One of the preeminent joys of Helldivers 2 is dispensing managed democracy with a hail of bullets, but sending as much liberty as possible downrange may not always be the best strategy. The four-player co-op shooter is quite reactive to player input, with the Galactic War constantly evolving according to the player base’s combined efforts at liberating planets. This reactivity extends to individual missions as well, and wanton engagements, especially on higher difficulty settings, can quickly result in needlessly being overwhelmed and being forced to expend Reinforcements.
Each mission’s map – both in-game and when selecting a drop point – helpfully highlights locations of concentrated enemies with shaded red portions. These indicate where the squad can find Terminid Nests or Automaton Fabricators of varying size, and destroying them is an optional objective in nearly every mission. Outside these hot zones, however, enemy patrols wander the map, and while Helldivers have explicit orders to win the war by any means necessary, choosing a more measured approach to these patrols can be a game-changer.
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Fighting Patrols Summons More Enemies In Helldivers 2
Although it’s a feature that may not be immediately obvious, the stealth mechanics and enemy awareness systems in Helldivers 2 are fairly sophisticated. Often, avoiding a patrol can be the best course of action, as they’re liable to call more enemies for aid. This manifests as a Bug Breach when fighting the Terminids, and a Bot Dropship against the Automatons. Especially on higher difficulties, dealing with a Breach or a Dropship can take time, and the noise caused by the battle my only attract another patrol, which can then trigger a subsequent Breach or Dropship. Resorting to stealth while traveling between objectives – easiest with a coordinated squad – will save players from not only wasting Reinforcements, but other Stratagems as well.
Eliminate Patrols Quickly If You’re Forced To Fight
While deftly avoiding patrols altogether is the easiest way to stay alive and keep the mission objective-focused, it’s not always possible. Even if players are spotted, or they come across a patrol that can’t be bypassed, acting quickly may avoid a drawn-out firefight – although, again, it will likely require team coordination. If a patrol is killed fast enough, they won’t summon a Bug Breach or Bot Dropship, but the window of opportunity is incredibly small. If a patrol is caught unaware, each member of the squad can begin firing in unison, but it might take a little more luck if the patrol has already spotted the Helldivers.
While at first it seems like Breaches and Dropships getting triggered is random, they’re actually being called in by a specific enemy. Keen Helldivers 2 players may notice that a single bug will lift its head and spew an orange mist, or a single robot will send a flashing red beacon into the air. Essentially, once this animation has begun, it’s only a matter of seconds before a Breach or Dropship is on the way. It is typically the smallest enemies of each faction responsible for calling reinforcements – Terminid Scavengers, and Automaton Troopers, Raiders, and Marauders (these three differ based on the firearms they carry, but are all the default Automaton foot soldier character model).
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It seems that once the orange mist – which looks vaguely like the spores coming from Bug Holes – or the flashing red beacon is actually in the air, it’s too late, reinforcements have been summoned. It’s possible, however, to kill the offending bug or bot in the preparation of this animation; the Terminids rear up to raise their head, while the Automatons gather the flashing red beacon in front of their torsos. Good reaction time may mean the difference between wiping a patrol and getting swarmed by enemies, but remaining diligent and stealthily avoiding patrols is still the safest course of action for keeping Reinforcements until they’re needed most.
Destroying Outposts Reduces Enemy Numbers In Helldivers 2
While seemingly near the bottom of the mission objective hierarchy, Outposts appear to contribute greatly towards enemy density throughout the map. Nearly every Helldivers 2 mission (very low-level difficulties and shorter-duration missions excluded) has Primary Objectives, Secondary Objectives, and an unspecified number of Outposts. Only the Primary Objectives are required to be completed for extraction, but players will be leaving a lot of XP and Requisition on the table by not being thorough. Marching into enemy Outposts may seem counterintuitive to the stealthy advice given above, but smartly destroying them can help ease the seemingly constant flow of enemies.
Outposts come in three sizes – light, medium, and heavy – and can be cleared by destroying Bug Holes or Automaton Fabricators. The most straightforward method is to throw grenades into the Bug Holes or through one of the two vents on top of a Fabricator, but any explosive will work. An orbital strike, for instance, can clear an entire Outpost if it destroys all the necessary targets, and this is usually the smartest strategy: using Stratagems from a safe distance before the Outpost is aware of the squad’s presence before moving in to clean up the leftover enemies. Heavy Outposts are likely to draw the attention of nearby patrols as well, so subsequent Breaches or Dropships will have to be taken care of.
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Successfully destroying Ouposts, however, seems to have a direct impact on the density of enemies throughout the map. After an Outpost has been cleared, patrols appear to be significantly reduced in the surrounding area, which may make completing Primary or Secondary Objectives much easier. Although difficult for the medium and heavy varieties, it is possible to clear Outposts stealthily – crouch-walking or crawling into position and throwing a couple of well-placed grenades may let Helldivers get out of harms way before reinforcements arrive.
Helldivers 2 has gained a lot of immediate success because of its bombastic gameplay, but a more cautious approach may be the difference between success and failure. Getting caught in endless swarms of enemies is sure to drain Reinforcements, but smartly avoiding patrols – or eliminating them quickly – and seeking out enemy Outposts can stymie the constant firefights. Although seemingly at odds with the tremendous amount of firepower available in Helldivers 2, stealth and resisting the urge to fire at every enemy is often the best strategy for succeeding at higher difficulty missions.
Helldivers 2
Helldivers II is the follow-up to the 2015 multiplayer top-down single-player/co-op shooter from Arrowhead Game Studios. The sequel, which has shifted gears to a third-person shooter format, drops players into the boots of elite super-soldiers who fight to protect Super Earth from invading alien forces while taking the fight to those who threaten the “democracy of Super Earth.”
- Franchise
- Helldivers
- Platform(s)
- PlayStation 5 , Microsoft Windows
- Released
- February 8, 2024
- Developer(s)
- Arrowhead Game Studios AB
- Publisher(s)
- PlayStation Studios
- Genre(s)
- Action , Sci-Fi , Third-Person Shooter
- ESRB
- M
- Prequel(s)
- Helldivers
