It seems as if Helldivers 2 has been facing various challenges and difficulties from the very outset. The infamous Escalation of Freedom update didn’t quite go as smoothly either, which led to the former CEO of Arrowhead Games having to engage with the community through an unexpected Q&A.

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Johan Pilestedt, who previously held the position of CEO, has now taken on a more hands-on role in developing Helldivers 2 as the new CCO. Although the game hasn’t fully lived up to all its promises since then, Pilestedt remains one of the community’s favorite Arrowhead developers due to his tendency to discuss upcoming content and explain the reasons behind the direction the game is taking. His latest Q&A on Discord is no exception in this regard.

Arrowhead CCO Johan Pilestedt Reveals a Lot about Helldivers 2 in a Recent Q&A

The full Pilestedt Q&A is quite extensive and would be too lengthy to discuss in a short article. However, I highly recommend checking out the featured Reddit post to learn about all the details he mentioned. If you’re interested in a concise summary, here it is:

• Pilestedt states that weapons should feel powerful, just as it is advertised.
• Arrowhead Games is currently operating at around 80% of its capacity due to the recent vacation season in Sweden.
• Helldivers 1-style boss encounters might be coming to Helldivers 2.
• The review bombing cape is still on the agenda, and Arrowhead doesn’t want to release it until they have more clarity on the country availability issue. There is a possibility that the game will return to sale in some countries.
• There is some “tech instability” regarding the performance of Helldivers 2.
• Arrowhead is working on a “color mod system” similar to the current vehicle customization feature.
• There is a good chance of releasing weapons with infrared and night vision optics in the “long term.”
• The current, nerfed version of the Flamethrower wasn’t iterated on enough, and the visual effects resemble those in Team Fortress 1.
• A variety of Helldivers 1 content is bound to be incorporated into Helldivers 2 in the future (such as the LAS-13, AT-47, EXO-51, etc.).
• An experimental testing server for Helldivers 2 is coming “at some point” and is currently being developed.
• Pre-saved gear loadouts are in the works.
• Some form of weapon upgrading and customization is on the way.
• Removing the Eruptor’s shrapnel effect was the wrong approach.

This is a significant amount of information, and the remarkable thing is that Pilestedt’s interview delves even deeper into each of these topics and more. Seriously, I can’t emphasize enough how beneficial it is to read through the featured Reddit thread.

Keeping all of the above in mind, a very valid point was raised by members of the Helldivers 2 community recently:

Arrowhead Games is currently struggling to meet the demands of the community, often implementing nerfs where players don’t feel they are necessary, as was the case with the Flamethrower, Eruptor, and Railgun weapons, among many others.

On August 14, Arrowhead promised to deliver a balancing plan within the next 60 days, which should inform the players about what changes will be coming to the game’s meta in the future. However, it remains to be seen how this will play out once it is finally presented. Moreover, even if the plan is successful, can Arrowhead fulfill its promises? Whatever the situation may be, at least the game is enjoyable as long as you stick to the lower difficulties.