Ramblings

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First off, I haven't played the first game. However, I did play this one. And, uh, quite a bit. I don't think I've ever gotten more absorbed into a game as I have with Helldivers 2. In gaming terms, Helldivers 2 is the Subnautica but for multiplayer games. There is a primal satisfaction in making things go very big boom that never gets old. Helldivers 2, at its core, is a multiplayer cooperative PvE shooter that tasks a group of four so-called “Helldivers” to carry out strategic tasks in heavily contested warzones to gain the edge in a galaxy-wide war. The helldivers are dropped onto planets from starships in orbit, then have to carry out tasks like “retrieve intel of a destroyed research base”, “launch a leftover nuclear missile”, “steal confidential information” or “destroy enemy outposts”, all while surviving the onslaught of enemies trying to stop them. Interesting premise, but what makes this game stand out is that it actually delivers. Besides handheld weapons, players are given support by the starship in orbit, and by supersonic fighter jets in immediate vicinity, armed with weapons ranging from orbital space lasers, barrages, hell the entire starship is one big ass railcannon, and that starship is multiple kilometers in length. It can also send down utility items like support weapons, equipment that is necessary for objectives, or just straight up (tactical) nukes. The downside of this is that all things coming from the starship suffer from a long delay between call-in and arrival. So if you call in an orbital napalm barrage, it will be one massive barrage, but it will take a long time to arrive. For more tactical engagements, the fighter jet can be equipped with things you want to land faster. The fighter jet can lay down a field of napalm very quickly, but due to its limited size and capacity it will have less oomph. But sometimes you don't need to crater an entire block, just one street can be fine.