Helldivers 2 gets a player surge as Major Order threatens to add Anti-Tank Mines

During the weekend from Aug. 3 to Aug. 4, Helldivers 2 hit its highest 24-hour player count peak in the past few weeks as players fight against the addition of a new Stratagem.

The current Major Order tasks Helldivers with eliminating 1.5 billion enemies to conduct an “Efficiency Review of currently available Mine Strategems.” If players don’t reach the target number, Super Earth begins the production of Anti-Tank Mines. This order caused Helldivers 2 to peak at 38,663 players on Aug. 4, according to SteamDB, as players do whatever it takes to avoid these mines being added.

This isn’t the first time Helldivers chose not to push against the Anti-Tank Mines. Back in April, players had a choice between the MD-17 Anti-Tank Mines and the RL-77 Airburst Rocket Launcher, where the launcher was a clear winner. A few months later, Helldivers selflessly chose to save the children of Vernen Wells over securing Anti-Tank Mines on Marfark. This act of true patriotism was even celebrated by Arrowhead Game Studios which donated to a kid’s charity.

Now the Anti-Tank Mines are back, threatening to join the list of available Stratagems on the Super Destroyer once again. At the time of writing, the required kill count passed the 700 million mark, and with only a little over a day left until the Major Order expires, it’s time to rally and prove to yourself you don’t need those Anti-Tank Mines. “Gather all your friends who have ever had an account. We can’t fail this major order,” a Reddit post wrote on Aug. 4.

The end of the Major Order might overlap with the Escalation of Freedom update release on Aug. 6, which means reinforcements in the form of returning players might give the kill count a last-minute boost.