Summary
The player count for Arrowhead Game Studios' critically-acclaimed co-op shooter,Helldivers 2, has declined dramatically on Steam. Despite being a massive commercial success for both Arrowhead and Sony, it seems thatHelldivers 2is struggling to maintain the majority of its playerbase several months after its simultaneous release on PS5 and PC. There are many reasons why this could be happening, but regardless of the cause, this doesn’t paint a good picture for the future of PlayStation’s live service ambitions.
Helldivers 2launched in February 2024 and became an immediate smash hit, with the title lighting up the sales charts and receiving a near-unanimous positive reception from fans. Many gamers praised the co-op shooter not only for having enjoyable gameplay, but also for bucking the trend of incorporating aggressive monetization, an aspect that other live service games often suffer from. The positive buzz surrounding Arrowhead’s latest title contributed toHelldivers 2passingDestiny 2’s concurrent player count on Steamonly a few weeks after its release. Later on, Sony confirmed that the game had sold 12 million copies by May 2024, making it the fastest-selling PlayStation-published title of all time.
Unfortunately, though, it seems thatHelldivers 2’s widespread critical and commercial success isn’t translating into longevity, as the game has lost around 90% of its players on Steam,according to data provided by SteamDB. At the time of writing this article, Arrowhead’s co-op shooter hasapproximately 38,048 concurrent players on PC, with the user count peaking at 44,000 in the last 24 hours. While these numbers aren’t by any means terrible, they do pale in comparison toHelldivers 2’s massive player count milestoneof 458,709 back in February 2024.
Helldivers 2’s Player Count Decline Could Be Attributed to the PSN Account Linking Controversy
Since its release, the game has gradually lost active users on PC over the last few months, with the most notable decline being in May 2024, when the live service shooter’s player count dropped by an astonishing 63.5%. This coincides withHelldivers 2’s PlayStation account link controversyearlier that month, when both Sony and the game itself were blasted by PC players for unexpectedly announcing a PSN connectivity requirement at the time. Although SIE did walk back the controversial decision after immense backlash, it seems that the dilemma may have caused more harm toHelldivers 2than the company might’ve expected.
It’s possible thatHelldivers 2’s decline in player count isn’t that big of a deal, as games lose monthly active users all the time. However, to see a massively successful title experience such a dramatic drop in players does bring into question the long-term viability offuture live service games from Sony, likeConcord,Marathon, andFairgames. If the competition in the GAAS market is so high that even immensely-acclaimed games likeHelldivers 2have to fight to maintain their relevance, then it’s hard to imagine other titles remaining more popular for longer stretches of time.
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.
