The Pros and Cons of Helldivers 2’s Lack of Roadmap

Though there have been some bumps in the road, Helldivers 2 is still going strong as one of the best co-op multiplayer and live-service games of its time. After just recently passing Helldivers 2’s first anniversary, the game has undergone significant improvements and received a slew of new content updates, with no sign of future updates coming to an end anytime soon.

Based on previous updates for the game so far, it’s safe to assume that Helldivers 2 will continue to release new premium Warbonds and crossover content, at the very least, as the ongoing Galactic War unfolds. However, as there is no roadmap for Helldivers 2, there’s no telling what other surprises the game might have in store. In hindsight, this lack of a long-form roadmap for Helldivers 2 is admittedly quite a risk, as there are both positives and negatives to this approach.

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Helldivers 2’s Lack of a Roadmap is a Double-Edged Sword

While there have been relatively short roadmaps for Helldivers 2 in the past, and a “known bugs” list typically included in the patch notes for big updates, Arrowhead Game Studios seems to be committed to not having any sort of long-form public roadmap in place for Helldivers 2. Arrowhead Game Studios CEO Shams Jorjani recently revealed that there are two key reasons why Helldivers 2 currently has no public roadmap. Jorjani explained that the studio isn’t reliable enough to stick to the rigid schedule of a roadmap, while also claiming that the studio prefers the flexibility of this kind of approach anyway.

The Pros of Helldivers 2 Avoiding a Roadmap

• Allows story developments in Helldivers 2’s ongoing Galactic War to be flexible, leaving room for surprises and adaptability
• Helldivers 2 already has a wealth of existing content without needing to rely on constant new updates.
• Arrowhead Game Studios has more freedom to change priorities to address timely matters.

One of the biggest advantages of Helldivers 2 not having a public roadmap is that the game’s story developments can be flexible enough to react to players’ success throughout Helldivers 2’s Major Orders and ongoing Galactic War. Not only does this make new content feel as though it is earned through players’ accomplishments (and failures), but it also leaves room for surprises that wouldn’t necessarily be possible if players knew when a big update was coming ahead of time.

The Cons of Helldivers 2’s Lack of a Roadmap

• Unpredictable timing can make it hard to prepare for updates
• New and returning players might get the impression that there are no more updates planned for the game

One of the most frustrating consequences of not having a roadmap of what future updates for Helldivers 2 will introduce, or when these updates will be released, is that it makes it difficult to prepare for these updates. More specifically, not knowing if players will have enough in-game currency or if players have reached a high enough level to unlock the new content in Helldivers 2 can be stressful. Additionally, since Operations on Helldivers 2’s highest difficulties often take around two hours, it can also be stressful for players who may have relatively limited playtime to make time to experience the latest updates in length.

Ultimately, there are both good and bad consequences of not having an official public roadmap for Helldivers 2. However, the gamble of not having a roadmap seems to be successfully paying off so far, as the game still has a thriving player base with countless more content updates and surprises in store, despite its future ultimately being a mystery.

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Released

February 8, 2024

ESRB

M For Mature 17+ Due To Blood and Gore, Intense Violence

Developer(s)

Arrowhead Game Studios