Next Helldivers 2 Update Coming Later Than Expected

4.2

The 60-day update for Helldivers 2 announced back in August is actually going to be a 63-day update, as leaders of the game's development team have announced a slight delay in its release. While Helldivers 2 is set for some big upgrades, including some major balancing fixes, Arrowhead Game Studios doesn't want to release it over a weekend, when player counts are at their weekly peak.

The Escalation of Freedom update for Helldivers 2 went live on August 6. While it included a lot of features that the player base had been craving, including new enemy types, a harder difficulty mode, and a new biome, it also resulted in the nerfing of a lot of popular weapons and strategems that players had made essential parts of their playstyles. Following Escalation of Freedom's release, Helldivers 2 got review-bombed, prompting the development team to reevaluate its plans and come out with a comprehensive fix for the game's problems.

Game director Mikael Eriksson made an announcement on August 13, laying out plans for Helldivers 2 after the Escalation of Freedom update. While the original plans involved releasing a major update in exactly 60 days, which would have landed it on October 12, Arrowhead has backtracked on that statement after realizing a gaffe in scheduling that would set the patch for launch on a Saturday. "It's on a Saturday, and we don't patch during weekends, because we don't wanna break the game while you're playing the game," creative director Johan Pilestedt stated in a recent video posted to the game's official Twitter page. Instead, the update has been moved forward to October 15, a Tuesday, which is the day of the week that Helldivers 2 patches normally go live.

While the video seemed to serve as an apology to fans for the delay, the developers also used it to drum up excitement by revealing some sneak peeks at what's coming on October 15. This includes some fun new weapon features, with the Autocannon getting a Flak upgrade, while the Recoilless Rifle will have Programmable Ammo and the Scorcher will get automatic fire, giving players some relief after the Escalation of Freedom update weapon balance controversy.

The full patch notes will be available once the update goes live, though Arrowhead has given some indicators of what may be in store thanks to updates on its Steam page over the last several weeks. Issues that the team has flagged for upgrades in those developer updates include a variety of topics ranging from a rework of armor penetration to cutting down on excessive ragdolling. While Helldivers 2 has released new updates since announcing its 60-day plan, players only need to wait a few more days to see it fully come to fruition.

Helldivers, tune in for some important updates about our upcoming 60(3?) Day Patch and have a sneak peek at what's to come. pic.twitter.com/w5okGZr41A
— HELLDIVERS™ 2 (@helldivers2) October 11, 2024