Arrowhead’s chaotic alien shooter Helldivers 2 became PlayStation’s fastest-selling game ever, but despite its initial success, player numbers have since dwindled.
A look at the game’s Steam charts shows a steady decline since February when the game launched. According to SteamDB, at its peak in February, shortly after launch, there were 458,709 concurrent players. For comparison, the peak over the past 30 days is 166,305. That is a decrease of 64 percent.
Looking at average players, February had 208,303 helldivers in the game. That average number of players has dropped to 78,634 (a 62 percent drop) over the past 30 days.
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Naturally, it is expected that the number of players will decrease over time. But for Helldivers 2, there are a number of factors that may have contributed to this decline.
The most notable reason is the infamous PSN debacle that started earlier this month. In early May, Helldivers 2 publisher Sony announced that players on Steam will soon have to link a PlayStation Network (PSN) account to continue playing. Not only did this result in many negative reviews from a very disappointed community, but the game was also withdrawn from sale in 177 countries where PSN was not available.
Sony soon backtracked on its plans, stating that it was “still learning what’s best for PC players,” calling the huge wave of feedback “invaluable.”
Another factor contributing to the game’s drop in player numbers could be balance, which Arrowhead’s newly appointed Chief Creative Officer and Chairman Johan Pilestedt previously admitted the team sometimes took too far. Additionally, the game has at times been subject to bugs and other issues, causing player frustration.
In response, the Helldivers 2 team is now considering a “slightly lower” but higher default update rate after a busy first few months.
Although player numbers have undeniably fallen, Helldivers 2 remains popular, and Pilestedt believes the game’s success isn’t down to its price (Helldivers 2 currently retails for a relatively modest £34.99 on Steam).
Earlier this week, Pilestedt spoke at the Nordic Game conference, where he discussed Helldivers 2’s ‘smash hit’ status. Here he said Arrowhead managed to get the “fundamentals” right and deliver on the “fantasy” of the experience. While many others have previously made shooters like Helldivers 2, Pilestedt said his team “delved into the believability of what it would be like to play in that game.”
Pilestedt also reasoned that Helldivers 2 is in many ways an authentic experience and does not create barriers that would not be there in reality. “How many blows does it take in Star Wars to cut off someone’s hand with a lightsaber? It’s one,” he said. “It’s fundamental that we stick to the fantasy… Fine, balance it, but don’t make it two beats. I know that’s not true, and now we’re not making a Star Wars game anymore. ”
Another factor that has contributed to Helldivers 2’s success is its style, with the developer claiming that the game is a “representation of those who made it”.
Pilestedt finally touched on its success as a live service game, something others have struggled with. “It’s easy to say, ‘well, we’ll make more money by being able to drop a content pack here and there’. But that’s no reason why a consumer would want to engage with us,” he noted.
Pilestedt said live service games can be good for the industry “if done right” as they become a constantly evolving hobby. “If you forget this when you’re making a live service game, then I think that – I don’t want to say it’s a problem – but it is a problem. I think that’s a problem… I’ve decided that it’s a problem is “It’s a huge problem,” he said.
He also implored developers not to shy away from community involvement. While he admitted that “assholes” exist, that shouldn’t stop a studio from communicating with its fan base. He noted that there will be times when people get “pissed off,” and acknowledges that PSN is hoo-ha. “But at that point it’s like ‘ah, sorry! Yeah, that was a bad move on our part’… an apology doesn’t devalue your own brand as an organization, it just strengthens you.”
You can hear Pilestedt speak in the video below, starting at the 4 hour 37 minute mark.