Helldivers 2 has received a huge balance update that includes a massive anti-tank and armor penetration overhaul, reworks of several enemies, and big weapon and stratagem balance changes, plus lots more.
Previous Helldivers 2 updates have included balance changes as well, but this one is part of a major initiative on developer Arrowhead's part to address community concerns with the direction the game's balance has been taking recently.
In order to make more weapon choices viable in games of Helldivers 2, weapons like the Autocannon, the Heavy Machine Gun, and the Anti-Materiel Rifle have had their armor damage improved, meaning you don't have to take disposable anti-tank weaponry into every game if you don't want to.
Other changes include reduced armor for Hulks and limited rocket supplies for Devastators and Gunships on the Automaton front, so fighting bots shouldn't be quite as frustrating anymore.
You should also notice "improvements to many primary weapons", which means you won't want to plump for the same old gun on every run now, or at least that's Arrowhead's aim.
Additionally, if you get hit with a headshot now, you should only take 50% extra damage instead of 100%, so you shouldn't just get popped by a random bot shot without realizing what's killed you post-update.
The full list of Helldivers 2 balance changes is quite extensive. You can read this update's patch notes here, and you can see Arrowhead going into detail regarding the decisions it's made for this update in the video below.
That's not all you're getting for the next few months, either. Arrowhead says it's planning to undertake another major balance pass "by day 60 of our commitment" in order to gauge how the community is feeling and make any necessary adjustments.
You can check out Helldivers 2 right now on PC and PlayStation 5, and you can read our review of it here to find out whether it's worth your time or not.
