Summary
- Space Marine 2 offers a power fantasy with boss battles and customization, while Helldivers 2 provides chaotic co-op experiences.
- Space Marine 2's Operations game mode is similar to Helldivers 2's Galactic War but with more repetitive gameplay.
- Space Marine 2 has more depth in character progression, offline accessibility, and a PvP mode compared to Helldivers 2.
As co-op horde shooters both released in 2024, it’s inevitable for Helldivers 2 and Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2 to be considered natural rivals, or at the very least to have some kind of friendly competition. Ultimately, each game has its strengths for players looking for a particular experience, making both of them equally enjoyable.
With its boss battles, gory combat, and superhuman playable characters, Space Marine 2 generally offers much more of a power fantasy than Helldivers 2. Not to mention, Space Marine 2 has several progression systems and customization options that give players short and long-term incentives despite having a somewhat repetitive gameplay loop. Meanwhile, Helldivers 2 is a more chaotic co-op experience that can take a while between major events in the Galactic War to develop, but when these happen they tend to break the internet, rallying swarms of players to defeat a common enemy, unlock a ridiculous new weapon, or both.
11 Warhammer 40K Factions That Should Get Their Own Shooter
With Space Marine 2's release at hand, there's plenty of room in the Warhammer 40k universe for other factions to star in their own shooters.
How Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2’s Gameplay Compares to Helldivers 2
Between the campaign missions that follow Titus’ story from the original Space Marine game, PvP Eternal War, and PvE Operations, Space Marine 2’s Operations game mode is the closest to Helldivers 2’s one and only game mode, the Galactic War. Helldivers 2’s Galactic War may be moving along rather slowly so far, but there have already been some memorable developments with plenty more significant events on the way in due time.
Helldivers 2’s variety of planets, enemies, and objectives all blend together to provide practically infinite replayability, with no two missions being identical. Space Marine 2’s main gameplay loop of Operations, on the other hand, is typically more repetitive than Helldivers 2’s Galactic War due to a limited variety of missions and the linear nature of each Operation.
Space Marine 2’s 2024-2025 roadmap will add new Operations, a new enemy type, and a new weapon, among other things, free for all players who own the game, which should all help to address the game’s repetitiveness. At the same time though, Helldivers 2 will also continue to grow over time with new content.
Also worth noting is that Space Marine 2 has a PvP game mode, Eternal War, which shares progression with the PvE Operations, giving players multiple ways to unlock new rewards to make their characters stronger. Despite the mission structure being more repetitive, Space Marine 2 also offers a much deeper character class and weapon progression system, as well as a massive amount of purely cosmetic customization options.
As Many Similarities As There Are Differences
Space Marine 2’s class-based buildcrafting may present more initial limitations than Helldivers 2’s open-ended approach, but overall, Space Marine 2’s character and weapon progression systems incentivize players to use a wider variety of weapons. In contrast, Helldivers 2 often revolves around a small handful of meta loadouts with many weapons and Stratagems remaining underutilized, at least for the time being until Helldivers 2’s weapon-balancing problem is resolved.
Ultimately, each game has its strengths for players looking for a particular experience, making both of them equally enjoyable.
Another thing to consider between the two games is that Space Marine 2 is more accessible to solo players by nature of offering an offline mode, as well as filling in bots for open team slots whether players are online or offline. However, character and weapon progressions in the Operations game mode currently can’t be earned while offline.
Space Marine 2 generally offers much more of a one-man-army power fantasy, as players control one of the strongest units from the Imperium of Man in the Warhammer 40K universe, a space marine. These genetically engineered super soldiers are towering beings that can reduce small enemy units to puddles of blood just by running into them, while also being able to handle massive Xenos and Chaos boss battles in Space Marine 2 with a variety of weaponry, notably including melee weapons. Helldivers 2 takes itself far less seriously, in the best way possible, offering a chaotic co-op experience where players may have a few over-the-top explosive tricks up their sleeves, but by design, Helldivers are far more expendable in the grand scheme of the Galactic War.
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.
- 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
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OpenCritic Reviews
- Top Critic Avg: 81 /100 Critics Rec: 86%
- Released
- September 9, 2024
- ESRB
- M For Mature 17+ Due To Blood and Gore, Intense Violence
- Developer(s)
- Saber Interactive
- Publisher(s)
- Focus Entertainment
- Engine
- Swarm Engine
- Multiplayer
- Online Co-Op, Online Multiplayer
- Cross-Platform Play
- PC, PS5, Xbox Series X|S
WHERE TO PLAY
Your Craft is Death.
Embody the superhuman skill and brutality of a Space Marine, the greatest of the Emperor’s warriors. Hold at bay the horrors of the galaxy in epic battles on far-flung planets with your deadly abilities and devastating weaponry. Uncover dark secrets to drive back the everlasting night and prove your ultimate loyalty to humanity.
Crush the Tyranid swarms. Defend humanity.
Purge the relentless Tyranid swarms as legendary Space Marine Titus in a spectacular new campaign. Play solo or with up to 2 friends in 3 player co-op.
Enjoy intense, gory and fast-paced third-person action with hundreds of enemies on screen, from the creators of blockbuster co-op shooter World War Z.
Defend the Imperium as your own Space Marine in an endlessly brutal and replayable PvE missions up to 3 players featuring 6 classes, unlocking new skills and cosmetics.
Wage eternal war on your enemies in ferocious 6v6 PvP matches and bring glory to your faction!
- Franchise
- Warhammer 40K
- Number of Players
- 1-6
- Platform(s)
- PC, PS5, Xbox Series X, Xbox Series S
- Genre(s)
- Third-Person Shooter, Hack and Slash