In the past, the undisputed safety of Super Earth in Helldivers 2 was used as a cause for celebration. Holidays like Helldivers 2’s Liberty Day 2024 tasked players with defending the planet, except, with no threats to defend against, these Major Orders were effectively free rewards for players to claim. However, just over a year after Helldivers 2’s release, Super Earth is now facing a very real threat in the new Meridia storyline.
With the Illuminate faction currently weaponizing the Meridia Singularity and setting it on a path to destroy Super Earth, the wait for Meridia’s unresolved storyline is finally paying off in what is arguably Helldivers 2’s most menacing storyline yet. Since this threat is far beyond the reach of explosives, Stratagems, and explosive Stratagems, the stakes of Helldivers 2’s Galactic War have seemingly reached a new extreme. If players fail to unite in the upcoming Major Order campaigns, entire planets could fall, including the beloved home of managed democracy, Super Earth.
Helldivers 2: The Illuminate Open the Door to a Fourth Faction, But Patience is Key
Helldivers 2 recently introduced its first post-launch faction with the Illuminate, and there could be even more on the horizon.
Helldivers 2’s New Meridia Storyline Is a Grand Payoff to a Lingering Mystery
For the First Time in Helldivers 2, Super Earth is in Real Danger
Ever since the return of the Illuminate faction in Helldivers 2, suspense has been building among the game’s community for what the future of the Galactic War will look like now that another enemy faction has joined the fight. Despite their minimal forces and relatively recent introduction in Helldivers 2’s ongoing Galactic War, the Illuminate faction has already managed to do something that the Automatons and Terminids haven’t been able to do all year: threaten Super Earth.
Shortly after Helldivers 2’s first anniversary, the Illuminate weaponized the Meridia Singularity, and it is now traveling on a direct path to destroy Super Earth. So far, the Meridia Singularity has already destroyed an entire planet along its path, reducing Angel’s Venture to an unrecognizable mess of debris.
Meridia was once a planet in Helldivers 2 that was home to a Terminid supercolony. Upon players destroying the doomed planet, an anomaly was created that is now known as the Meridia Singularity.
The New Meridia Storyline Raises the Stakes of Helldivers 2’s Galactic War
The Illuminate enemy faction has been known to attack planets throughout the galaxy in a seemingly unpredictable pattern, unlike how Helldivers 2’s Terminid and Automaton factions generally only attack planets that are in proximity to planets that the respective faction already controls. While the possibility of the Illuminate attacking Super Earth at any given moment was already likely, weaponizing the Meridia Singularity poses a threat unlike anything players have faced so far. Instead of being able to deploy on Super Earth to counter an Illuminate attack, the Meridia Singularity could instantly destroy the planet, leaving players with no opportunity to defend it.
Seemingly, the only option available to defend Super Earth is to rely on Major Order campaigns to discover a means of stopping the Meridia Singularity, and the current Major Orders are dividing players to fight on two fronts. Defending planets from Illuminate attacks will help slow the speed at which the Meridia Singularity is traveling. Otherwise, fighting on the Terminid front, specifically on the Gloom-infested planet Fenrir 3, will help to discover a way to counter the Meridia Singularity.
In the past, dividing players on Major Orders in Helldivers 2 like this has been a gamble. Hence, with the safety of Super Earth on the line and the stakes at an all-time high, the odds of victory are looking rather grim. Ultimately, despite the long wait, this new Meridia Singularity storyline could be a grand payoff to the lingering Meridia black hole mystery.
Helldivers 2
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OpenCritic Reviews
- Top Critic Avg: 83 /100 Critics Rec: 91%
- Released
- February 8, 2024
- ESRB
- Mature 17+ / Blood and Gore, Intense Violence, In-Game Purchases, Users Interact
- Developer(s)
- Arrowhead Game Studios, Nixxes
- Publisher(s)
- Sony Interactive Entertainment, PlayStation Publishing
WHERE TO PLAY
- Engine
- bitsquid
- Multiplayer
- Online Co-Op
- Cross-Platform Play
- All platforms
- Franchise
- Helldivers
- Number of Players
- 1-4 players (online)
- Genre(s)
- Third-Person Shooter, Extraction Shooter, Action, Science Fiction
- Platform(s)
- PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X, Xbox Series S, PC
- OpenCritic Rating
- Strong
