It seems that a rudimentary update can actually change the fate of a game, as Helldivers 2 continues to prove. Following massive buffs introduced in the Sept. 17 patch, Helldivers are now confused as to which weapon to choose since all of them have become more than viable and effective.
This new and unique “issue” was first mentioned by a user in a Sept. 18 Reddit thread, where they and others expressed how they couldn’t decide which weapons and Strategems to take on Helldives. “There’s so much fun shit I can’t decide what to pick,” the thread’s creator said, listing about a dozen fantastic choices that have been made usable again by the Sept. 17 patch. “[The] 500KG [bomb] finally feels like a 500KG,” they said. “Well done, AH. I haven’t been this excited to play this game since I first bought it.”
Others in the thread continued to sing praises, highlighting their weapons of choice and what the developers did to bring them back into the action. “Dude, the crossbow is so back,” said one player, adding how it now acts as if it were an “auto-cannon type weapon.” Another silently and simply bragged about their kill count in matches post-patch, posting an image of them slaughtering over 500 enemies of the state and liberty in a single Helldive. But perhaps where the game now shines the most is build variety and the lack of an active meta, which, as one player said, “makes the game feel fresh.”
“I love that I can mix up my loadout,” they said.
The smell of liberty now truly fills the air, nearly as much as Helldivers 2 players are filling its servers with a player count that more than tripled in less than 24 hours post-patch. With a 24-hour peak of 68,000, according to SteamDB, the game is performing exponentially better than it has in previous months, proving that even simple updates, when done right, can reinvigorate a stumbling title.