Helldivers 2 was, at one point, going to be a free-to-play game that would have been “completely” different than what we got in 2024. And this pivot is part of the reason why Helldivers 2 has some nasty performance problems.
When Helldivers 2 launched on PS5 and PC early last year, it quickly became a massive hit for PlayStation and developers Arrowhead. And since then, the sci-fi co-op shooter has remained popular as more updates have expanded the game, adding new weapons, enemies, locations, and more. But in recent months, players have complained about performance issues and technical problems. Arrowhead’s CEO, Shams Jorjani, isn’t shying away from these criticisms and is directly addressing them in the official Helldivers 2 Discord server. And it’s here that he also revealed that at one point in time, Helldivers 2 was a much smaller game that was planned to be free-to-play and not a paid experience.
On September 25, while talking to fans about Helldivers 2 and its ongoing performance issues on console and PC on Discord, Jorjani explained that the shooter had a lot of built-up “tech debt” from various pivots that happened during development.
“[Helldivers 2] started as a AA game,” said the CEO. “[It] then grew in scope, then pivoted to a launch title for PS5, then pivoted to F2P, then back to premium ( I might have the order messed up) – so the goal posts were moved a few times – so the foundations of this big tower were made for a little bungalow on the beach.”
As far as I know, this is the first time it’s been officially confirmed by anyone at Arrowhead publicly that Helldivers 2 was at one point planned to be free-to-play. It’s interesting to think about now, and according to Jorjani, that version of the game would have had a “completely different content pipeline” and would have likely been a very different game compared to what we actually got.
“I wasn’t with Arrowhead back then so I don’t know – but the model was always to give away as much nice stuff for free and monetize other things,” said Jorjani. “It would have been a completely different angle. It [would have] required a completely different content pipeline.”
Making all of these changes and pivots during development led to a lot of tech debt, which the CEO says is a big reason the game’s performance is “so-so.” But they are planning to improve things in the future, with the CEO telling fans in the Discord that improving the game is like cleaning out a garage.
“Tech debt is like a garage filled with stuff you just chucked in,” said the CEO. “We really need to put up shelves in the back to get organized.” This isn’t the first time he’s talked about the game’s tech debt causing issues. Earlier this month, he reiterated that Helldivers 2 wasn’t in a great place and that the team needed to get their “shit in order” and fix it.