The Helldivers movie is set to premiere on November 10, 2027, and will have Jason Momoa starring in a currently undisclosed role per Deadline. While what that role might entail is anyone’s guess, it’s safe to assume that he’s going to be a part of Super Earth’s army and probably tearing through Automatons, Cyborgs, and Terminids alike.

The announcement could not have come at a better time for Helldivers 2 fans, as it is hot on the heels of the new Cyberstan update which brings new meaty gameplay to the co-op shooter. You can likely expect references to the game’s expansive lore to feature in the film’s runtime in some capacity, and perhaps even some interesting twists on previously established lore.

While the film is still a long time away, we’re optimistic that Hutch Parker (Logan, X-Men: Days of Future Past), PlayStation Productions’ Asad Qizilbash, and Perfect Storm’s Justin Lin (of Fast and Furious fame) being producers is a sign of good things to come.

“Hey everyone! I am gonna do a sabbatical for a while,” announced Pilestedt. “I know a lot of you are going to think “por qué?” – well, while you have enjoyed [Helldivers 2] for almost a year, I have been living it since early 2016, and with [Helldivers] – its since 2013.”

Pilestedt goes on to talk about how he would like to take a sabbatical in order to refresh himself and reconnect with his family and friends. He does mention that Helldivers 2 will continue to get supported throughout his sabbatical by Arrowhead Game Studios, however.

“11 years of working “around the clock” on the same IP has made me set aside family, friends and my lovely wife… and myself,” posted Pilestedt. “I am going to take some time now to redeem what was lost from all of those that supported me for over a decade.”

Shortly after the announcement, Pilestedt revealed that he is kicking off his sabbatical by hosting a game jam alongside senior developers and founders of Arrowhead Game Studios. Unfortunately, the game itself didn’t turn out so well, with Pilestedt stating that the journey is sometimes the goal in itself.

Pilestedt has stated that, once he returns from his sabbatical, he will begin work on the next major title by Arrowhead Game Studios.

Earlier this month, Pilestedt had announced that he had already begun work on a high concept for the next game that would be developed by the studio. He took to social media to ask fans what they would like the next game to be, with many responding with their own ideas set in the Helldivers universe.

When it comes to Helldivers 2, recently, the game got an update that aimed to fix crashes and jittering that would happen when players would use ADS while having a scope attached to their weapons. The update also brought with it fixes to other issues, like one with the STA-X3 W.A.S.P. Launcher’s targeting, and the rate of players getting disconnected while hopping into Illuminate missions.

For more details about Helldivers 2, check out our review from back when it came out last year. Also check out the announcement of a Helldivers movie.

Hey everyone!

I am gonna do a sabbatical for a while!

I know a lot of you are going to think “por qué?” – well, while you have enjoyed @helldivers2 for almost a year, I have been living it since early 2016, and with @HelldiversGame – its since 2013.

11 years of working “around…

— Pilestedt (@Pilestedt) January 27, 2025

And to kick this sabbatical off, we start with a game jam with the most senior devs/founders of @ArrowheadGS.#WellRested? 🫠 pic.twitter.com/9X0nDObF5n

— Pilestedt (@Pilestedt) January 27, 2025

Haha yeah, and the one we made… wasn’t that great 🤣

Sometimes, you’ve just got to reconnect with yourself and your bros. The journey is sometimes the goal.

— Pilestedt (@Pilestedt) January 27, 2025

As out of left field as the announcement may initially seem, it makes perfect sense given the success of Arrowhead’s Helldivers 2. Launched in February 2024, it became the fastest-selling title of all time for PlayStation, crossing 15 million players in November. It would subsequently become one of the top-selling games of 2024 on Steam.

Helldivers 2 has received numerous updates in December, the latest adding the Illuminate and a collaboration with Killzone. The latter met with backlash over its pricing, prompting Arrowhead to distribute the second half of its content for free. Stay tuned for more details on the movie in the future.

Helldivers will now become a movie from Sony Pictures. pic.twitter.com/9EGe3xFtd8

— Geoff Keighley (@geoffkeighley) January 7, 2025

The studio behind Helldivers, Arrowhead Game Studios, is known for its work on games with top-down perspectives, such as Magicka, Gauntlet, and yes, Helldivers.

While the studio has been pretty quiet, back in 2020, it had stated that it was working on a new triple-A game featuring “innovative co-op”, and “agency for the community to alter the course of the game”.

The description is quite similar to the Galactic Campaign mode from the original Helldivers, which involved players conquering planets, gaining influence, and eventually fighting against the main antagonists.

Arrowhead Game Studio has also stated that it was in the process of expanding its staff, which likely helped in the development of this unnamed game.

Helldivers is currently available on PC, PS3, PS4, and PlayStation Vita.

https://twitter.com/DoodMarvelous/status/1560301711507472395?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1560301711507472395%7Ctwgr%5E16f6b79482256d2ec6c2717ae02c92b9e496a2ae%7Ctwcon%5Es1_&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.pcgamer.com%2Fhelldivers-2-is-definitely-real-and-probably-announcing-soon%2F

Steam is celebrating the Chinese New Year with its own special sale. Ending on February 11th at 10 AM PST, the Steam Lunar New Year Sale sees a number of high-profile titles discounted. This includes games like Hitman 2 (37 percent off), Assassin’s Creed Odyssey (50 percent off), and much more.

Titles from Chinese developers have been discounted and featured, which is a good way to provide exposure to lesser known games like ICEY (31 percent off). Games with local co-op are also part of the sale. If you’ve wanted to pick up A Hat in Time (45 percent off),  Helldivers (45 percent off), or For The King (50 percent off), now’s your chance.

If that weren’t enough, a limited time event called the Rewards Booth is also on-going. Open the Red Envelope provided by Steam, and you’ll receive Tokens that can be redeemed for a unique badge, backgrounds, and chat emoticons. A discount for purchases above a certain amount is also provided. The Rewards Booth will end at 10 AM PST on February 12th.

GamingBolt spoke to Arrowhead Game Studios VP of development Patrick Lasota, whose studio worked on Helldivers for the PS3, PS4 and PlayStation Vita, about his take on the console. Arrowhead recently released a PS4 Pro patch for Helldivers so it knows a thing or two about taking advantage of the console’s power.

"I think it’s a nice option for those that really want to do 4K gaming or want a higher framerate."

The PS4 Pro patch isn’t out yet. Is there a specific reason behind the delay?

The PS4 Pro patch was released on October 26^th, though we patched the game a couple of times after that to catch the few issues we found.

What visual modes can we expect with the PS4 Pro version? Will the 4K rendering be native, checkerboard rendering or something else?

The game uses checkerboard rendering to achieve 4k resolution.

Did you ever think of leveraging the PS4 Pro’s additional memory to improve on gameplay aspects, like say the AI? In that case how will you balance PS4 players against Pro players?

No, our game runs on the Vita, PS3 and PS4 already with cross play between all three. Segmenting off the PS4 Pro players with their own gameplay wouldn’t make any sense for the game or the community.

What are your thoughts on the overall future of the PS4 Pro and the trend of souped up refreshes for existing hardware, case in point Project Scorpio?

I think it’s a nice option for those that really want to do 4K gaming or want a higher framerate. It was not enough for me personally to warrant an upgrade of my PS4, but I like that the option is there.

"It took us very little time to get the game running on PS4 Pro in 4k."

The system architect of PS4 Pro, Mark Cerny, converting A Base PS4 Game to PS4 Pro Version Is Just 0.2 Or 0.3% of The Overall Effort. How true is this in the case of Helldivers?

I’d say that the minimum effort is probably even less counting the work hours involved compared to the work hours put into making the game. We did a bit more than that and yet it took us very little time to get the game running on PS4 Pro in 4k.

As someone who has worked exclusively on PS4 for a while, what kind of differences are you finding between the Pro and the base PS4? Is the Pro powerful enough to render games at native 4K?

I’m sure it is if one takes it into consideration from the beginning. I’m not an engineer so my best guess isn’t worth much though.

To close off this short interview, what are you working on next?

We have brought the studio together to one big team and are working on something new. Unfortunately I have to give you the boring staple answer of not being able to comment further. Rest assured however, it will be even more awesome that anything we have done so far.

The PS4 Pro is a pioneering system, in that it is the first instance of an iterative, souped up model of an existing console on the market – something that is actually pretty common in the handheld, smartphone, and PC markets. But all of its trailblazing wouldn’t amount to anything much if developers weren’t on board with the system.

Thankfully, that shouldn’t be much of a problem- according to Mark Cerny, system architect of the PS4 and the PS4 Pro, converting a PS4 game to a PS4 Pro game takes just 0.2%-0.3% of overall development effort, meaning developers have very little incentive not to support Sony’s new console.

So when we at GamingBolt had the chance to talk to Patrik Lasota, the VP of development at Arrowheads, the team behind the excellent Helldivers, we decided to ask him how true his team have found this claim to be in their experience- particularly since they have enhanced Helldivers for the PS4 Pro.

“I’d say that the minimum effort is probably even less [than 0.2-0.3% of the overall effort], counting the work hours involved compared to the work hours put into making the game,” Lasota said. “We did a bit more than that and yet it took us very little time to get the game running on PS4 Pro in 4K.”

This is certainly excellent news, especially coming as it does from a relatively smaller development team- if the PS4 Pro is indeed that easy to develop for, then Mark Cerny is right, and we shouldn’t see any shortage of (hopefully) meaningful content for the platform.

We also asked Lasota for his own personal opinion on the PS4 Pro. His reply? He likes that the option exists, although he also admits that it doesn’t seem to have much appeal for him personally. “I think it’s a nice option for those that really want to do 4K gaming or want a higher framerate. It was not enough for me personally to warrant an upgrade of my PS4, but I like that the option is there,” he said.

Which is ultimately fine, and it represents the guiding philosophy behind the PS4 Pro- it exists, and it’s there for those who want to have the best possible console gaming experience that they can have. For those who don’t feel like springing up the extra money for it, however, they can always go with the base PS4 system, and they will not be missing anything.

PS Plus’s offerings for the month of February appear to have been leaked slightly ahead of time, at least for the PS4; according to a Reddit user (also verified by VideoGamer), Sony have mistakenly put up February’s PS Plus offerings under the PS Plus tab on the PS4 early, leaking the games that will be offered in the process.

And what are these games? Well, once again, they are nothing special, though it’s a minor step up from the horridly abysmal showings the service has had in the last couple of months. PS4 players can expect to get Helldivers, which is an excellent co-op title, as well as something called Nom No Galaxy, which I can admit to having absolutely no idea about.

The offerings for the PS3 and PS Vita are as of right now unknown, but they have to be better than this.

My PS Plus runs out next month; I’m really thinking of letting it lapse.

Arrowhead’s isometric co-op shooter Helldivers will be receiving a free update soon and while there haven’t been many details revealed, there is a new teaser trailer to hype players up. Check it out above and see if you can find some of the new additions to gameplay. The update, titled “Turning up the Heat” will be coming to the PS3, PS4 and Vita soon.

If you haven’t heard of Helldivers, then just imagine Starship Troopers mixed with some good ol’ fashioned over the top shooting. Along with a variety of weapons and an overwhelming number of enemies, you’ll be able to call in supply drops – after entering specific directional codes though because no one wants this to be too easy – for turrents, bombs and more. Be careful where you aim though since you can kill team members very easily with friendly fire.

What are your thoughts on the upcoming update for Helldivers? Let us know in the comments.

The titular Helldivers corps is basically played as the Marines of “Super-Earth”, which is at a constant three front war with different alien races. The radical nationalistic “Team Super-Earth, Galactic Police” angle is never really explored enough to make a point, or ridiculed enough to properly take the piss. Story is never really the point, though the ridiculous one liners spouted by the Helldivers can still be entertaining.

" The game is meant to be played with friends in an up to four man squad, and this expectation is apparent throughout the design. "

Onlookers might easily mistake Helldivers for a dual stick shooter, but playing the game like that is a recipe for disaster. A Helldiver needs to be very deliberate in his or her movements, taking aim and firing off rounds with precision to make each shot of the limited ammo count. Helldivers is unapologetically a tactical shooter, like a Rainbow Six game crossbred with Killzone Liberation on PSP.

If you were familiar with the name of the developer, it was probably because of the Magika series. Helldivers shares its friendly fire mechanic with the former, though it is in service of the tactical game style it strives for. The game is meant to be played with friends in an up to four man squad, and this expectation is apparent throughout the design. Solo players are given a free life for each completed objective, but a group is encouraged to watch out for each other and can replenish consumables and revive fallen companions, among other things.

The technologically advanced Illuminates, weapon heavy cyborgs and swarming bugs each bring different strategies to the table themselves, and call to mind the famous Starcraft races as one of the many inspirations the game has. Though their environments differ ascetically, and the separate species require different tactics of the player, they all follow the basic mission structure.

" Once the community triumphs in one war, another starts right away. Helldivers is a very cyclical game of war, and war never changes. "

The most interesting, and most annoying, part of Helldivers is the campaign structure. In real time, every active player takes part in the ongoing war. After choosing a front to contribute to, you or your team is dropped into a selection of planets, all with with differing objectives and difficulties. Late in any particular war though, when you’re on the last front or two, you can find yourself stuck on fighting a foe you’ve gotten bored of, or on a homeworld and doing missions way over your head.

The war is advanced through the community at large completing missions and gaining enough influence over a sector, thus advancing the front. It’s an interesting concept in massively multiplayer gaming, but personally it never gave me a strong investment or payoff. I felt like a player in something larger than myself, but it was never personally rewarding. There is a level up system that unlocks further equipment, but that only goes so far.

Once you’ve made landfall and have your boots on the ground, missions follow a general structure. Capture this point. Activate something at this point. Destroy this thing at this point. Occasionally, escort this thing from one point to another. These missions don’t vary much in more than name and they all feel more or less the same. Once the community triumphs in one war, another starts right away. Helldivers is a very cyclical game of war, and war never changes.

"The game is so tied into the multiplayer, that going solo can feel rather lonely. "

It’s the clearest message that Helldivers is intended to be a multiplayer game, staying as out of the way as it can for a group of buddies to make their own tales of glory of when their squad barely escaped that mission the one time, rewarding co-operative play in ways that few games manage these days.

So inclined, squad members can alter their loadouts to fill specific roles in a co-op shooter fashion, or everybody can do their own thing. Helldivers can call down rechargeable “strategems” to support themselves and their team, including resupplies, turrets and heavier guns, or even carpet bombings. Missions go more smoothly with co-operation, and everything can easily go fubar without communication.

Music is non-existent and visuals aren’t all that notable to begin with, so a single player jaunt through a mission could easily be used as a sleep aid. It’s also far easier to get cornered or overwhelmed as a single player.

"The persistent connection requirement leaves the Vita version of the game feeling like a general afterthought, "

Being so intimately tied to online brings problems of its own too. The persistent connection requirement leaves the Vita version of the game feeling like a general afterthought, even in the way it controls. The touchpad is hardly a replacement for the other shoulder buttons as usual and the simple fact that without PSN connectivity the game is nearly useless suggests the port was more of a “why not” than a thought out inclusion.

Helldivers knows everything it wants to be, and doesn’t care if that doesn’t please you. Super Earth is pretty clear that is doesn’t just want you though, it wants you to be with friends. Solo gamers aren’t going to find a lot to sink into here, but fall in with some friends in a squad, get through boot camp and you’ll have some laughs…maggots.

This game was reviewed on the PlayStation 4.