Helldivers 2 recent reviews are Mostly Negative on PC after PlayStation account change

The popular sci-fi third-person shooter Helldivers 2 has recently found itself in a bit of a pickle after revealing that PC players will need to create and link a PlayStation account to continue playing the title. For owners on Steam (or rather PC in general), this is nothing short of sacrilegious as the game already features DRM in the form of Valve's digital storefront.

This new revelation has angered the fanbase, leading to mass review bombing on Steam leading to a Mostly Negative final result. So what really led up to this? Here's an overview.

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After a strong start, a mandatory PSN account requirement has left Helldivers 2 fans feeling betrayed

The official statement that kicked off the drama (Image via Sony Interactive Entertainment)

On May 3, 2024 publisher Sony Interactive Entertainment issued the above statement concerning login requirements for Helldivers 2 from this month onwards. Starting May 6, new players will have to connect their PlayStation Network accounts to Steam to be able to continue playing. For players who have been playing the game since its release, the grace period is May 30, 2024 instead.

All in all, the PSN requirement is mandatory now, especially as the company revealed that the optional linking in the past was due to technical issues during the launch. Considering there is no reason for PC (or rather non-PlayStation) owners to have a PSN account, fan anger is well justified.

Even though Sony claims that a PSN account is free and easy to set up, only 69 countries have official access to the PlayStation Network. So if Helldivers 2 players are in countries where they are unable to legally create an account, they will be locked out of the game. It is bizarre how the publishers did not consider this. What isn't acceptable, however, is the review bombing.

It's not looking good (Image via Steam)

Over 130,000 new reviews in the past few days have been negative. This has dropped the Very Positive rating for Helldivers 2 to Mixed as of writing this article. Key staff, ranging from community managers to the CEO of developer Arrowhead Game Studios himself, have stepped in to soothe the firestorm that has been blazing for the past couple of days.

The backlash has been so huge that the official Helldivers Discord blew up with fans venting their frustration - to which mods have been open about the fact that it was PlayStation responsible for this move and not the development team. CEO Johan Pilestedt also apologized to fans, citing that he "just want(s) to make great games!"

An official statement from Sony Interactive Entertainment about the fate of unsupported regions and, more importantly, the further viability of this decision is still pending. Stay tuned for more updates.

Update (May 6, 2024): PlayStation has reversed the mandatory PSN requirement for Helldivers 2. The game will function as it did in the months following its release, with a PSN login being optional, even after May 30, 2024.