Helldivers 2 devs tell players to put down the lightning guns to prevent the game from freezing, which sounds like a Terminid in disguise to me

Helldivers 2
(Image credit: Arrowhead Game Studio)

Helldivers 2 players, defenders of democracy, we have word from above that lightning guns are causing the game to freeze up... which is exactly what a Terminid in disguise would say if it were trying to, oh, I don't know, thwart our plans to rid planets of their treachery using lightning. We. Must. Resist.

No but seriously, you should probably stop using lightning guns for the time being. As much fun as it is writing news from the perspective of the characters in the game, Arrowhead, the actual, real-life studio that made Helldivers 2, is explicitly saying that three specific guns are likely responsible for frequent freezes that real-life players are actually experiencing.

"We have identified the cause of the freezes many players have been experiencing, and we're in the process of building a patch to fix it that should be ready to deploy early next week," said community manager Baskinator on Discord. "In the meantime, we advise against using the Arc Thrower, Arc Shotgun, and Tesla Tower as those appear to be linked to the issue. Thank you for your continued patience!"

Still, the timing of this message is simply too coincidental to ignore. Just as Helldivers 2 players rocket to 95% liberation on Fori Prime amid a so-called "security breach" that resulted in "dissident misinformation," we're now being told not to use some of the most effective tools we have at winning the Galactic War. Come to think of it, Helldivers 2 players were just taunting Game Master Joel after a string of big wins, and now this is happening. I'm onto you, Joel.

Anyway, for real again, lightning guns are causing the game to freeze, so just pick something else from this list of the best Helldivers 2 weapons and keep fighting the good fight arc-free until a fix is implemented.

After calling flying bugs "propaganda" and blue lasers "not real", Helldivers 2 director crumbles as one soldier captures both in a single screenshot.

Jordan Gerblick

After scoring a degree in English from ASU, I worked as a copy editor while freelancing for places like SFX Magazine, Screen Rant, Game Revolution, and MMORPG on the side. Now, as GamesRadar's west coast Staff Writer, I'm responsible for managing the site's western regional executive branch, AKA my apartment, and writing about whatever horror game I'm too afraid to finish.