Helldivers 2's Illuminate invasion is the cherry on top of one of the best first years a live service game has ever had

GamesActionHelldivers 2Helldivers 2’s Illuminate invasion is the cherry on top of one of the best first years a live service game has ever hadWhen you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.Here’s how it works.

When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.Here’s how it works.

(Image credit: Arrowhead Games)

A helldiver, obscured by a halo of white light, stands victorious against a Super Earth flag in Helldivers 2.

Helldivers 2 was on my radar pre-release, but from its first week I knew it was one of those games I’d be playing for a very long time. I’ve dabbled in lots of live service games without ever going full no-lifer on any of them and, being a middle-aged dad, Helldivers 2 instantly ticked a lot of the boxes I wanted: Quickfire sessions, simple and self-contained goals, and a real sense of progression atop that, which might be the game’s greatest achievement of all. Helldivers 2 isn’t just a game I like to play: It’s a miniature social phenomenon I love watching play out.

The Game Awards saw developer Arrowhead surprise-drop the game’s long-awaited third faction,the Illuminate, alongside a bunch of other substantial new content and, just for good measure, a Warthog-style four-man space jeep. Off the bat they’ve revitalised Helldiver tactics and forced players to re-calibrate from the familiar foes to a much beefier, weirder challenge. It feels like the biggest change in the Galactic War to date, and the capstone on what has been an exceptionally well-planned and delivered first year (well OK, 10 months: The game released February 8, 2024).

Rather than running through all the game’s patches in chronological order, I’m going to hop around a bit to try and explain the elements that have made Helldivers 2 really sing as a living experience. And the single biggest factor is how Arrowhead engages with and responds to the community in an unprecedented fashion.

“Super Earth High Command has detected a large batch of counterfeit samples within the delivery of the last Major Order,” read the in-game message. “As is customary, Medals have been awarded to all Helldivers who honorably performed their duties, and the ones submitting false samples have had their pet fish summarily executed.”

Another great example came a few months in, when the community struck uponthe idea of the Martale Gambit. This involved liberating their own target planets with the idea of disrupting enemy supply chains and, much to their shock, game master Joel got involved: Offering a two-for-the-price-of-one deal on liberated planets if they pulled it off.

The sad end to the Martale Gambit is that it came agonisingly close, but the Helldivers fell short at the last. Nevertheless it became such a rallying point that it subsequently inspired further, successful gambits outside of the game’s own Major Orders, as well as the formation ofgroups like the Freedom Allianceto guide such efforts.

The biggest gaming news, reviews and hardware deals

“When the community manages to [pull off] gambits, that’s where the galactic war shines,“Arrowhead CCO Johann Pilestedt told PC Gamer in a new interview. “And it’s something that we want to keep investing in.”

And finally, my favourite moment in the game to date: When the Helldivers were given a choice between unlocking a sweet new weapon or going into save a ‘Hospital for Very Sick Children.’

(Image credit: Arrowhead Game Studios (Twitter))

Tank you Helldivers

Pilestedt is agreat outspoken presencearound the game, alongside the likes of community manager Twinbeard rallying the troops (who recently spoke to usfollowing his departure from the game), and perhaps the main character: Game master Joel. Arrowhead did a great job ofbuilding mystique around Joel, and of course the name quickly became a go-to reaction whenever something went wrong for the Helldivers.

The CCO reveals in a new interview with PCG thatJoel has now evolved into a hivemindor, to be more accurate, that was the case all along. “Joel is now a team of people working together, and it’s always been like that,” said Pilestedt. “There’s a lot of people that make the world of Helldivers work, and the team has gotten better and better at working together with the community, figuring out what the community is going to enjoy.”

I think the only major misstep Helldivers 2 made in this opening year was one that the studio relatively quickly self-corrected on. The first few months of Helldivers 2 saw a whole load of balance patching, as Arrowhead tried to tamp-down overpowered weapons and strategies while making other options more viable. But this eventually ended up crimping the fun of the whole thing a little, and let’s remember we’re playing a PvE game with space cowboys shooting space robots, which Arrowhead itself came to belatedly realise in late summer.

Solution? Screw the balance,bring on the buffs! The studio set itself a 60-day schedule to make things more fun again,and from the first patcheverything suddenly felt a lot more powerful. This is a game where the alien scum should be rightfully trembling at your loadout and, if Helldivers 2 lost sight of that for a moment, it quicklygot back to where it should be. The flames of liberty shall forever burn bright!

And Arrowhead does a great line in teases, fakeouts, and possibly deliberate leaks. The Illuminate were first glimpsed on the Galactic Map in early September, which Pilestedt immediately pooh-poohed and dismissed as “fake news”.

(Image credit: Arrowhead Game Studios)

helldivers 2 freedom’s flame

There are dozens of other little bits. The running will-they won’t-theybattle over Anti-Tank mines, which for some reason players took against. The lovely day when the Helldivers cracked a Major Order at the very last minute andwe all got awarded mechs. Mechs! The “T-pose of Democracy” glitch that players can use to avoid fall damage, which Arrowhead found so funny it’s stayed in the game. The game got review-bombed over a Sony account controversy:Arrowhead made a cape commemorating it.

Finally, as all of the above shows in some form, Helldivers 2 has a tone and it sticks to it. This is a comedy game that also takes itself seriously, and from the game’s opening video you’re sold on the galactic dystopia it presents, and the ludicrously bombastic ideals of Super Earth. Players talk to each other using the game’s language, joke about reporting each other for infringements of democracy, and semi-inhabit the fiction outside of the game. Hell there’s an official Super Earth anthem, and it really does make you want to jackboot some commie bugs into paste.

Helldivers 2 has managed to tell a story that’s quite unlike any other I’ve experienced in a game, and all we’re really doing as players is going from planet to planet annihilating alien scum. None of this would work if the core of the game wasn’t great, which it is, but what keeps me coming back for another quick session is catching up on where the Galactic War is at, what new wheezes my fellow Helldivers have cooked up, and what Arrowhead’s saying and doing about everything.

The whole game feels responsive and alive in a way that so few do and, while part of that is the excellent new content being added regularly, the community’s engagement in everything that happens is what excites me most. Whatever the game’s second year might bring, if it can keep troop numbers and morale as high as they are, then the sky is the limit.

More about actionAssassin’s Creed Shadows takes a run at improving parkour, as Ubisoft strives to make the system less ‘like a gas pedal’All Zenless Zone Zero 1.5 livestream codesLatestPlayers are still finding edge-case Baldur’s Gate 3 scenes, like one where you play as a kidnapped Astarion even if you made your own player-characterSee more latest►

More about actionAssassin’s Creed Shadows takes a run at improving parkour, as Ubisoft strives to make the system less ‘like a gas pedal’All Zenless Zone Zero 1.5 livestream codes

More about action

Assassin’s Creed Shadows takes a run at improving parkour, as Ubisoft strives to make the system less ‘like a gas pedal’All Zenless Zone Zero 1.5 livestream codes

Image for Assassin’s Creed Shadows takes a run at improving parkour, as Ubisoft strives to make the system less ‘like a gas pedal’

Assassin’s Creed Shadows takes a run at improving parkour, as Ubisoft strives to make the system less ‘like a gas pedal’

Zenless Zone Zero codes - Miyabi and section four

All Zenless Zone Zero 1.5 livestream codes

LatestPlayers are still finding edge-case Baldur’s Gate 3 scenes, like one where you play as a kidnapped Astarion even if you made your own player-characterSee more latest►

Latest

Players are still finding edge-case Baldur’s Gate 3 scenes, like one where you play as a kidnapped Astarion even if you made your own player-character

Astarion

Players are still finding edge-case Baldur’s Gate 3 scenes, like one where you play as a kidnapped Astarion even if you made your own player-character

See more latest►

Most PopularDragonflight got WoW back on its feet, now we get to see if Blizzard can make the Worldsoul Saga runThis bizarre roguelike has a new take on the Vampire Survivors formula: letting you build your own custom weapons out of brains, eyeballs, and chimpanzee spines18 games the PC Gamer team can’t wait to play in 2025The Witcher 3’s now 2-year-old bonus quest is our first taste of the ‘vibe’ CD Projekt is going for in The Witcher 42024 was the year updates for old games beat out all the new ones for meTrain like you game with this adventure-inspired workout’It’s simply impossible to make a difficulty level that’s just right for all players’: How Final Fantasy 14’s lead battle designer has been playing a precarious balancing game for Dawntrail’s dungeons and raidsPlease join me in getting super excited for all the cool looking survival games coming in 2025 (and beyond)Competitive shooters are at a crucial crossroads in 2025: ‘sweaty’ teamplay vs. casual funCall of Duty’s $28 Squid Game skins are the perfect crossover for our capitalist dystopia, and Activision knows exactly what it’s doingThese are the 14 biggest upcoming RPGs of 2025—get ready for another amazing year for the genre

Most Popular

Dragonflight got WoW back on its feet, now we get to see if Blizzard can make the Worldsoul Saga run

This bizarre roguelike has a new take on the Vampire Survivors formula: letting you build your own custom weapons out of brains, eyeballs, and chimpanzee spines

18 games the PC Gamer team can’t wait to play in 2025

The Witcher 3’s now 2-year-old bonus quest is our first taste of the ‘vibe’ CD Projekt is going for in The Witcher 4

2024 was the year updates for old games beat out all the new ones for me

Train like you game with this adventure-inspired workout

‘It’s simply impossible to make a difficulty level that’s just right for all players’: How Final Fantasy 14’s lead battle designer has been playing a precarious balancing game for Dawntrail’s dungeons and raids

Please join me in getting super excited for all the cool looking survival games coming in 2025 (and beyond)

Competitive shooters are at a crucial crossroads in 2025: ‘sweaty’ teamplay vs. casual fun

Call of Duty’s $28 Squid Game skins are the perfect crossover for our capitalist dystopia, and Activision knows exactly what it’s doing

These are the 14 biggest upcoming RPGs of 2025—get ready for another amazing year for the genre

HARDWARE BUYING GUIDESLATEST GAME REVIEWS1Best Steam Deck accessories in Australia for 2025: Our favorite docks, powerbanks and gamepads2Best graphics card for laptops: the mobile GPUs I’d want in my next gaming laptop3Best mini PCs in 2025: The compact computers I love the most4Best 14-inch gaming laptop: The top compact gaming laptops I’ve held in these hands5Best Mini-ITX motherboards in 2025: My pick from all the mini mobo marvels I’ve tested1Thank Goodness You’re Here! review: An anarchic treasure trove of jokes and skits2Shiren the Wanderer: The Mystery Dungeon of Serpentcoil Island review—like juggling chainsaws on horseback3WD Black SN850X 8 TB NVMe SSD review4Ikea Utespelare desk review5Asus ROG Harpe Ace Mini wireless mouse review

HARDWARE BUYING GUIDESLATEST GAME REVIEWS

1Best Steam Deck accessories in Australia for 2025: Our favorite docks, powerbanks and gamepads

A bunch of the best Steam Deck accessories on a blue background.

1Best Steam Deck accessories in Australia for 2025: Our favorite docks, powerbanks and gamepads

Best Steam Deck accessories in Australia for 2025: Our favorite docks, powerbanks and gamepads

2Best graphics card for laptops: the mobile GPUs I’d want in my next gaming laptop

Best graphics card for laptops: the mobile GPUs I’d want in my next gaming laptop

3Best mini PCs in 2025: The compact computers I love the most

Best mini PCs in 2025: The compact computers I love the most

4Best 14-inch gaming laptop: The top compact gaming laptops I’ve held in these hands

Best 14-inch gaming laptop: The top compact gaming laptops I’ve held in these hands

5Best Mini-ITX motherboards in 2025: My pick from all the mini mobo marvels I’ve tested

Best Mini-ITX motherboards in 2025: My pick from all the mini mobo marvels I’ve tested

1Thank Goodness You’re Here! review: An anarchic treasure trove of jokes and skits

Thank Goodness You’re Here review

1Thank Goodness You’re Here! review: An anarchic treasure trove of jokes and skits

Thank Goodness You’re Here! review: An anarchic treasure trove of jokes and skits

2Shiren the Wanderer: The Mystery Dungeon of Serpentcoil Island review—like juggling chainsaws on horseback

Shiren the Wanderer: The Mystery Dungeon of Serpentcoil Island review—like juggling chainsaws on horseback

3WD Black SN850X 8 TB NVMe SSD review

WD Black SN850X 8 TB NVMe SSD review

4Ikea Utespelare desk review

Ikea Utespelare desk review

5Asus ROG Harpe Ace Mini wireless mouse review

Asus ROG Harpe Ace Mini wireless mouse review

The biggest gaming news, reviews and hardware deals#

The biggest gaming news, reviews and hardware deals