We had only a few lives remaining. Time was running short. We limped to the extraction site and sent the beacon. Two minutes til touchdown. For forty seconds nothing happened. We called down a resupply to gather more ammo, and set up some automatic turrets and a minefield.
Then the turrets began firing. The bugs were coming.
They swarmed from two directions, and we cut them down. Until a large Charger broke through, forcing us to scramble. A teammate called down an orbital strike, but misjudged the distance. It was right on top of us.
Helldivers 2 may be the biggest surprise this year. The unassuming sequel to the nearly ten-year old Helldivers switches the perspective from a top-down shooter into a third-person shooter. It’s a more intense and immersive experience, while retaining the emphasis on co-op survival and teamwork.
The world is heavily inspired by the 90s satirical sci-fi action movie, Starship Troopers (based on the novel by Robert A. Heinlein), as well as the future war teased in the Terminator series. Jacked-up soldiers battle a never-ending war against giant bug monsters and killer robot androids — and that’s about all the story we’re going to get. It’s a fun excuse to shout “for democracy!” while hurtling grenades, or watching an orbital strike bombard a factory churning out robots.
The game doesn’t cram any superfluous side quests or cutscenes into the action, letting the missions and tightly balanced gameplay speak for themselves.
Even the Helldivers’ bases of operations are cookie-cutter ships floating above orbit of whatever planet they’re assaulting. The ships allow players to walk around and access their menus and shops to unlock new equipment and strategems. Or just hang out and use funny emotes to engage with their fellow divers before jumping into the next mission.
The missions in Helldivers offer a random assortment of objectives, layouts, and enemy density on different planet biomes, such as rainy jungle, volcanic desert, or foggy forest. The randomized level design, combined with interactive objectives, make Helldivers 2 one of the most refreshing co-op shooters in a genre that’s struggled to move beyond the precedent set by Left 4 Dead over a decade ago.
Left 4 Bugs
Left 4 Dead and its sequel set the stage for co-op action games in the late 2000s, requiring players to work together and help one another to survive the journey from point A to point B against ravenous waves of undead. The levels were the same, but the threat could change dynamically and suddenly, creating a richly replayable loop.
In the years since, many games have tried to emulate this successful focus on cooperation and survival, such as Deep Rock Galactic, or Back 4 Blood. Helldivers 2 co-op captures the tension, camaraderie, and over-the-top chaos in a way I haven’t felt in years.
The best evolution is the size of the environment and freedom to explore. From the moment we can touch down, we choose the landing spot and everywhere we want to go. Areas of interest pop up as we explore, from downed ships to hidden loot caches to nests full of bugs (or factories full of robots!), all of which reward us with XP, medals, and rare loot drops to unlock new and more exciting weapons, armor, and strategems.
Every mission has a main objective, such as refueling spaceships, transmitting important data, rescuing survivors, or even launching an ICBM. All of these objectives are little more than a minigame with a few tasks, such as turning valves, sliding pipes on a screen, or opening doors. They’re intuitive and relatively easy to manage. They also help break up the more tense action sequences. Often they’ll create at least one dire situation, as the players are forced to defend an area against an attack by enemy forces.
It’s also possible to split the party in Helldivers 2. It’s a risky but rewarding strategy, as every missions has a limited amount of time, and enemy attacks grow stronger and more frequent. The more side objectives and areas the players can explore, the better their rewards at the end.
The careful balance of risk and reward is one of the game’s greatest strengths. That and the difficulty levels. Helldivers 2 includes no fewer than eight difficulty settings. Newer players can ease in to a world of tense battles and always-on friendly fire before things get too crazy.
Two For the Price of One
Helldivers 2 often feels like two games in one, thanks to its completely different enemy types. The ongoing Galactic War pits humanity against two deadly forces: the Terminids (giant bugs), and the Automatons (killer robots).
Both factions play completely differently. The Terminids are mostly melee focused, with enemies who can claw, pounce, spew acid, and even turn invisible to ambush and disengage. The Chargers are like giant tanks with claws who try to barrel over anything and anyone in their way. The bugs often have superior numbers of swarming Scavengers, and often create a feeling of overwhelming enemy forces.
The Automatons don’t swarm. Most of their Trooper units are armed with guns (though some have sword-arms, because of course they do). Scout Striders are mobile turrets with legs that resemble the AT-ST from Star Wars: Return of the Jedi.
Helldivers must use completely different strategies, and often different loadouts, when tackling an enemy who can shoot back, lay down mines, and jump on turrets. It’s like if Left 4 Dead included both zombies and aliens.
My biggest complaint about Helldivers 2 is that it’s M-rated. With the violence directed almost solely toward non-human targets (friendly fire notwithstanding), and the satirical pro-war propaganda, this could’ve easily been a T-rated game. The violence can be bloody and graphic (especially versus the Terminids), making it a tough to play around younger gamers.
Still, as far as M-rated games goes, this is one that most teens should be able to enjoy (and play with their parents!) without much issue.
Helldivers is out now on PC (Steam) and PlayStation 5. It’s rated M for Mature.
