The ongoing Galactic War has been fascinating to not only watch unfold in Helldivers 2 but also participate in. Each major order allows players to absorb themselves in the narrative, however loose and uninvolved it may be for the most part, and the degree of immersion in Helldivers 2 is palpable when players are alongside their avatar and their squadmates at any given moment. So much of that experience is aboard players’ ships, even, and while ships are virtually identical to one another it can be neat knowing Helldivers are all collaborating in the fight for managed democracy together.
The ship is a hub where players purchase upgrades, prepare their preferred loadout, and select their next mission in Helldivers 2. It’s the players themselves that need to feel open to engaging with one another to make that camaraderie gripping, such as when players stand by a hellpod with an interactive emote active and wait for someone else to come complete the emote with them. Great moments like these can be abundant when players aren’t bombarded by bots or bugs, but one monument of leisure and play aboard many ships hasn’t been touched since release: the Stratagem Hero cabinet.
Helldivers 2’s Stratagem Hero Made for a Fun Super Citizen Bonus
Stratagem Hero is the same ephemeral distraction from the war effort that it always was and there’s a beauty in that. Included as a goodie for anyone who’s purchased the Super Citizen edition of Helldivers 2, Stratagem Hero is an arcade machine players can find aboard their ship and competitively tests players’ knowledge of stratagem command inputs they employ in gameplay.
It’s an interesting commentary to consider that Helldivers enjoy practicing swift command inputs they’ll later use when dropping nukes such as Orbital 380MM HE Barrages and Eagle 500KG Bombs on hordes of bots and bugs, but it’s also a fun way for players to see whether they’re skilled in the memorization and muscle memory that go a long way in any hectic scenario. Otherwise, Stratagem Hero is largely an afterthought and that’s clear regarding how the machine sits in an awkward corner and many players will have likely forgotten it’s even there after they played it at launch.
Matchmaking into missions is so quick now anyway that players are never stranded on the ship and there’s no practical reason to be that far back on the ship besides upgrading Helldivers 2’s ship modules, purchasing stratagems, or changing the ship’s name. Plus, nobody seems to stop by Stratagem Hero before the next mission after triumphantly returning from a victorious declaration of liberty anymore.
Helldivers 2 Needs to Decide What It Wants to Do with Stratagem Hero
If Arrowhead doesn’t make changes to Stratagem Hero or the ship at large, there will never be a reasonable excuse for anyone to hop on the cabinet besides players who are new to Helldivers 2 and may not have seen it yet. The ship in general could take advantage of additional personalizations and customizations, but Stratagem Hero sticks out like a sore thumb now.
Aside from bragging rights on Super Earth, there aren’t any rewards players can receive from Stratagem Hero and that’s one improvement that could easily be made toward it.
If high scores offered requisition slips, for instance, there might be an incentive to give the arcade mini-game a go once in a while. Super credits might be unrealistic to expect as Stratagem Hero rewards, though. Either way, some sort of incentive is necessary, be it a new arcade mini-game mode or a new cabinet entirely, so that it’s not sitting there for players to question whether it was worth buying the Super Citizen edition for.
Helldivers 2
- Released
- February 8, 2024
WHERE TO PLAY
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.
URGENT BROADCAST – SUPER EARTH ARMED FORCES
Freedom. Peace. Democracy. Your Super Earth-born rights. The key pillars of our civilization. Of our very existence. But the war rages on. And everything is once again under threat.
Join the greatest military force the galaxy has ever seen and make this a safe and free place to live.
BECOME A LEGEND
You will be assembled into squads of up to four Helldivers and assigned strategic missions. Watch each other’s back – friendly fire is an unfortunate certainty of war, but victory without teamwork is impossible.
LOADOUTS
Rain down freedom from above, sneak through enemy territory, or grit your teeth and charge head-first into the jaws of combat. How you deliver liberty is your choice; you’ll have access to a wide array of explosive firepower, life-saving armor and battle-changing stratagems… the jewel in every Helldiver’s arsenal.
REQUISITION
Super Earth recognises your hard work with valuable Requisition. Use it to access different rewards that benefit you, your squad, your destroyer ship and our overall war effort.
THREATS
Everything on every planet wants you dead. That’s what we’re dealing with. Each enemy has distinct and unpredictable characteristics, tactics, and behavior – but they all fight ferociously and without fear or morality.
THE GALACTIC WAR
Capturing enemy planets, defending against invasions, and completing missions will contribute to our overall effort. This war will be won or lost depending on the actions of everyone involved.
We stand together, or we fall apart.
- ESRB
- Mature 17+ / Blood and Gore, Intense Violence, In-Game Purchases, Users Interact
- Developer(s)
- Arrowhead Game Studios, Nixxes
- Publisher(s)
- Sony Interactive Entertainment, PlayStation Publishing
- Multiplayer
- Online Co-Op
- Franchise
- Helldivers
- Number of Players
- 1-4 players (online)
- Platform(s)
- PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X, Xbox Series S, PC
- Genre(s)
- Third-Person Shooter, Extraction Shooter, Action, Science Fiction
- Metascore
- 83
- Platforms That Support Crossplay
- PC & PS5
