Helldivers 2 takes two steps forward and one leap back. Less than a week after surprise dropping the Omens of Tyranny update at The Game Awards, Arrowhead has dropped another surprise, though this one isn't as fun or exciting: Helldivers 2 just got a Killzone armor set, cosmetics, and a Helghast gun, which is kinda cool, except they cost three times more than usual and can't be earned in a warbond.
The Killzone drop is a first for Helldivers 2 in more ways than one: It marks the game's first crossover, something that Arrowhead wants to do more of when it makes sense (Killzone is the most natural fit I can think of). It's also a significant escalation of Arrowhead's monetization scheme. Along with the recent Superstore-only stun baton, this is the first time Helldivers 2 has sold weapons—the most coveted unlockables in the game—outside of its battle pass-like warbonds.
Arrowhead has also seemingly embraced the trend of crossovers becoming the perfect occasion to crank up prices by a factor of two or three. The StA-52 Assault Rifle alone costs 615 Super Credits (around $6 or $7). A typical Helldivers 2 warbond, which contains multiple armor sets, guns, and other cosmetics, costs $10.
"615 SC for a primary weapon is straight-up ridiculous," wrote user Goopmaster_ in a top-upvoted post on the Helldivers subreddit. "I get the game needs to be monetized in some way, I get that the devs work isn’t free, but charging half a warbond price for an assault rifle with no optic is straight-up nonsense."
Folks are also haranguing over the 500 Super Credit Helghast armor set, which comes with a new "Acclaimed" armor passive that grants 50% damage protection against gas, acid, and electrical damage (that's a lot). Usually, Superstore-only armor sets share the same perks as the stuff you can get in warbonds, but not this time.
"This is a disgustingly good passive to be locked behind the most expensive armor to date," wrote Reddit user TraumaTracer.
Altogether, the six Helghast items come out to 1,975 Super Credits, or nearly the price of two complete warbonds.
"I would prefer they just dropped a new warbond. What the hell are these prices," user Jade_Bennet wrote.
The more of this we sell, the more Illuminate-type stuff we can keep dropping for free.
Shams Jorjani, Arrowhead CEO
So about that: It sure looks like this Killzone crossover was originally planned as a warbond. Just hours after the Omens of Tyranny update dropped last week, dataminers found references to multiple future warbonds. One was Urban Legends, which is out now, and the other was a Killzone-themed "Righteous Revenants" warbond. The armor and guns in the Righteous Revenants artwork match the Superstore-only items released today.
Arrowhead CEO Shams Jorjani addressed the angry mob this morning in a rare appearance on the Helldivers Discord server:
"Hey, quick comment on the Helghast stuff. Firstly, this is our first collaboration so we'll be figuring it out as we go along. Let us know what you'd like to see in the future," Jorjani wrote. "Secondly it's optional. The more of this we sell, the more Illuminate-type stuff we can keep dropping for free."
I can't say that sentiment does much for me. There's no confusion over whether or not the Helghast items are optional—the problem is the price, which Jorjani did not seem interested in addressing directly. Arrowhead has spent the entire year establishing that buying warbonds helps support the development of cool, free updates to the galactic war (they're called warbonds, after all). Jorjani now tying the promise of more "Illuminate-type stuff" to a bunch of overpriced "nonsense," as Redditor Goopmaster put it, is a bait-and-switch.
This is a disgustingly good passive to be locked behind the most expensive armor to date from r/Helldivers
In a later reply, Jorjani clarified his previous remark: "This was my way of saying that the better the game does the more stuff we can do."
Certainly, but as fans have pointed out, this sets a depressing precedent. Until recently, Helldivers 2 has been praised as one of the most reasonably monetized games around with substantial free updates, consistently priced $10 packs that add lots of interesting gear, and a rotating Superstore that sells more armor almost as an afterthought. The Killzone crossover disrupts that balance, making the Superstore the main event and, counter to its warbonds that never expire, pushing players to buy this super special (and extra expensive) stuff before it disappears in five days.
It's not like Arrowhead is doing anything that other games haven't done bigger and worse, but that's sort of the point: Arrowhead is now using the same playbook as every other exhausting live service game. Meanwhile, Helldivers 2 is still a $40 videogame on its own with $90 worth of warbonds.
Jorjani continues to reply to upset fans on Discord. His latest reply indicates Arrowhead isn't happy with how the Killzone pack has gone over.
"Clearly we'd love to find the sweet spot of people loving the content AND the price and buy the bajeesus out of it," he wrote. "This clearly didn't hit that mark."
