Helldivers 2 Director Admits Balancing Updates Sometimes Go 'Too Far'
Since Helldivers 2 was released just over three months ago, development team Arrowhead Game Studios has frequently rebalanced the game’s meta, frustrating quite a few players who have grown comfortable with weapons only to have them nerfed in the next patch. Now, it looks like those complaints might lead to a change – or, at the very least, a discussion at Arrowhead.
Today on X/Twitter, in response to a player who said “Helldivers has just become un-fun for me” regarding balancing changes, Helldivers 2 director Johan Pilestedt said, “Hey, yeah i think we’ve gone too far in some areas. Will talk to the team about the approach to balance. It feels like every time someone finds something fun, the fun is removed.”
Hey, yeah i think we’ve gone too far in some areas. Will talk to the team about the approach to balance. It feels like every time someone finds something fun, the fun is removed.
— Pilestedt (@Pilestedt) May 8, 2024
Pilestedt’s response comes after months of players taking to social media to complain about the game’s frequent balancing patches. Last week’s patch 01.000.300, for example, increased recharge time for the LAS-99 Quasar Cannon amid several valuable buffs for other weapons, which led to frustration among players who relied on the gun.
Especially this week, though, quite a few players have posted about their concerns that the nerfs “suck the fun out of the game” or make weapons entirely unviable, with some reporting never seeing frequently nerfed guns like the RS-422 Railgun in matches.
Despite some players’ concerns over constant nerfs, we gave Helldivers 2 a 9 in our review, calling it “the rare modern multiplayer game that does almost everything right.” However, it hasn’t been immune to controversy beyond its balancing changes — just last week, players left 14,000 negative reviews after it was announced that it would began requiring players to link their accounts to PlayStation Network. The decision was reversed, though, after the avalanche of backlash, and some have organized a campaign to clean up the game’s Steam page with positive reviews.
Amelia Zollner is a freelance writer at IGN who loves all things indie and Nintendo. Outside of IGN, they’ve contributed to sites like Polygon and Rock Paper Shotgun, and they’re currently developing a game called Garage Sale. Find them on Twitter: @ameliazollner.
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