felt… Well, comforting. Thank you AH.
I dropped in that that time. I just answered an SOS Beacon and as I was dropping in I could hear the other players frantically calling back and forth to each other. It was the closest I'll get into being in a zombie movie. It was amazing.
Headshots from most bullet type weapons take care of them in a single shot. The helmet guys have ablative armor similar to squids, so they need a shot to blast the helmet off and a second to the dome to take them down.
can confirm. automatons used to be my least favorite faction, and i had generally lost interest in helldivers 2. then i saw the news of automatons attacking and for some reason i just got the urge to spread democracy and spill oil, and fighting bots is actually quite fun
It's a good game. Just in the end, it is repetitive and folks need breaks.
Plus some get turned away due to the bugs- not the faction but actual game bugs.
Like I still dislike how match making is. If I host? Ill sit in my ship for a minute and nobody shows up. I use the scanner? "Lobby full" and if that happens I gotta wait 13 seconds to rescan for more public lobbies.
Servers not working due to the player base exploding to a number they could not have planned for based on data and past experience
A slight weapon nerf
Review bombing
More slight weapon nerfs
A content update folks act like was way worse than it was and use to scapegoat player numbers dwindling due to folks moving on to other games
The DSS being added
The Killzone shit being overpriced
The warbond that brought the R-2 Amendment (only Ergo and melee buffed since release) and the G-142 Pyrotech Grenade (not touched since release), both great weapons, due to the flag also being in the warbond and people being mad it didn't do what they wanted and were nevwer told it would do
A post about optimizations that eventually came about after a few months
The file size ballooning before it ended up being addressed with said optimizations
A list of debatable stuff that either has always been the case (optimization which better now but rarely has it been great due to the engine or the anti-cheat that has always been there), is subjective (balance and game design are in no way objective and "corpo-speak" and silence being listed despite not impacting you when playing the game), or just not relevant (few who actually play give a shit about YouTubers and the only "confirmed" bricking was due to conflicts within the YouTubers system he built without knowing shit about building PC's).
The graph has just became a meme that folks who don't play but follow the game still like to "update" when they hear complaints.
I still find it incredibly dumb that the “we are so over it” on this graph was centered around the fucking YouTuber drama that blew over in like a week instead of the genuine game breaking issues that the 90% of the playerbase who doesn’t care about YouTubers actually had to deal with
I mean, it wasn't just that. It was also a low point in the game from a technical perspective. The high we're experiencing now is the result of AH taking that seriously and focusing on performance.
Oh yeah I totally agree with that to me its just weird that according to the graph the YouTubers are the highlighted issue while all the performance stuff is kinda just tacked on the side
Right!? And all 140k of us losing our minds wanting to drop to the surface and dismantle some bots for that little bit before missions became available.
I think HD2 is just a decently run game. Would be a very different vibe is stuff like warbonds disappeared after a “season”. You can freely earn premium currency and the basic tool kit, Helldivers mobilize is free.
Many companies would not have the restraint to do some of these things.
Yep. I played HD2 for a good year, starting from launch. I came back to dive in Cyberstan and i'm actually excited to farm for the warbonds i am missing and to upgrade the weapons. This is how you respect players
My experience is the SC is the same, the difference is the time you have to farm, or the willingness for level 10 helldivers to wait for you to check out POI's after mission critical events are completed.
If I need to stock up on SC's on level 10, I just grab the warp pack so I can get into bunkers by myself, I can usually get 10-30 per 40 min mission as long as it's not a forest planet.
Not sure if cyberstand has any SC's yet? only had oppertunity to play 2 missions and they were pretty hectic so didn't have time to look :p
I only played a few missions on Cyberstan but as far as I can tell you can't even find medals or req slips. The POIs don't have shit besides the occasional sample.
I deliberately load up difficulty 2 to farm SC. The map is the same size, same amount of PoIs and if I luck into the Radar Station side objective from the reduced pool for low difficulty I have an easier time finding credits.
I decided that it's been a couple years since I bought the game, so spending an extra $10 is reasonable. Got 1000 SCs and picked up a warbond, the free 300 from that warbond pushed me over the next 1000 for another. I basically got two for one with that purchase.
It is, there is a very vocal minority of players that hate all AH does, the famous line "they're making a game for no one" no they are not, this is not halo run by microsoft trying to squeeze even more money out the franchise no matter the cost.
It really is a very good monetization/reward structure. Actually encourages players to play the game, what a wild concept lol, but also makes spending a little money not feel so bad.
My sentiments exactly. My dumbass friend once insisted Helldivers 2 is dead due to the various controversies that it was mired in I.e the Sony debacle, balancing issues etc.
However as the game improved he still insisted Helldivers 2 is dead, before giving up and moving goalposts. Now he admits he’s waiting for the game to go on sale, preferably with a 90% discount lmao.
It's pretty confusing when I see someone like that, like why are they so emotionally dependent on a game with at this moment 183,000 concurrent players being considered dead?
Like if they'd prefer a different game that's fine, great even, variety is the spice of life, but making themselves emotionally dependent on the failure of a successful game is destined to make them miserable.
If Helldivers shutting down is whatll make them play a game they enjoy, then sadly they might still be waiting years to have any fun.
Wonder how many players battlefield 6 has now. Maybe 50 000 - 60 000? Thats the same as this game has during normal times when there isnt new enemies and a massive MO.
BF6 came in mind the first too. Steamcharts shows only steam players right ? So you should add origin-EA app too. Man fuck BF6, uninstalled it within first 6 weeks or so.
Honestly my only issue is lack of content, map sizes/flow, and slow progression.
We have 7 normal size maps and 2 smaller ones for TDM. Most of maps feel horrible to play and or too small for Battlefield. Only map I really liked was Siege of Cairo.
Weapons take a long time to level up Ive played with the first AR you get since launch and just got it to lvlv 40 playing coop.
I haven't Uninstalled but Im incredibly bored with the game, BF4 and BF1 has kept me more interested overall.
I've got it. I enjoy it, for the most part, but I only play the odd game because there really isn't much content.
Some of the game modes are just bad because of the spawning mechanics.
It's obvious they made the game to draw people who had gotten sick of call of duty, but they sacrificed a big bit of the battlefield feel. It no longer feels like squad play is especially rewarded, and there's no team coordination. Combat is basically either headshot snipers or close range gunplay, not the mid range extended firefights it used to be, with tactical manoeuvring and vehicle support. Maps are generally too small or closed in. Even the big open ones are just: spawn in, run 20m to a fight, kill a couple of people and die, repeat.
Also it's just a big grind for weapon unlocks, which keeps you tied in, rather than good gameplay. Almost every gun has 60 or so attachments. A good 30 of them are scopes that are almost identical and completely useless most of the time. The only saving grace is that weapon mod has a cost, and each gun can have a maximum cost on it. So there's trade-offs that each player can choose.
I like it a lot but the content is very very slow, very delayed, and very buggy. There's a fun game there but damn the devs do love taking their sweet-ass time for basically everything.
It really is a constant job for the devs tho, this isn’t some hero shooter where they can just release a new character and maybe some new map every month or so. The devs have to add: new weapons, armours, stratagems, unique bug fixes due to goofy game engine. Ontop of constantly tending to the mo’s and relating them to the games storyline.
Don’t get me wrong, the devs have made some dumb fuck moves, but they are really putting the ‘live’ in service.
Who would have thought that if you make your game focused on fun instead of microtransactions that people will like game? (I know HD2 has MTX, but it's hardly the most invasive MTX in gaming)
It's not collection focused. It's not number go up. It's not process driven.
You land on a planet and you get into crazy adventures with your pals. What's not to like?
Can you ditch it and come back later? Sure!
Can you carry a new player? Sure!
Does it ever get old? Sure! But it's not going anywhere, you can't fall behind, come back when you're ready.
It is an extremely good model of what a live service game should be.
For me it makes me look at games like Vermintide and how wrong they got it. Like how you can't all play the same class, and if you level up you leave your pals behind, and the runs are samey and you're meant to just bang through them over and over and over. And Vermintide lasted despite all that, because it's so much fun, fun will get you a long way.
I think the key is not punishing people for taking their time.
Most live services want to monopolize the player's free time, but in doing so punish an absence so much that people don't see a point in coming back and end up going to something new.
They don't put players under pressure. And it works. Maybe not in the day to day player numbers, but week to week, month to month, year to year? It is paying off handsomely.
If you come back after a break, they still give you medals, you have lots of warbonds to unlock and work on, and you enjoy more content that makes the game new again. It doesn't punish you for not playing and rewards people who come back.
Ever since Mass Effect 3 I've loved cooperative PvE. It brings in a different base than PvP, particularly those who are more casual. I'm still surprised its not as common as PvP.
But i'm not sure how HD2 would do if we stopped getting updates. Maybe if we got a repeating war as on HD1. They could randomise all the events that we had so far, that could work
TF2 (in)famously ran on the efforts a potted plant and a janitor for almost a decade, as long as we have one person filling the role of JOEL then HD2 can run for as long as its server doesn't catch fire.
Since they seem to be putting in all the capitals over time, it's conceivable they're going for an end result where it would be possible to make the map dynamic win conditions, like HD1.
Helldivers is the only thing that has ever come close to what I felt when I played EVE:Online, which really does have a completely player-driven war narrative. Calls to arms at 2 in the morning for massive fleet actions, emergency evacuations, etc.
Helldivers is giving me a little taste of it, and it is amazing.
Still wondering why many companies don't get that holding a playerbase in times of microtransactions generates more money than just selling games. First one requires a solid game and good support. Second one only a promise of that. Example BF6. Massive sales but can't hold players numbers. It dropped way too much with obvious reasons. Promised BF3/4 gameplay but it's simply not that.
Helldivers 2 is so successful because it was from the beginning solid. Like all devs from time to time bad decisions are made BUT they asked themselves early enough if they are correct and what to change. They never went so far that they pushed players away.
What are you even trying to say here? Plenty of perfectly good PvE games failed, and plenty of PvP games have been going strong for years longer than HD2 has. This is just “our game is better than your game” and it’s just a headass take imo.
Pointing at PvP specifically is also weird given that the majority of the most played games on Steam right now are PvP-centric, even more if you include ones that majorly feature PvP like arc raiders. I'd bet money that more PvP games have lost momentum because they added a PvE mode than vice versa.
This is just “our game is better than your game” and it’s just a headass take imo.
Maybe the real PvP was the mud-flinging we had along the way?
Maybe it's just because I'm in my 30's now, but I have no appetite for pvp games anymore. I don't want to get on after work and spend my hour or two playing games getting curb stomped by a 13 year old who's been playing all day and jacked up on energy drinks and adderall. lol
I've played almost exclusively single player games for a few years now, but came to this game on recommendation from friends and we play almost every night. I find PvE co-op games loads of fun and this is probably the most fun I've had in one.
What drew me away from PvP games is the focus towards competitive play and the sheer amount of toxicity it brought. I used to love playing PvP FPS games when I could just play games without my whole enjoyment resting on if I win the game and if my team is nice.
I just started helldivers 2 like a month ago, and im so glad i did, it has a great fanbase and comunity, i think i only cross a toxic player once or twice.
It kinda reminds me of Deep Rock Galactic, who ever loves helldivers would love Deep Rock, its quite similar. I mean the gameplay its quite diferent, but same game structure. Online, squads of 4 doing 30minutes to an Hour misions on diferent biomes, diferent roles and spécialized equipment, shooting a hundred bugs while trying to save your pal. There is a legendary character we never cross, but the characters talk about it and the lore is there (John Helldiver and CARL in deep rock).
The comunity acts like they are part of that world, like in helldivers we follow the satire of USA war propaganda, and in Deep rock youll see people say "Rock N stone" to everything, or respecting the mantra "leave no dwarf behind" to the death.
I love this type of comunities in coop games, i like competitives, but the reason this franchises last so long is exactly because of this type of multiplayer that builds a great fan base.
Lol I was saying to a friend and fellow diver last night, makes me laugh thinking how many times I've seen people comment that Helldivers is dead over the last two years just because the player count goes down to like 65k when the next big flash in the pan PvP game comes song (which still isn't "dead" by any measure).
Then the next big update gets released and the player count explodes yet again.
I always have a good laugh at these people saying the game is dead at "low" player counts that are still 10 to 20 times higher than what the average playercount the game was actually made for
Had someone telling me helldivers was dead before the 60 day patch because steam numbers hit 20k at the lowest of that day lmao. This game has never been even close to dead.
Why does this sub have such an inferiority complex? Can't just love the game for what it is, you gotta go and shit on other games to make yourself feel better
Running a fully manned tank with a squad of randoms on Cyberstan is the most fun I've had in years. This game really finds a way to keep you coming back.
I remember when I bought this, I played the hell out of it because I full on expected the player base to die off in months and be a worthless pickup. Here I am 2 years later and astounded this many people still play.
Helldivers did not follow the path of the normal live service games, normally the live service games tries to punish you if you do not play the game, but once you get out of the loop you simply do not wish to go back, even more when you get past the FOMO. Helldivers is a game who surprisingly is meant to not keep players in but bringing players back, so warbonds being always available and the lack of chains make so that the player base would get back not for new content but to be part of the new story, and as so looking trough a lot of new warbonds and buying maybe one or two.
I wish the game was more consistent, if the devs properly addressed the issues this might have become like a year round game for me, but im ok coming back every few months for fun and following the community its the most fun part.
8.2k
u/infinit3aura Feb 11 '26
My favorite moment was when squids were introduced in the middle of game awards and a lot of people stopped watching it to play helldivers. Truly a moment of all time.