After fan backlash, Sony has canceled a planned update for popular multiplayer game Helldivers 2 that would have required players who purchased the game on PC to link their copy to a PSN account — in case the name didn't clue you in. Usually something people can only have if they play games on a PlayStation console.
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In a post on X (formerly Twitter), the company attributed the change to "feedback" and said it was still "learning what's best for PC gamers."
While PSN (short for PlayStation Network) accounts are free to create and don't require the account holder to actually own a PlayStation console, the proposed update has proven controversial within the Helldivers community, with user reviews on Steam ranging from "mostly positive" to dropped to an "overwhelmingly negative weekend". As of this writing, the game currently has a rating of "Mixed."
If the update is completed, new players will have until May 30th to link their accounts, and existing players will have until June 4th.
Why are people angry about Hellraiser 2 ?
After news of the update broke, Steam stopped purchasing the PC version of Hellraiser 2 in 177 countries/regions because PSN does not operate in these regions. If the update goes live, players in regions where the game has already been purchased will need to bypass Sony's terms of service in order to continue playing.
Affected areas include Jamaica, Bangladesh, Belarus and nearly all of Africa. Even Sony's home country of Japan is affected - the game is available in a "separate package," but users can't purchase a "global version."
"Oh, the ratings are just right," said Johan Pilstedt, CEO of Helldivers 2 developer Arrowhead Game Studios. "Well, I guess that makes sense."
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Pilstedt added another message to his post, saying that Arrowhead is "discussing solutions with PlayStation, specifically for non-PSN countries."
What happens next in Helldiver 2 ?
After learning today that the Hellraiser 2 update would not be moving forward, Pilstedt first expressed his impression of the community's collaborative capabilities, then thanked PlayStation for "making the decision quickly and effectively to keep PSN links optional." ".
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According to Pilstedt, the team knew six months before launch that PSN link would be required at some point , and the decision to make it optional at launch was only temporary.
Unfortunately, Helldivers 2 is still unavailable in the countries where it was removed, but those who have already purchased the game will not lose access to the game. "I'm talking to my partners at Playstation and Valve and pushing for a retraction," Pilstedt told a fan on Discord. "Making the account linking [change] requires a huge amount of effort - but I won't settle for the desire to make it available everywhere."
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