Helldivers 2 Finally Fulfils My Dream Of Making A Glorious Last Stand With The Boys

We can all agree that facism is stupid, right? Most of us know that putting those in authority before yourself and everything else is merely propaganda that helps maintain the status quo. Some of us may also feel that the armed forces are nothing more than tools to protect those in power. However, when it comes to Helldivers 2, I'll gladly salute to Super Earth while staring death in the face if it means taking out some democracy-threatening bugs or bots along the way.

I don't know where it stems from, but there comes a time when every person feels the need to sacrifice themselves for a cause. Perhaps I'm more indoctrinated than I thought, but scenes like the charge of the Rohirrim at Pelennor Fields, Tony Montana introducing his little friend, and John Marston in Red Dead Redemption struck a chord with me. Yes, those were very specific scenarios which I'll probably never be faced with, but Helldivers 2 allows me to fulfil that dream of putting up a last stand without the downside of actually dying. In fact, I can die as much as I want and still come back for more.

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If you've scrolled through TikTok or Instagram lately, you've likely come across videos of space marines getting absolutely wrecked by giant bugs and knockoff Terminators. Even for high-level players, the Challenging difficulty of Helldivers 2 is no joke. These videos show players getting swarmed and killed, sometimes by the enemy and sometimes by their own incompetence. Things on the Automaton front especially look equally dire, with Helldivers being unable to rescue civilians or even themselves from the march of the machine.

But every so often, you'll find a video of a brave soldier, swarmed by enemies, calling down an Orbital Strike upon their own position and saluting Super Earth as they sacrifice themself and take the swarm with them. A true Citizen of Super Earth. You'll also see PlayStation and PC players calling for the game to be launched on Xbox, so that their bug killing experience from Halo can help turn the tides of war. Helldivers 2 is bringing the gaming community together against a common enemy! If that doesn't make you want to jump into your Hellpod and deliver sweet democracy, nothing will.

There are very few games that can bring us together like this, and it's down to two major factors. Firstly, the unique online component of Helldivers 2, that makes you not only work alongside three other people, but also each and every player that owns the game. The mission briefing board shows you the progress of the war in real-time, giving you a sense of working towards something bigger than any one soldier.

The second factor is the faux-democracy narrative. The reason why nationalism was (and slowly again is becoming) so popular is because people inherently want a sense of belonging and purpose. These needs are manipulated by the powerful and taken advantage of for their own gain. While most of us may be aware of this and may not get swayed by some would-be dictator, we still have those needs. And, perhaps, by ironically playing as loyal citizens of Super Earth, we try to fill that hole to some extent.

Call it a guy thing, a gamer thing, or anything else you want – I'm not putting any labels on it. But I don't think I've ever been so indoctrinated by a game. You may have come across a voice line of your character laughing maniacally as they slaughtered bugs, but what I didn't realise until my party told me, was that I did the same after landing a 24-kill air strike. I delight in killing the Terminids and Automatons and sacrificing myself for the cause, like a good soldier.

Helldivers 2 is also just a good game. The shooting feels great, the ordinances are fun to call down, and each mission feels unique, despite the objective being the same. But, while I hide behind cover and let others do most of the work in other multiplayer shooters, in Helldivers 2 I'm rushing into a bug nest, grenade in hand, ready to lay down my life for democracy.

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There is no better feeling than sacrificing yourself in the name of democracy.