Helldivers 2's recent Steam reviews have fallen to a "mixed" rating amid ongoing performance issues that Arrowhead CEO Shams Joranji has now acknowledged. Despite cultivating a wide and active fanbase since its February 2024 release, the multiplayer shooter has run into some difficulty lately. The team behind Helldivers 2 has assured players that it's working on optimizations, but that hasn't been enough to stop widespread negative feedback.
While the game's PC performance may be causing a stir right now, the title is still going strong on some platforms. In late August, Helldivers 2 sold nearly a million copies on Xbox in just one week of the Sony-published game coming to competitors' consoles. That was enough to solidify it as the top paid game on Xbox, but despite that success, Helldivers 2 is still grappling with some significant challenges elsewhere.
Helldivers 2's Performance is Still Getting Worse, and Players Aren't Happy
As Helldivers 2's performance continues to decline, players share their frustrations.
Recent Helldivers 2 Steam Reviews Are Mixed Amid Performance Issues
Just 69% of Helldivers 2' s Steam reviews in the past 30 days are positive, and Joranji has addressed the criticism on Discord, saying Arrowhead is "well aware" that the game's stability and performance "isn't where it should be." He explained that the team is working hard to right those wrongs, but did not offer a timeline on when fans can expect fixes. Earlier in September, Helldivers 2 received two updates in the same week as devs worked to polish the game, but many negative reviews have still come out since then, so the issues are not over yet.
While the shooter's overall reviews remain "mostly positive" and lifetime English language reviews are even "very positive," things have shifted over the past month. Several users have expressed frustration with Helldivers 2's PC file size, lack of performance benefits for SSDs, freezing, lag, and other issues. Some have claimed that Arrowhead has spent too much time on the game's Xbox version and story updates and not enough effort on optimizations and bug fixes. Developers have said that such improvements are a priority, but for now, it seems like the performance problems are persistent.
This is not the first time the game has faced a wave of negative feedback. In August 2024, Helldivers 2 was review-bombed over server issues and complaints about some weapons getting nerfed and a lack of enemy variety. Before then, the title also withstood review-bombing over matchmaking errors and PlayStation Network requirements. Helldivers 2 has a history of overcoming waves of backlash, so there may be some amount of hope to take in that, but the future remains uncertain. Patches and optimizations may come, but things are not where fans would like them to be for now.
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
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.
- Multiplayer
- Online Co-Op
- Cross-Platform Play
- All platforms
- Prequel(s)
- Helldivers
- Franchise
- Helldivers
- Number of Players
- 1-4 players (online)
- Steam Deck Compatibility
- Playable
- PC Release Date
- February 8, 2024
- Xbox Series X|S Release Date
- August 26, 2025
- PS5 Release Date
- February 8, 2024
- Genre(s)
- Third-Person Shooter, Extraction Shooter, Action, Science Fiction
- Platform(s)
- PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X, Xbox Series S, PC
- OpenCritic Rating
- Strong
- How Long To Beat
- 70 hours
- X|S Optimized
- Yes
- File Size Xbox Series
- 25.96 GB
