This week Arrowhead Game Studios creative director and CCO Johan Pilestedt laid out what he means by “sequel-level features” for Helldivers 2, and none of them involve immediately building a separate Helldivers 3.
Pilestedt said the studio is looking at additions that boost the scope of the Galactic War and the scale of play. He singled out eight-player missions and larger open-world maps where teams might run into one another and take on bigger challenges together. He also mentioned operations that could affect other teams across the war map, the kind of changes that increase stakes without ending support for the current game.
“Eight-player missions would be one of those,” Pilestedt said, and he described the kind of features that “really accentuates the Galactic War and the scale of the conflict that the players are in.” He did not give a timetable for these changes, and he did not confirm any firm plans to add them.
Arrowhead has previously signaled that a full Helldivers 3 is likely years away and that the studio intends to keep expanding Helldivers 2 for as long as players stick with it; more on that position is available in our story on the studio’s roadmap here. Pilestedt also hinted at the idea of a sequel in a public post on X, where he suggested the current game could eventually grow into something approaching a new title.
We are growing Helldivers 2 into Helldivers 3…. so you may be correct. Except maybe swimming – I don't think its possible to swim in a heavy plate carrier with rifle and support weapons.
Also, all our games have had the thing about the protagonist not being able to swim.
— Pilestedt (@Pilestedt) December 23, 2024
Adding eight-player missions and bigger maps would present technical and design work for Arrowhead with more players on a map increases the need for balance, network stability, and encounter design that scales. Pilestedt framed those kinds of upgrades as preferable to abandoning Helldivers 2 for a fresh sequel, if the community wants the game to keep growing, the studio seems open to major, sequel-level expansions.
Follow coverage of Helldivers 2 and Arrowhead’s roadmap on X, Bluesky, YouTube, and Instagram.
Helldivers 2
Developed by Arrowhead Game Studios
The Galaxy’s Last Line of Offence. Enlist in the Helldivers and join the fight for freedom across a hostile galaxy in a fast, frantic, and ferocious third-person shooter.
- Genre: Shooter, Tactical
- Platforms: Xbox Series X|S, PC (Microsoft Windows), PlayStation 5
- Modes: Single player, Multiplayer, Co-operative
- Release: 2024-02-08
- Publisher: Sony Interactive Entertainment
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Age Rating:
PEGI 18 / ACB MA 15+ / GRAC 19+ / USK 16 / CERO Z / CLASS_IND 18 / ESRB M
- IGDB Rating: 82.2/100
