Helldivers 2, the latest multiplayer praised title from Arrowhead Game Studios and Sony Interactive Entertainment, is stirring up a storm among its PC player base. Following its unexpected hit status on Steam, the game is now under siege by a flurry of bad reviews from gamers. The core issue? Now, every PC player has to link his Steam account to a PlayStation Network account to play Helldivers 2.
Starting from May 6, any new players to Helldivers 2 will need to attach both these accounts with each other. For existing players, the deadline is June 4 and if you don’t do that, you’re derived out of the game. This change was stated in a Steam post last Thursday night, explaining that the move was initially optional due to “technical issues at launch” but that the grace period is ending.
The post described, “Due to technical issues at the launch of Helldivers 2, we allowed the linking requirements for Steam accounts to a PlayStation Network account to be temporarily optional. That grace period will now expire,”
The justification given for this enforced linking is for security and maintaining a safe environment, according to the developers. The connection with a PlayStation Network account is crucial for combating griefing and abuse, as it enables them to ban disruptive players while also providing a pathway for banned players to appeal.
The article continued, “Account linking plays a critical role in protecting our players and upholding the values of safety and security provided on PlayStation and PlayStation Studios games. This is our main way to protect players from griefing and abuse by enabling the banning of players that engage in that type of behavior. It also allows those players that have been banned the right to appeal.”
However, PC players aren’t buying it. Helldivers 2 has thrived on this platform, and many see this change as an unnecessary hassle that complicates their gaming experience. The backlash was swift and sharp, with Steam reviews quickly turning sour and social media platforms like X echoing the discontent. A standout review even quipped that “the automatons have taken over Sony Headquarters.”
In response to the uproar, Johan Pilestedt, CEO of Arrowhead, directed players to the PlayStation Support page for further inquiries. Yet, there’s no indication from the company whether they will reconsider this controversial policy. So, being a true fan of Helldivers 2 like me, the only thing you can do is to run the game as much as possible and destroy Devastators, and Annihilator Tanks, and blast out the Bille Titans with SG-225 Breaker or Railgun. You will not be able to join these robotic battlefields after this time limit until you can link Steam with a PlayStation account.