Helldivers 2 game director says a Chargers rework and an update to fire damage are part of a 60-day update plan: 'What matters most now is action, not talk'

In the wake of yet another blowup amongst the Helldivers 2 community over an unpopular balance patch, game director Mikael Eriksson says Arrowhead «didn't hit our target with the latest update,» and laid out the studio's plan to do a better job with future patches.

The problem is the Escalation of Freedom update released earlier this month, which among many other things nerfed a fan-favorite flamethrower, making it far less effective than it was against Chargers. Arrowhead CEO Shams Jorjani quickly waded into the fray, doing his best to mollify the masses with a brave face; "We need to do better" with future updates, he said after a few days, adding that «just talking about it isn't enough. Actions matter.»

Now we've got an idea as to what sort of actions the studio plans to take. In a message posted on Reddit, Steam, and the Helldivers Discord, Eriksson laid out Arrowhead's goals for the next 60 days:

He also shared a «bigger picture perspective»:

«We’ve spent the last week listening to feedback, reflecting about the path ahead for Helldivers 2 and how we want to continue developing the game,» Eriksson wrote. «In short, we didn’t hit our target with the latest update. Some things we just didn’t get right—and other more fundamental inconsistencies in our approach to game balance and game direction.

»All of that is on us and we are going to own that. As many of you have pointed out, and we agree, what matters most now is action. Not talk."

This isn't the first time the Helldivers 2 community has flipped out over a balance patch, nor is it the first time Arrowhead has tried to chill everyone out about it: In May, for instance, former CEO and current chief creative officer Johan Pilestedt said the studio had "gone too far" in some of its earlier efforts to balance the game, and promised to «talk to the team about the approach to balance.» 

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