Helldivers 2 Review (PS5 & PC)

It’s back, bigger and better. Helldivers 2 is more or less the same for gamers who had the chance to play the prequel. It retains the core gameplay, teamwork-oriented missions, and fun. But it also adds to and improves on the original in clever ways. For one, the developing team throws out the original’s top-down perspective in favor of the third person. And while that change seems minor, it’s impactful enough to feel like playing an entirely new game.

But let’s not get ahead of ourselves here. Bit by bit, let’s take apart the cogs that make Helldivers 2’s wheels go round. Is the sequel better than the original? Is it worth playing? What issues can you expect, if any? Check out our Helldivers 2 review for answers to these questions and more.

Dive Back to Hell?

Having won the intergalactic war between Super Earth and its invaders, humanity wastes no time establishing itself as the supreme race. They invest in technology and skyrocket to dominance over the galaxy. Much of their efforts require mining a rare mineral, which, by colossal coincidence, breeds in the bodies of the previously defeated ‘Terminids,’ or bug-like creatures for all intents and purposes. Humanity farms these alien race creatures, and as expected, the aliens soon break out of captivity and begin wreaking havoc on Super Earth. So, once again, the last line of defense for humanity’s survival lies in the hands of the helldivers. 

What’s more? A second faction of enemies, the Automatons – or robots for all intents and purposes – forge war against Super Earth. Your mission, therefore, becomes to push the Terminids and automatons back to wherever they came from, alienating them off the face of Super Earth, one mission at a time. Now, the story here doesn’t really matter, despite my attempts to lay the groundwork for you. Helldivers 2 is, by all means, a shooter – with friends. It's explosive and frantic and it hardly gives you room to wonder. Hey, why am I doing this in the first place? All that matters is it’s a blast and the type of game that almost always leaves you with the untenable “just one more mission” itch.

But First…

You’ve probably run into complaints about bugs, connectivity, and server issues. And while, yes, these were quite persistent at launch, the developing team has worked hard to eradicate most, if not all, of them. So, playing the game now runs as smoothly as can be. Very minor bugs may come up, barely enough to warrant mentioning. If anything, what remains glaring in the background are matchmaking issues. You may be forced to join forces with Randos online, which is still a blast. You may want to keep trying until you get in, if you're starting to experience any issues. A quick patch has drastically alleviated Helldivers 2’s online woes, enough to get into the game without a sweat. 

Essentially, you have a war table of sorts. Here, you can see the galaxy in its extensive form. On one end are the nasty Terminid bugs encroaching on your home planet. On the other hand, the automatons are also pushing to claim more territory. Luckily, setting Super Earth free of its invaders is a global effort. I mean it, folks: every single player on Helldivers 2 is gradually contributing their part to taking back Super Earth’s colonies. It’s a beautiful implementation, if you think about it, that really stitches the fabric of a brimming community together. Anyway, once you decide which of the two enemy factions to feed your wrath, you select a planet you’d like to conquer, then further pull up the planet’s map to choose a specific location you want to take on. 

Turn Up the Heat

Some locations have ongoing missions with a progress bar to show how far the efforts on-ground are. You can join these missions and help bring them to victory. Or select the untouched ones. It’s all up to you. You can dive solo or in a team of up to four. My advice, and Helldivers 2’s, is to jump in with a minimum of three. Missions are challenging as hell, and they don’t scale back just because you can’t find friends to play with. In fact, you have eight difficulty levels, and the riskier they become, the higher the reward. Next up, choose your loadout. Careful here. Weapons, along with tactical play, matter most to winning. Laser weapons, for instance, are only better off taking out robots. 

Once you’re done, you get to choose where your drop pod lands. Perhaps you want to land closer to the objective, which will doubtlessly have hordes of enemy barricades waiting for you. Or, you can choose to land farther away and explore a bit, taking on side missions while at it. The latter can pay off handsomely by collecting Super Credits which are relatively easy to spot. These let you buy various weapons and gear at the shop. Let me sneak in here that you can also pay for the same with real-world money, which has got burning conversations brewing about a pay-to-win system. Save the attractive $40 sticker price point, and you can play the rest of the game entirely for free. You may need to grind it out to level up, but Super Credits add up far quicker than other, more annoying pay-to-win games out there. 

On the Frontlines

On to the meat of the game: combat. Firstly, much thanks to the third-person, which, while making combat more intimate, also obscures enemies on the far edges of your line of sight. It means you’re constantly on edge, always on high alert for any encroaching enemies. At certain points, you’ll feel overwhelmed as enemies spawn in hordes, which is where strategic team planning and communication come in. It’s extremely hard to beat this game solo. Yet, bringing along a team also sets you up for potential friendly fire. It’s hardly as annoying as the friendly fire in some other games can be. In fact, it keeps you thinking ahead before unleashing air strikes anyhow. 

It’s hard to imagine that in the middle of the frantic action and fighting for your life, Helldivers 2 is always delivering the goofiest voice lines. But my, oh my, as you laugh along, you’re also enjoying the limbs flying off of your assailants and praying your tummy parts aren’t next. It feels like a constant tug-of-war with a time-sensitive objective on the horizon. Only when you successfully extract from the battlefield do you receive a ton of goodies for your efforts. The gameplay remains refreshing, with new weapons and gear to scoop up. Missions also randomize enough to hardly feel repetitive. 

What a Beaut

You have to take a moment to admire the sights in Helldivers 2. From dense forests to snowy battlefields, environments constantly vary in plain wonder and sheer beauty. It feels like distinct planets, with realism in the sluggish movement through waterlogged terrains and the destruction of everything around you. Helldivers 2 is by no means a groundbreaking venture. Yet, it's close enough to recapture the effortlessly satisfying gameplay we love from multiplayer shooters, with explosively visceral visuals to boot.

Now, you have a number of essential missing features, like the ability to jump or dodge. Finding cover can be tricky, too, with nearly everything exploding to bits, especially under the might of weapons like pinpoint-accurate rocket launchers. Transport vehicles are missing, too, although rumors hint at a possible future update. Overall, your focus is to perfect the dance between closing in and keeping your distance from the enemy. That said, Helldivers 2 is still a brilliant game that you can find yourself playing nonstop. 

Verdict

Despite its shaky start, Helldivers 2 has quickly taken shape to stand out among the slew of new games coming out. It's one of those games that exceeds expectations far and beyond, with gamers running the game for hours on end. Of course, as a live service, its future will depend on how varied and consistent the upcoming updates are. More enemy variety certainly won’t hurt. A more seamless matchmaking system. Perhaps rapid shifts to the missions? I hear Helldivers 2 now has its own version of a secret dungeon master, capable of ‘messing’ with other players in real time.

Bottom line? The game has a strong start already and is only expected to grow into something bigger. Its missions are a blast from start to finish, where some are just 12 minutes and others longer. Still, you’re always completing excursions, wanting just one more round. With friends, the fun becomes elevated to levels only you and your pals can orchestrate. You can focus on hitting the maximum level, amping difficulty and scooping up as much EXP and rewards as possible. Or, play it cool, just for the fun of it. It’s never that serious. If you lose, you load up another excursion. If you win, hell, yes, even if it’s entirely by accident. It’s fun. It’s satisfying. And for only $40? C’mon now.