Helldivers 2 has caused disappointment among players and developers with a nerf in the latest update. The CEO takes a stand.
Which update is it about? The “Escalation of Freedom” update is considered the largest update for the game so far and was released on August 6. It brought some new features such as a new difficulty level, new enemies, and a new system that saves your loot if you are griefed.
However, the biggest attention of the community was drawn to a change that nerfed flamethrowers. Fire is now supposed to behave more realistically and no longer penetrate certain bodies. As a result, the flamethrower can no longer eliminate rushers.
However, the general nerf policy of the development team is also being criticized. After all, it is not the first time that a patch made the players of Helldivers really angry.
Feel free to check out the trailer for the new war bond “Flame of Freedom”:
The CEO of Arrowhead takes a stand
What does the CEO say about the update? Shams Jorjani, the CEO of Arrowhead, commented on Discord regarding how the developers view the update. He responded that the team behind the co-op shooter is also dissatisfied. They put a lot of work into the update, and it contains some good things that no one is talking about. Shams said they understand that people are dissatisfied with the latest adjustments and will learn from it.
Furthermore, he says they need the changes to see what the players want and ends his post with the words, “But it’s just as clear that talking about it is not enough. Actions must follow.”
Since Helldivers 2 has often taken a path with balance changes that players did not like, some players doubted the words of the CEO on Reddit.
The fans remain skeptical
What does the community say about the CEO’s statements? It quickly becomes clear on Reddit that players do not fully trust the CEO’s statements. They claim to have heard it too often and assert that it is always the same and that they are generally dissatisfied with the weapon adjustments.
- “Yes, we shouldn’t have 40+ weapons and 37 of them are nerfed so badly that no one uses them. All weapons should be usable. […] No one likes an impossible game. It’s not fun. (via X)
- “I love hearing ‘words mean nothing, actions count’ for the 100th time from developers who consistently act differently. (via Reddit)
- Arrowhead always has an excuse for why they mess up. ‘We need to better understand what players want.’ – Here’s a tip for you: stop nerfing weapons.” (via Reddit)
Nerfs are often a reaction from developers to weapons that are too strong or are played significantly more than other weapons. This also applies to many nerfs in Helldivers 2, and a player found out that it is due to a bug: The community of Helldivers 2 has found out who is to blame for the nerfs of their favorite weapons: a bug Community News
