Save human children, obliterate bug babies: Helldivers 2 sure loves to play with its fanbase

Hours after the heroic rescue of orphans from Vernen Wells by the Hell Divers, Super Earth command celebrated with two minutes of rest followed by the next order. While the incredibly sick children prepare for military service, Helldivers 2 players are tasked with killing Terminid orphans—using large drills.

Marked on the Galactic War map as a “Failed” Major Order, Helldivers 2‘s Rescue Orphans vs. MD-17 Anti-Tank Mine Major Order—colloquially known as “Operation Trolley Problem”—tilted majorly in the direction of the orphans. Players didn’t receive a reward from Super Earth outside of a message saying the Anti-Tank Mine stratagem‘s production would have to be delayed until later. This caused players no end of confusion, with Reddit posts cropping up asking what the “reward” was for saving the children. Many Divers think that—should they have saved Marfark as well—medals and a more tangible reward may have gotten handed out.

A new Major Order quickly cropped up after the unfortunate Trolley Problem ended. Operation Hive Breaker is tasking Helldivers 2 players with using a new Hive Breaker Drill to decimate Terminid hives filled with larvae. Whether or not this Major Order was activated in response to the community choosing the less obviously rewarding planet to save, Divers everywhere couldn’t help but notice the troubling trend between saving very sick children and what we’re now doing with massive drills.

“I see no possible negative ramifications from drilling into their hives. None whatsoever,” one Diver posted on Reddit in response to the announcement. Some Divers are interested in what these massive drills into bug planets could mean. One such Diver suggested that “Hive lords” might sprout from those large pits to defend their quickly dying children.

As perhaps expected for a bug-centric front, this Major Order is progressing significantly more smoothly than Trolley Problem’s bot front. We’ve now taken two of the planets requested in the order: Estanu and Crimsica. Fori Prime, Nivel 43, and the infamous Hellmire remain firmly in Terminid control. Thankfully, there are no reports of any negative consequences of using the Hive Breaker Drills on these planets. And don’t worry. Even during times when Hell Divers are working as a community to stop the bugs from spreading, someone has the time to make a meme about how some Divers are “taking a detour.” If anything, Divers are consistent.

We’re keeping a close eye on these Hive Breaker Drills to make sure they do the job this time and keep the bugs from spreading. But don’t be caught off-guard if this ends up backfiring on us. Just like the pesticides.