Recent reviews by bigscaryalien

Already a really good and fun successor to the first Unrailed!

I think the bot could use some improvements as it sometimes has weird behaviour.

Also, personally I really don't like the sand worm boss. I kind of get the idea, but I think it is more frustrating rather than challenging:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1sBiKLLSNlI

But keep up the good work!
I am looking forward to future updates!

The game is okay and pretty fun, but with the recent change of events and the developers attitude towards the community I cannot really recommend this game.

What I think could be better or is wrong with the game:

• Too much focus on balance in a PvE game:
  Developers keep "balancing" the game by nerfing/adjusting fun weapons/stratagems/equipment because their vision of this game. Instead of focusing on what could make lesser picked weapons more enjoyable.
  It goes something like this: weapon A is the only reliable choice for dealing with enemies > the majority of players use A > developers see this and nerf weapon A > now weapon B is the only reliable weapons and the loop continues until all weapons feel garbage and unenjoyable to use.
  
• A PSN account is required
  Personally I don't have a problem with creating a PSN account, but I think it is a backhanded move to make it a requirement a few months after launch. Especially when the game is being sold in regions where PlayStation does not allow users to create a PSN account. And the developers response is something like: "just make an account it's not that hard bro".
  
• Stratagems debuffs
  The developers want players to actively use their stratagems instead of weapons, hence why the nerf all weapons that are "too effective". But compared to the Original Helldivers stratagem cooldown is a lot longer. On harder difficulties where you are supposed to rely on stratagems debufffs are applied that can further increase the cooldown, increase call in time ( e.g. time it takes for the artillery to strike), makes stratagems less accurate, or simply give you one less stratagem slot. This feels counterintuitive to the main selling point of the game: special soldiers clearing a missions against all odds using their specialized equipment and stratagems.
  
• Crashes
  The game is built on an old discontinued engine and the back-end is not built to handle the amount of players the game currently has. On top of that, things like: crashes, disconnects, and not receiving rewards are quite frequent. These are sometimes fixed/patched but then other game breaking problems are introduced. e.g. the arc thrower causing a CTD for everyone in the lobby. These problems then take 1-2 weeks to get fixed. In the mean time? Just don't use your arc thrower man
  
• Stealth Changes
  When there are balancing changes most of the changes are listed, but not all of them... During gameplay all of a sudden you realize things like: enemies being able to "headshot" you causing you to almost instantly die, or the stamina no longer regenerating when jumping with the jetpack. These changes should be properly announced in changelog and not found out during gameplay or requiring you to join their discord to see what the community is saying/speculating.
  
• (Mixed) 3d person view
  The original helldivers has a top down camera angle and forced all players to remain on the screen. This promotes teamwork and helps players identify threats that need teamwork. Helldivers 2 has switched to a 3d person camera which is more pleasant. paired with players being able to go wherever they want it, helldivers 2 is suited for a broader audience then it's predecessor. However, this also significantly impacts the teamwork aspect of the game. Players just going wherever they want and not sticking together. Players no longer being able to see threats the team needs to deal with e.g. 1 person could be dealing with a bile titan without the rest of team realizing before it is there. These things combined also cause most assisted reload weapons to be less effective as you cannot see when a teammate needs a reload. This in turn causes solo oriented weapons to be more favorable resulting in a further decrease of teamwork. Of course playing with friends let's you coordinate better, but playing with randoms is just a mess where most of the time everyone is doing whatever.

I think the destruction is pretty cool and I actually like that the TTK is longer than in most games. The length of the matches also feels just right.
However I do not like the Skill based matchimaking.
It was a lot of fun when i played in beta, but now that they've added skill based matchmaking I can no longer casually enjoy most matches. After you have played for some hours you'll start to notice every match becomes more and more sweaty. Why add skill based matchmaking when there is a ranked mode. Als most fights are just getting killed by a third party.

Also the battlepass isn't really that interesting, especially if you don't buy the premium pass. The skins/outfits you can buy are cooler in my opinion but they cost too much money to justify purchasing.

As soon as you get out of the tutorial the AI feels unbalanced. I have around the same or higher combat rating as the enemy, but my mechs struggle to take down 1 enemy mech within 5 turns. My shots are blocked by terrain, shots missing when standing still and using optimal range. Meanwhile the enemy is running and gunning and connecting 80% of their shots, sometimes killing my mech within 2-3 turns. Also the AI spams missles which feel too strong.

Enjoyed dying to vehicles most of the time.

Not really worth it right now, wait untill they fix/balance some stuff.
Pros:
- I like how the ghosts can fight back
- The props with active abilities are nice
- when you're dead as a ghost you can still use support abilities

cons:
- Hunters just shoot every prop they see in a room where they detect a ghost
- Hunters ping a ghost, this ping stays on the ghost when its running. This makes it basically a wallhack so it becomes almost impossible to escape
- Hunters can just change gear whenever they want. Teammate Dead? just get the defib and switch back. Low health? just get infinite medkits and switch back.
- Hunters move at the same speed as the ghost or faster (with the sprint perk). The hunters can just kite ghosts in the midnight phase.
- pub stomping by alpha/beta testers
- Peer to Peer connection.
- A lot of bad ping matches
- Hosts leaving causing the entire lobby to be disbanded

If you like the aliens franchise and horde shooters you'll probably enjoy this. The game Could use some more content though, think: Maps/Campaigns, variety within campaigns/maps. Some Improvements to the matchmaking andcommunication with teammates would also be nice.
Good:
- Atmosphere, fits in the alien universe
- 5 distinct classes who all have unique abilities and play differently from eachother
- Many different weapons to try
- Each campaign has it's own distinctive location and feels different from the other ones
- Class perks allow for further customization to your playstyle/role
- Smart gun is now a default weapon for the first time in alien games
- Horde mode is also challenging and fun

Okay:
- Replayability, after 1 or 2 playthroughs I can see how it get's a bit boring for some people
- Modifiers to spice up your playthrough
- Only 3 player coop, though I can see why they made this choice with cramped areas.
- Performance, it's usually stable (50-60 fps) but it could be improved (GTX 970)
- Bots can hold their own on the default difficulty
- Bots can only play the gunner class

Could be better:
- No VOIP or in game chat
- Ping system only has 1 ping option, it could be better like apex for example
- Matchmaking can sometimes be a bit diffuclt (no lobby browser, lobbies have a countdown timer)

The game is fun and has some unique ideas but I would recommend waiting untill it's either on sale or they fixed/improved some features.

Good:
- Gamplay is fast
- Art style (graphics, art works, UI)
- Cities look cool
- The expension mechanic is fun
- More ways than just science to progress to the next era/age
- Exploring feels rewarding

Bad:
- The random "events" where you pick A or B sometimes C get old real fast
- You can't really "create" your own culture
- Unless you rush or have a good start, the will AI always claims the same cultures before you. (Nubians, Harappans, Huns, Celts, Mongols)
- Diplomacy and trading is a joke
- Too many notifications to notice important ones
- In city purchases for old tech buildings scale poorly/wierdly
- The narrator gets annoying and repetitive
- Resource distribution over the map is very poor and uneven (both tactical and luxury)
- Neutral factions/citystates can be really annoying
- War support (sounds cool on paper but doesn't really work well)
- Have fun facing huns into mongols every game spamming horse archers
- Enemy (war)cultures just spam demands and increase their war support
- Want to play peacefull? Some random culture across the map takes over a neutral faction/citystate near your border and starts getting angy at you for existing
-Run out of war support because of the above? You are now obliged to surrender, pay a repair fee and even hand over territoy to a culture across the map

Each match is full with sweaters, can't even play/enjoy a casual match.

In my opinion the best map so far. The map/nature looks nice and it's easy to find animals. The map also features a good variety of species, from easy to hunt turkeys and smaller deer to thougher species like the plains Bison and Rocky Mountain Elk. Though I really like this map and recommend you to get this, I have to agree with some of the other reviews. At this time the missions are quite buggy and the map also has some bugs, this may be a deal breaker for some. I'm yet to find a truelly game breaking bug.
Good map, but as of now there are some bugs, if this bothers you i'd you recommend to wait until they fix them.