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.

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: [list] [*][b]Too much focus on balance in a PvE game:[/b] 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. [*] [b]A PSN account is required[/b] 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". [*] [b]Stratagems debuffs[/b] 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: [i]special soldiers clearing a missions against all odds using their specialized equipment and stratagems[/i]. [*] [b]Crashes[/b] 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 [*] [b]Stealth Changes[/b] 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. [*] [b](Mixed) 3d person view[/b] 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. [/list]