Helldivers 2: Should you use Unsafe mode on the Railgun?

The Railgun is one of the strongest weapons in Helldivers 2, and you can use it to punch a hole straight through the Automaton armor or the exoskeleton of a Terminid. A notable feature of this weapon is choosing to use it in a safe or unsafe mode.

When you pick the unsafe mode for the Railgun, you deal more damage against your foes in Helldivers 2. There’s a notable downside to this exchange, though, and you want to be careful with it, especially if you’re close to your allies. If you’re not careful when using the Railgun’s unsafe mode, it can mean your death and potentially the death of your other allies in your Helldivers 2 party.

What is Unsafe mode in Helldivers 2?

The difference between the Railgun‘s safe and unsafe modes is how long you can charge it and the amount of damage it can do in Helldivers 2. It’s one of my favorites because it’s the best weapon with armor piercing rounds. When using safe mode, the charge is capped, and you can hold it for as long as you want until you fire it. However, the unsafe mode allows you to continue charging it, but if you hold it for too long the Railgun explodes in your hand, killing yourself and anyone around you.

The payoff is you do more damage when you fire the Railgun at these unsafe levels. The critical thing to do is watch the charging meter on the Railgun before it reaches this unsafe limit and explodes. I know there were times I had forgotten I put it in unsafe mode. I held it down but delayed my shot to try and get a better angle, causing the Railgun to explode and forcing my allies to respawn me. No amount of armor can protect you from it.

How to toggle between safe and unsafe mode on Railgun in Helldivers 2

You toggle between the safe and unsafe mode with the Railgun by holding down the reload button. When you’re playing on mouse and keyboard, this is the R key, and if you’re using a PlayStation controller, it’s the Square button. From there, the option to switch the Railgun’s default safe mode to unsafe mode should appear in Helldivers 2, and you can now swap between the two. You can hit the same buttons and repeat the process at any time.

Should you use Unsafe mode on the Railgun in Helldivers 2?

While the unsafe mode on the Railgun is dangerous, I highly recommend using it in Helldivers 2. You will have to remind yourself it’s in unsafe mode each time you pull the trigger, but if you’re firing off shots to deal heavy damage to enemies, it shouldn’t be too big of a deal.

Essentially, unsafe mode gives you the potential for shots with higher damage, albeit at the risk of instant death, should your charge meter rise too high. Although that may sound like a gamble you’re willing to take, remember that most of Helldivers 2‘s gameplay will throw you into frantic group battles against hundreds of enemies. Keeping an eye on your charge meter will fall by the wayside pretty quickly as you focus on just stemming the tide of bugs or bots. A Helldiver shouldn’t face more danger from their weapon than those of the enemy.

The Unsafe mode can see utility in fighting single enemies, particularly beefy enemies, or as a last-ditch effort, but often just firing the Railgun will be enough to take down Automatons or destroy mission-critical infrastructure. Therefore, most of the time, you should stick with the Safe Mode, as these edge cases will be few and far between.

Super Earth may demand your life, but losing it to a malfunctioning weapon will hardly cement your legacy as a war hero. Stick to using Stratagems and try not to blow yourself up needlessly.