When did Helldivers 2 release?

Helldivers 2 is a sequel to the 2015 Helldivers title, which was developed and published by Arrowhead Game Studios and Sony, respectively. It shock the franchise up in a big way, shifting things from third to first-person in the shooter.

As of 2024, Helldivers 2 is also available for purchase across multiple platforms after releasing near the start of the calendar year.

Here’s exactly when players first got their hands on Helldivers 2.

When did Helldivers 2 release?

Helldivers 2 officially launched on Feb. 8, 2024, on PlayStation 5 and PC via Steam. This release date was first revealed to the community on Sept. 14, 2023, in a PlayStation blog. It was available for preorder on both platforms for less than five months for roughly $40 USD. There was no price change when Helldivers 2 went live either.

The base cost for the title is surprisingly good, considering how many titles in the third-person shooter category, like Red Dead Redemption 2, The Last of Us Part 1, and Watchdogs 2, are typically priced at $60 USD or higher. However, if you want to get the Super Citizen status, which you can’t get via achievements or by playing, you’ll need to purchase the Super Citizen edition bundle—buying that will run you around $60 USD. Helldivers 2 is pretty reasonably priced compared to others in the same category.

Since launch, however, the title’s had several issues, including gamebreaking bugs, mission malfunctions, and even fan-favorite weapons causing the game to crash, which no player wants, especially given this isn’t a free-to-play title. The Arrowhead Game devs are addressing these bugs and issues in every patch, but it seems like new ones pop up in almost every update, so playing can sometimes be frustrating.

The most frustrating development since the launch of Helldivers 2 is the PlayStation-to-Steam account linking issue, which led to millions of players losing access and prevented some unlucky players from accessing Helldivers 2 in non-PSN countries. Given the backlash, this mandatory linking requirement was eventually dropped by Sony.

Since its launch on Feb. 8, Helldivers 2 has experienced its ups and downs. Hopefully, as the devs continue to improve the title, it will become an even better game.