Arrowhead reveals a special plan for Helldivers 3

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Summary

  • Arrowhead Game Studios has confirmed that they will grow Helldivers 2 into Helldivers 3 over time.

  • Helldivers 2 may get important features like eight-player co-op in the future.

  • The outdated game engine powering Helldivers 2 could also be swapped out for a newer engine, although it's unclear if this is technically possible.

Arrowhead Game Studios has revealed that they plan to take a rather unconventional approach to Helldivers 3. The studio has seen tremendous success with Helldivers 2and it seems the multiplayer co-op shooter's sequel will build on those foundations quite literally.

Helldivers 2 became an unexpected live-service phenomenon when it launched earlier this year. The game's incredibly fun co-op gameplay loop and satirical lore compelled millions of players across PS5 and PC to jump in, and the hype was so huge that Helldivers 2 passed the milestone of 12 million sold in just four months. There was a little hiccup though, sort of Helldivers 2s PSN account linking controversy on Steam and the controversial balance changes in the August 2024 Escalation of Freedom update. These thankfully went back, and after the latest Omens of Tyranny update, Helldivers 2 tough on pretty well.

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Now that Omens of Tyranny has introduced the Illuminate enemy faction, not much is known about what fans can expect from Helldivers 2 2025 and beyond. However, a recent tweet from Arrowhead COO Johan Pilestedt confirms that the studio wants to bin the usual sequel format by “growing Helldivers 2 to Helldivers 3.” This was part of a response to a fan's comment about potential features for a hypothetical Helldivers 3such as eight-player co-op and swimming. While Pilestedt dismissed the possibility of swimming in Miscellaneous universe, he strangely didn't do the same for eight-player co-op.

Arrowhead plans to evolve Helldivers 2 into Helldivers 3 through continuous updates

Pilestedt's cheeky evasion may hint that Arrowhead plans to ramp up Helldivers 2s co-op squad size in the future. Beyond eight-player co-op, however, the confirmation that Arrowhead is expanding Helldivers 2s scope until it resembles a sequel is significant. It not only reinforces the perception that Arrowhead is fully committed to Helldivers 2but also opens up the possibility of the game getting major grassroots changes. Case in point, Helldivers 2 powered by an outdated game engine called Autodesk Stingray, which was discontinued in 2018.

Switching to a newer, more commonly used game engine may be one of Arrowhead's top considerations, as it will help streamline support pipelines for Helldivers 2 and let the studio take on more developers. The prospects aren't that unfathomable, either Fortnite moved to Unreal Engine 5 from Unreal Engine 4 in late 2022. However, each game engine comes with a unique set of quirks, so only time will tell if an engine shift is even technically possible for Helldivers 2.

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