Helldivers 2 Could Be the Future of Video Games, and That's a Good — and Scary — Thing
Bringing managed democracy to the games industry
Helldivers 2 is a game that doesn't take itself seriously. Set in a satirical universe that would be right at home with the world's view of the US during the Bush administration (either of them, pick your poison) it's your job as a disposable hero, the titular helldiver, to bring democracy to the far reaches of the galaxy by liberating a seemingly infinite number of bugs and bots from their physical form.
Under the over-the-top narrative lies some slick gameplay chops. For starters, movement is reminiscent of Metal Gear Solid 5. How you duck, run, and jump feels responsive. The comparisons don't end there. Much like Hideo Kojima's flawed masterpiece you'll exfiltrate from missions too. Holding the line against hordes of enemies as you wait for your space ship to pick you up from an evacuation zone.
Gunplay is weighty and satisfying with a welcome amount of recoil and spectacle that complements movement well while reloads deplete any existing rounds in your weapon. There are some interesting ideas that nudge you towards self-preservation. Get hit by enemy fire on your arm and your aim will suffer while leg wounds impact mobility. Throw in a limited number of lives, friendly fire when in co-op and the aforementioned reload system, and you'll find yourself dropping into battle with an extreme amount of vigilance.
The star of the show however, are the stratagems. With a few button presses you can call down machine guns and orbital strikes. Think of it as Uber Eats but for guns, ammo, and fire support. As you level up, you'll unlock more devastating options such as rail guns and napalm airstrikes.
All of these ideas coalesce into a heady loop of dropping onto a planet, 'liberating' its insect or robotic lifeforms, die trying until you win or are out of lives, rinse and repeat. You'll even level up, unlock new gear and cosmetics as you progress at a steady and surprisingly generous clip too. As basic as it sounds, it works.
The next big trend after battle royale?
This is simply because Arrowhead have created a set of systems and mechanics that let you and your friends make your own stories as you set forth onto its many planets. From last moment victories to accidentally team killing your entire squad, Helldivers 2 is essentially a canvas for player-driven stories with the odd dollop of story-telling via in-game descriptions. The last time a game did something like this so well it spawned the battle royale genre.
And that's why I won't be surprised to see other developers try their hand at the formula. If H1Z1 could spawn behemoths like PUBG and Fortnite among others such as Apex Legends and Free Fire, it will be interesting to see how the likes of EA and Activision react. Personally, a game like this set in the Titanfall universe would be amazing (or even simply a mode in Apex Legends just to test the waters).
Throw in the fact that it could be relatively inexpensive compared to bigger, complex AAA titles (Arrowhead has about 100 employees as of 2023) and it may just be the next big trend in games.
So, why could this be a bad thing?
Much has already been written about Helldivers 2's ongoing popularity. It is, for all accounts and purposes, the biggest release for Sony on PC. However it doesn't mask the game's greatest issue — being actually able to play it consistently. Developer Arrowhead has struggled to keep up with demand.
You'd think that with live service games being prevalent since 2014, mega-corps like Sony, Microsoft, EA, Ubisoft, Epic Games, Krafton, and Activision among others would actually have a steady swell of talent to make an always-online experience like this tenable without the usual firestorm of inaccessibility for nearly a month since launch.
It's disturbing that I was able to farm Twitch drops for the game easier than it was to actually play it. Assuming Helldivers 2's formula catches on, how publishers and developers tackle the issue of well, letting us play such games when they're actually out instead of constant frustration, will be a point of contention. This has no business existing in a post-Error 37 world.
And while new experiences like this are a win, keep in mind that Helldivers 2 is an absolute treat to play with friends. Granted you could play it solo (which is what I did for most of my time) or with randoms but it's not as entertaining as it could be. This is played best with friends which means if you're the anti-social type, you won't be having as much of a good time as you could be.
Apart from this, Helldivers 2 is an always-online game with no offline mode in sight. Not only does this raise preservation concerns but also ensures that your access to a game you've paid for is gate-keeped by a company that prefers control over access. Though with its Rs. 2,499 price, I won't be surprised to see it go free-to-play once monetisation on microtransactions kicks in at scale. At that point it would be safe to say that its now generous progression system and unlocks would be gone.
Helldivers 2 India sales
Although Sony opted not to bring the game on disc in India, efficient parallel importers have stepped in albeit at a roughly Rs. 3,499 price tag versus the Rs. 2,499 price for a digital copy. Regardless, the hype has ensured the first lot of orders has sold out.
"We got our first lot of copies one week after release," says a Chennai-based retailer. "Most were already pre-booked, whatever was left we were able to sell in about three days."
Similar accounts seem to be the order of the day in Mumbai, Delhi, and Bengaluru. While its too early to come to a conclusion to how many units made it on disc, sources familiar with Sony's plans have told me that it has surpassed Call of Duty Modern Warfare 3 and is only second to EA Sports FC 24 in terms of popularity on the India PS Store.
A cursory check on Steam player concurrency seems to validate this claim with similar player behaviour when comparing Helldivers 2 to Modern Warfare 3.
Given how well The Last of Us Part 2 Remastered has sold at retail and digitally thanks to what is seen by customers as great value i.e. Rs. 2,999 versus the usual Rs. 4,999/$70 price Sony keeps, Helldivers 2 appears to be winning on price.
Could this mean cheaper releases in the future? Don't bet on it, in the short term at least. Upcoming titles like Rise of the Ronin and Stellar Blade have the same Rs. 4,999 pricing that keeps most console games out of the hands of mainstream customers in India.
All in all, in recent years Sony-published titles usually have a certain degree of polish attached to them. Helldivers 2 does dirty this up quite a bit with its consistent server issues. Sure, Arrowhead claims they’re fixed but what’s the point of buying something you can’t play when you want to play it? At least its CEO was honest enough about these problems, telling would be buyers to hold off. Pity that most listened to Sony’s marketing machine instead.