As Helldivers 2 fans call for bug fixes over new content, director apologizes "for the sloppy mistakes we've made as of recent" and knows "we can do better as a studio"

Helldivers 2's popularity is still sky-high, but more and more demands have been flooding in lately for developer Arrowhead to put a greater focus on squashing bugs rather than adding new content, something which the devs have pointed out isn't exactly straightforward. It's rather ironic, really, given the game's massive focus on killing democracy-hating bugs.

Since the shooter's release, Arrowhead Game Studios has constantly been supplying fans with new content to dive into, from new Warbonds to fresh enemies to fight. However, as can be seen in the game's latest patch notes, there's a huge list of known issues that the devs are aware of, but haven't yet fixed. Responding to requests for a larger focus on bug fixes, one of Arrowhead's community managers recently said: "It's important to us to maintain the cadence that we promised – one Warbond per month – but equally important to everyone to fix the glaring bugs and technical issues. There's just only so much time in a work week."

Expanding on this further and explaining how the studio's partnership with publisher Sony Interactive Entertainment influences its content goals, Helldivers 2's director Johan Pilestedt clarifies on Reddit that Arrowhead is "not swayed by shareholders in the traditional sense." Despite having targets, "there isn't a forcing function or requirement per se." Ultimately, he says: "We want to deliver the best in the industry and we are calibrating our efforts of fixing VS new stuff. It's easy to say 'just fix, don't add,' but the reality of the competitiveness in this industry is that we have to do both to stay relevant.

"We are figuring it out, the demands and expectations on the studio [are] high, all eyes are on us, and we have a sole purpose – to make this the best live game you've ever played,"  he continues. "We just need to find our stride and balance. It's a hot topic at the studio, and I'm sorry for the sloppy mistakes we've made as of recent."

Comment from r/Helldivers

In a further comment, Pilestedt adds that his response isn't meant to be seen as "a defensive post," saying, "I know we can do better as a studio." Continuing, he writes: "My intention was just to say that the games industry is a complicated beast. We need to stay relevant and keep everyone entertained while fixing stuff. The expectations from our friends at PlayStation are pretty simple: 'make great game for players. We trust you.' Nobody is forcing us. But at the same time, the pressure is real. It's very abstract."

One of the bugs currently known to be running wild in Helldivers 2 is allowing players to farm Super Credits, something which Arrowhead has described as "undemocratic behavior." As such, we can probably expect it to get ironed out soon along with the other known issues, although we haven't been given any indication as to when that might be. 

Arrowhead is also currently reworking "fire as a whole" since the way it works right now is "ridiculous."