Summary
- The Helldivers 2 x Killzone 2 crossover came under fire this week for its $20 price tag.
- Frankly, it’s not that expensive when compared to other live-service bundles, and the backlash was completely out of proportion.
- The community has taken the lessons learned from collaborating on an enormous scale campaign together to target developer Arrowhead, twisting what was initially a surprisingly uplifting live-service game.
Helldivers 2 has done a remarkable job at bringing the community together. Its story, game master, and strategic galaxy-spanning war push people to co-operate on a huge scale. For a live-service game, it’s a breath of fresh air to be working together for once, and makes each update a memorable moment as opposed to a mere ‘content drop’. But these fans, now united, continue to set their sights on Arrowhead instead of the Automatons, Illuminate, and Terminid.
Constructive criticism is one thing. The PSN update prevented fans in certain countries from playing the game, and voicing that frustration through reviews and boycotts made Sony take notice. The backlash was so justifiable that even developers at Arrowhead were on board with fan ire. But unfortunately, the community noticed something when it rallied together outside of the Galactic War — it had influence.
Review bombs became par for the course with any update the community didn’t like, and developers are now routinely flooded with angry mentions demanding answers. Players used to come together to discuss the war effort on Reddit and Discord, but these too are now flooded in outrage. It’s inescapable.
Every month, there’s a new big story about the Helldivers 2 community being up in arms again. This time, it was over the Killzone 2 crossover: a highly-requested collaboration that has put the IP — which Guerilla itself says is dead — back on the map. Everyone is talking about Killzone again! It’s amazing to see, but the pricing immediately drummed up anger, drowning those celebrations out. And in just one day, Arrowhead walked back its plans and announced that the second half of the crossover would be completely free.
It Wasn’t That Expensive
The idea that the crossover is egregiously expensive doesn’t hold up when looking at the wider live-service picture. Each individual part of the Killzone collaboration was sold in the Superstore separately, including a new gun ripped right from the classic PlayStation shooter, as well as an intricately designed skin, cape, and player icon. If you were to buy everything, it would set you back 1,975 Supercredits, or $19.99.
Supercredits can also be farmed in-game, around 20 per mission.
For comparison, the Skibidi Toilet x Fortnite crossover is 2,200 V-Bucks, equivalent to $22.99. It comes with the Plungerman skin, as well as a new Back Bling and Pickaxe. But these are all just cosmetics, whereas the Helldivers 2 x Killzone 2 crossover includes a new weapon – and since we’re all on the same team, there’s no Pay to Win.
For further comparison, Genshin Impact costumes range from $15 to $30, Overwatch 2 sells some individual skins for $25, and League of Legends cosmetics can cost as much as $34.99. If you were just buying the Helldivers 2 x Killzone 2 helmet and armour (ie the skin), it would only cost $9.99.
Optional Skins Keep Live-Service Games Going
Helldivers 2 is a free-to-play live-service game that receives regular, enormous free expansions as part of its unfolding war. Cosmetics recoup the development cost and keep the game profitable — that’s why all of these games have battle passes and premium stores. It’s no different from the other examples, except it’s made by the smallest team.
CEO Shams Jorjani said as much. “It’s optional – the more of this we sell – the more Illuminate type stuff we can keep dropping for free.”
In the grand scheme of things, optional cosmetics that only add flavour are a small price to pay for free gameplay updates. Once upon a time, these expansions would be paid DLC. Just look at how much Call of Duty has evolved over the years, going from £12 map packs to free updates, using those optional cosmetics to pave the way.
Instead of splitting the community up based on who buys DLC and who doesn’t, everyone gets to enjoy the new releases together. It’s a great compromise, and an aspect of the live-service shift that doesn’t get nearly enough credit.
The Killzone 2 crossover only goes to show the double-edged sword in how Helldivers 2 has conditioned its players. Its unique hook of a giant sprawling war that everyone is involved in, being planned out amongst the community on an enormous scale, was so uplifting in the early days. It brought people together and cultivated a sense of comradery among strangers.
I remember that launch month when everyone spoke in character and treated this world like it was real, as though everything was riding on them beating back the Automaton hordes and defending Super Earth till their last breath. It was oddly wholesome. But that kinship has been twisted, now used to target Arrowhead and make every demand heard, big or small, justified or otherwise. And to placate the community, it bows down every time, only making them bolder.
Helldivers 2 was lightning in a bottle, and so much of that magic has been lost by a community that thrives on outrage.
Helldivers 2
Do you believe in freedom? Can you stand in the face of oppression – and defend the defenceless? Wage war for peace. Die for democracy.
Join forces with up to three friends and wreak havoc on an alien scourge threatening the safety of your home planet, Super Earth, in this multiplayer co-op shooter for PS5 and PC from Arrowhead Game Studios.
Step into the boots of the Helldivers, an elite class of soldiers whose mission is to spread peace, liberty and Managed Democracy using the biggest, baddest and most explosive tools in the galaxy.
Helldivers don’t go planet side without proper backup, but it’s up to you to decide how and when to call it in. Not only do you have a host of superpowered primary weapons and customizable loadouts, you also have the ability to call on stratagems during play.
Helldivers 2 features Arrowhead’s best cooperative gameplay yet. Collaboration will be vital: Teams will synergize on loadouts, strategize their approach for each mission and complete objectives together.1
Enlist in Super Earth’s premier military peacekeeping force today. We are heroes… we are legends… WE ARE HELLDIVERS.