by Helldivers 2 isn’t out of the fight just yet, as Arrowhead Games Studios has announced that its latest update, Escalation of Freedom, will be its biggest yet.
The studio revealed the latest addition to its post-launch rollout in a post on PlayStation.Blog. It’s an update meant to give the defenders of Super Earth more variety, including new missions, objectives, enemies, planets, and even a new difficulty mode. While we wait for the August 6 launch, you can see how Arrowhead plans to take the next phase of Helldivers 2 with the Escalation of Freedom Update Trailer below.
Do you have what it takes, Helldiver? The Escalation of Freedom major update begins August 6 and includes:
• Difficulty level 10
• New mission objectives
• Larger enemy outposts
• New bugs and bots
• New environmental hazardsFull briefing: https://t.co/GTTi0R4tc3 pic.twitter.com/h8gEewiu5G
— HELLDIVERS™ 2 (@helldivers2) July 23, 2024
“Our community continues to show us how strong we all are when we stand together against the mindless automatons and the scourge of the Terminids,” Arrowhead Social Media and Community Manager Katherine Baskin said in the blog post. “As we stand here on the eve of Freedom Escalation, we reflect on the 6 months since launch. We never could have predicted how far this game would go and how many citizens would answer Super Earth’s call to arms!”
The biggest fundamental change Arrowhead is making to the Helldivers 2 formula is its new, more difficult game mode: Combat Rating 10: Super Helldive. That’s right: if you thought your standard Helldive was too hard, Super Helldive is here to give you a whole new level of challenge. Arrowhead is calling this difficulty mode “harder and more relentless,” and of course, that means better rewards for those who manage to successfully extract at the end of the mission.
Super Helldive brings a greater variety of missions, as well as larger Terminid and Automaton outposts that yield new Super Sample rewards. Arrowhead says new missions and objectives will also be playable in other difficulty modes. However, what seems to be the flashiest new addition to Escalation of Freedom is the return of its land-based kraken enemy, the Impaler. Originally introduced in the first Helldivers, this tentacled creature is described as “large, imposing, and destructive,” requiring players to focus their fire until it is taken down.
Alongside the Impaler, new Terminid enemies make their appearance: the Spore Charger, a stealthier version of the standard Charger, and the Alpha Commander, a larger Brood Commander that calls in other insects as reinforcements when needed. The fearsome Automatons have also called in reinforcements, with players now having to be on the lookout for something called a Rocket Tank. Arrowhead also hints at other “robot surprises” to watch out for, but doesn’t provide specifics. Helldivers 2 players can also expect a new and updated swamp biome, which features denser fog layers and more places for enemies to hide.
As Arrowhead prepares to roll out Escalation of Freedom to the world of Helldivers 2, the company has let players know that it is working to mitigate the consequences of Grievance Kicking. When the update launches next month, players will find that after being kicked, they will spawn into a new session as the host with all of the loot from the session they just left. Helldivers who have been kicked will also be informed that their loot remains unchanged when the player is removed.
“With these changes, all players have the ability to walk away with all the loot they’ve collected on missions, without a single Helldiver losing anything,” Baskin continued. “We’re committed to making changes that will improve the player experience and encourage healthy, cooperative gameplay. Alongside this, we’re also releasing other quality of life improvements with Escalation of Freedom, including major fixes to the social menu to make it easier to dive with your friends.”
Helldivers 2 released on February 8, 2024 and has become one of PlayStation’s biggest hits in recent years. The squad-based extraction shooter was praised for its world-building, chaotic gameplay, and team-based objectives, and with the Escalation of Freedom update, it’s clear that Arrowhead still has a lot to offer. We loved the sequel upon release, giving it a 9/10 our opinionAt the time, we said: “Helldivers 2’s combat is fantastic, its missions remain fresh and interesting, and its clever progression system doesn’t charge you a dime.”
Michael Cripe is a freelance contributor at IGN. He began writing about the industry in 2017 and is best known for his work on sites such as The Pitch, The Escapist, OnlySP, and Gameranx.
Be sure to follow him on Twitter @MikeCripe.
