Summary
Arrowhead Game Studios CEO Shams Jorjani has responded to feedback regarding the most recent update forHelldivers 2, titled “Escalation of Freedom.” TheHelldivers 2update was not well-received by many fans in the community, leading to an influx of negative reviews on the game’s Steam page.
Helldivers 2is one of the most successful games of 2024, with over 450,000 concurrent Steam players logged in during its launch month in February. Although the overall player count has waned in recent months, thousands of players around the world continue to contribute to the Super Earth cause on a monthly basis. What’s more, post-launch support forHelldivers 2has been consistent, with new weapons, vehicles, and other content being regularly added to the game.Escalation of Freedom is the biggest update yet forHelldivers 2, introducing several new content additions and balance adjustments. However, Escalation of Freedom was controversial, since many players believe that the update nerfed fan-favorite weapons too harshly.
On Twitter, Arrowhead CEO Jorjani acknowledged the criticism thatHelldivers 2has faced sincethe launch of the Escalation of Freedom updateon August 6. Jorjani notes that he received over 200 tweets from players with feedback, suggestions, and opinions regarding the update. In addition, Jorjani confirms that the development team is holding internal discussions as they evaluate the update and further plans for the game. In a reply to Twitter user Slimeakku, Jorjani stated that theHelldivers 2team has “tons of feedback right now, but no good tools for collating all of it.” The team plans to conduct large-scale surveys and sentiment gathering, which are both included in the team’s roadmap.
Similarly toHelldivers 2’srecent review history on Steam, overall reception to Jorjani’s tweets is mixed, since fans of the game on Twitter are upset with how the studio handled the Escalation of Freedom update. A notable portion of the community believes that the way Arrowhead handles weapon tuning should change in order to improve the state of the game and prevent further outrage. Some argue that the update would have been perfect if weapon nerfs were omitted entirely, since those players believe that the game’s weapons have already been fairly adjusted in previous updates.
Thepopular SG-8S Slugger primary weaponand GP-31 Grenade Pistol were among the many guns that were affected by the recent update. Before Jorjani addressed the community, Arrowhead tried to justify and explain Escalation of Freedom’s weapon nerfs in a Steam blog post. Despite that, the community was steadfast in its criticism of the game this week, which could lead Arrowhead to make some balance corrections in future updates.
Helldivers 2
WHERE TO PLAY
Do you believe in freedom? Can you stand in the face of oppression – and defend the defenceless? Wage war for peace. Die for democracy.Join forces with up to three friends and wreak havoc on an alien scourge threatening the safety of your home planet, Super Earth, in this multiplayer co-op shooter for PS5 and PC from Arrowhead Game Studios.Step into the boots of the Helldivers, an elite class of soldiers whose mission is to spread peace, liberty and Managed Democracy using the biggest, baddest and most explosive tools in the galaxy.Helldivers don’t go planet side without proper backup, but it’s up to you to decide how and when to call it in. Not only do you have a host of superpowered primary weapons and customizable loadouts, you also have the ability to call on stratagems during play.Helldivers 2 features Arrowhead’s best cooperative gameplay yet. Collaboration will be vital: Teams will synergize on loadouts, strategize their approach for each mission and complete objectives together.1Enlist in Super Earth’s premier military peacekeeping force today. We are heroes… we are legends… WE ARE HELLDIVERS.
