Helldivers 2 director says it's fine to play the shooter later if you can't afford it now: "It's worth waiting until the servers can support the capacity"

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Helldivers 2 has struggled with an onslaught of players since launch

Helldivers 2 progression system
(Image credit: Sony)

Helldivers 2 struggling with player capacities is nothing new, but its game director has a refreshingly new take on new players spending their hard-earned money on the game.

On February 20, Helldivers 2 game director and Arrowhead Game Studios CEO Johan Pilestedt responded to a Twitter user writing that they wanted to buy the game, even though they had no money. Pilestedt simply said that if they had no money right now, they should just "get it later," and hold off until the game's servers can support the influx of players. 

Pilestedt doesn't want newcomers spending their hard-earned money on Helldivers 2, only to be barred entry because of server capacity limits. The Arrowhead lead acknowledges that as the studio's CEO, of course, he wants the game to be "as profitable as possible," but still doesn't want players left heartbroken because their money didn't get them access to Helldivers 2.

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Helldivers 2 has been a historic success in a number of ways. It's by far the biggest launch for Arrowhead to date, and it's also overtaken Destiny 2 and Starfield to become the biggest-ever launch for PlayStation Studios or Xbox on Steam. However, this success has come with problems - namely the huge number of players trying to get into the game itself.

Arrowhead recently capped Helldivers 2's server capacities at 450,000 players, and the studio acknowledged that it was "still struggling to keep up" with demand. Some players have even been squatting in the game for hours, and even days to keep their spots on the servers, which has lead players to demand Arrowhead kick AFK Helldivers 2 players after a certain amount of time. 

Helldivers 2 is so popular that it's lead to a resurgence for Starship Troopers, the classic, over-the-top movie skewering fascism and super soldiers. If you're waiting to get into Arrowhead's game, we can't recommend enough giving Paul Verhoeven's movie a watch.

Check out our Helldivers 2 Samples farming guide if you're wondering how to get your hands on as many Samples as quickly as possible. 

Hirun Cryer
Hirun Cryer
Freelance Writer

Hirun Cryer is a freelance reporter and writer with Gamesradar+ based out of U.K. After earning a degree in American History specializing in journalism, cinema, literature, and history, he stepped into the games writing world, with a focus on shooters, indie games, and RPGs, and has since been the recipient of the MCV 30 Under 30 award for 2021. In his spare time he freelances with other outlets around the industry, practices Japanese, and enjoys contemporary manga and anime.