Helldivers 2 is a fantastic live service game because you can step away for a few weeks and log back in to a pile of Major Order rewards, but some fans don't think that's fair, and the developers are working on ways to better encourage participation.
Currently, Major Orders are the thing that determine the direction of the Galactic War. They require the cooperation of helldivers all over the world to complete. Sometimes we need to kill a specific number of enemies, sometimes we need to use specific stratagems, and sometimes we need to defend or reclaim planets lost to our devious foes.
When everyone works together, they're a cinch, and at the height of the game's popularity, every Major Order was completed pretty quickly. There are fewer people playing now, but it seems like most get finished no problem.
Even if you don't directly participate, if a Major Order is won, all helldivers reap the rewards. One fan wishes in the game's official Discord server that only those who join in get rewarded, but one of the developers says "we want to be generous with players not actively playing the game or choosing to play their own way."
I'm a fan of this approach. I'm a busy man, and there are so many games to play – my backlog is only ever getting bigger. But, the developer also admits "there's a deeper problem where we need better encouragement for players participating with the MOs."
That's also true. Most times I play, I'm either farming for Super Credits or just hanging out with my mates, so we play whatever we feel like, ignoring the Major Order completely. Some sort of tiered reward system would be great, where players who've dedicated a few matches to the MO get a bigger or extra reward would be a good compromise.
The developer adds, though, that "having 100% participation means the MOs will always be won and that introduces other issues!" Also also true. It's no fun if the game always goes our way. We need to lose sometimes to make the stakes higher and the wins feel more deserved.
As well as Major Order thoughts, developers in the Discord server spoke about plans for endgame progression and game master Joel's love for destroying planets.
If you want to skip some Major Orders, here are some of the best online games you can sink your time into.
