Highlights

  • Arrowhead Game Studios plans to tone down fire damage in Helldivers 2 after an update increased its lethality.
  • Community feedback on the devastating fire effects has been acknowledged, with updates expected to address the issue in parts.
  • Players have found ways to minimize fire damage by diving to extinguish flames quickly, offering a workaround for the lethal fire damage.

Following a recent update that increased the amount of fire damage per tick, Arrowhead Game Studios confirms that it has plans to tone down the devastating effects in Helldivers 2. After a record-setting launch back in February, Helldivers 2 continues to maintain its impressive player numbers thanks in large part to how dynamic the game world feels. With the galactic map and missions constantly changing, Arrowhead Game Studios has managed to support the game through a live service system with consistent patches, quality of life updates, and new content to check out.

However, even some of the best intentions don't always go according to plan. In addition to unforeseen bugs, on occasion, some balance changes become a bit more than what many players expected. Following an early April update for Helldivers 2, which brought a variety of changes including the arrival of Blizzards and Sandstorm hazards, fire damage received what appeared to be a buff by increasing the tick damage by 50% from all sources. However, fans have noticed that since then, fire damage has become lethal, causing almost instantaneous death for any player unlucky enough to catch fire.

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Since the April 2nd update, Helldivers 2 players have felt frustrated by the fire damage, leaving messages across locations like Reddit, Discord, and elsewhere regarding how bad the game feels because of the changes. As it stands, the frustrations and comments have not gone unheard as community manager Thomas ‘Twinbeard’ Petersson provided fans with an update as to what the studio is planning to do in the near future regarding the sudden devastating effects of fire damage.

Arrowhead Game Studio's Fire Plans

As "Twinbeard" indicated on the official Discord channel, the studio is currently working through all aspects of fire including damage over time, damage per second, network related quirks, and everything else related. While there were no concrete details, Petersson theorized that updates would likely be introduced over time in parts. This includes the flamethrower weapon on Helldivers 2's Automaton Hulk enemies, which many fans have called out specifically for being even more deadly than normal. Petersson agreed, thanked fans for their input and reiterated that the studio is looking over everything, so players won't be dying from fire damage in record time.

While players continue to wait for future fire updates, some in the community have discovered ways to minimize the extreme damage that fire can inflict. While many players rely on stims, the animation can sometimes take too long, especially for players who may not be at full health. Instead, Helldivers 2 players find that diving puts out fires much faster than traditional methods, since it can be triggered immediately and doesn't have a long animation window. In addition, some have claimed that diving right before getting shot by a Hulk's Flamethrower can cause it to miss entirely.