Summary
- Arrowhead Studios is still holding off on releasing the review bomb cape for Helldivers 2 due to unresolved region issues.
- Arrowhead CCO Johan Pilestedt says Arrowhead has been attempting to rectify this issue with PlayStation, but it still remains an issue almost four months later.
- PlayStation faced backlash for requiring account-linking, resulting in delisting Helldivers 2 in regions where PSN is unavailable.
Arrowhead Studios CCO Johan Pilestedt has responded to Helldivers 2 fans who continue to request a review bomb cape be added to the game, stating that the studio is waiting for "region conclusion" before the cosmetic item is released. Helldivers 2 was review-bombed en masse back in May and fans have been waiting for a commemorative cape ever since, but it looks like they might have to wait a little longer.
PlayStation found itself in hot water with fans earlier this year when it announced a major account-linking change for Helldivers 2 on PC. The updated requirement would see players be forced to link their Steam and PSN accounts if they wished to continue playing Helldivers 2 on PC, but due to massive outrage from the game's community, which included a plethora of negative reviews on the game's Steam page, PlayStation walked back the requirement just a few days after it was announced.
Helldivers 2's historic review bomb was promptly turned around by the community, but fans urged Arrowhead Studios to turn the negative review graph into a cape to commemorate the moment. Johan Pilestedt, who was the studio's CEO at the time, teased the cape not long after the fiasco, but there has been very little update on its release since. Now, in a new AMA on the Helldivers 2 Discord (spotted by IGN), Pilestedt has given an update on the cape and said that it is yet to be released as Arrowhead is "waiting for region conclusion" as Helldivers 2 remains unavailable in certain regions due to the account-linking controversy.
Helldivers 2 Dev Explains Lack of Review Bomb Cape
Before PlayStation walked back the account-linking requirement, it delisted Helldivers 2 in a large number of regions due to the fact that PSN is unavailable in many places around the world, meaning it would be impossible for those players to link their accounts and play the game. However, when the studio reversed the decision, it failed to bring Helldivers 2 back to Steam in the delisted regions. Pilestedt says Arrowhead has been attempting to rectify this issue with PlayStation, but it still remains an issue almost four months later.
When asked by a fan on Discord if the cape will ever be released, Pilestedt said that the studio doesn't want to release it until it "[gets] more clarity on the country issue." The CCO's response implies that the cape is ready to be released, but that Arrowhead believes releasing it while some countries are still unable to play due to the fiasco would be in poor taste.
Arrowhead found itself at the center of another controversy at the beginning of August as fans expressed their dissatisfaction with the Helldivers 2 Escalation of Freedom patch. While the massive update added plenty of new content for players to check out, it also included plenty of weapon nerfs that fans believed were "unnecessary." The studio has since responded to the backlash and admitted it needs to re-examine its approach to balance adjustments, but the number of negative reviews that rolled in due to the update could have resulted in a second review bomb cape before the first had even been released.
Helldivers 2
-
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
The Galaxy’s Last Line of Offence. Enlist in the Helldivers and join the fight for freedom across a hostile galaxy in a fast, frantic, and ferocious third-person shooter.
URGENT BROADCAST – SUPER EARTH ARMED FORCES
Freedom. Peace. Democracy. Your Super Earth-born rights. The key pillars of our civilization. Of our very existence. But the war rages on. And everything is once again under threat.
Join the greatest military force the galaxy has ever seen and make this a safe and free place to live.
BECOME A LEGEND
You will be assembled into squads of up to four Helldivers and assigned strategic missions. Watch each other’s back – friendly fire is an unfortunate certainty of war, but victory without teamwork is impossible.
LOADOUTS
Rain down freedom from above, sneak through enemy territory, or grit your teeth and charge head-first into the jaws of combat. How you deliver liberty is your choice; you’ll have access to a wide array of explosive firepower, life-saving armor and battle-changing stratagems… the jewel in every Helldiver’s arsenal.
REQUISITION
Super Earth recognises your hard work with valuable Requisition. Use it to access different rewards that benefit you, your squad, your destroyer ship and our overall war effort.
THREATS
Everything on every planet wants you dead. That’s what we’re dealing with. Each enemy has distinct and unpredictable characteristics, tactics, and behavior – but they all fight ferociously and without fear or morality.
THE GALACTIC WAR
Capturing enemy planets, defending against invasions, and completing missions will contribute to our overall effort. This war will be won or lost depending on the actions of everyone involved.
We stand together, or we fall apart.
- Engine
- bitsquid
- Multiplayer
- Online Co-Op
- Cross-Platform Play
- All platforms
- Franchise
- Helldivers
- Number of Players
- 1-4 players (online)
- Platform(s)
- PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X, Xbox Series S, PC
- Genre(s)
- Third-Person Shooter, Extraction Shooter, Action, Science Fiction
