=== FINAL REVIEW UPDATE? ===

The game is good. It's repetitive, but still very good if this particular game play loop is your thing.

The content additions have slowed to a more reasonable rate and there is enough content now that new players will have plenty to unlock. Sadly, some of the most recent ship modules are stupidly expensive without providing corresponding value, but it's easy enough to leave those for last.

As for the past drama, Sony is still a bad guy having not completely put the big middle finger they gave gamers back in their pocket. Valve, after sitting back and watching Sony screw Steam customers, realized what a foolish move that was and changed their tune...and gamers have mostly forgotten. It's almost as if it never happened.

In the end, it's a good game, and if you can get it on sale, even better...but there's no reason to wait since there are few games that offer as much enjoyment as this game for the price. If you are hesitant to buy the game because of Sony or Valve, do it to support the devs - they definitely deserve it.

=== THINGS HAVE MOSTLY RETURNED TO NORMAL ===

Aaaaaand my review returns to positive.

The community came together and sent a crystal clear message to Sony - don't try to unilaterally change the terms of the contract that we already agreed to and is already in force or we're out...full stop.

It took until the game reached a "recent reviews" rating level of "Overwhelmingly Negative" (and many players completely abandoning the game, which they had been playing daily since release), but Sony finally capitulated and has agreed to continue honoring (and offering to new players) the original agreement that was made with so many of us when we purchased the game - no PSN account required, no PSN account linking required.

Maybe Sony has learned that interfering in any way with the spread of Democracy is gaming treason, and will be dealt with accordingly.

Helldivers to your hellpods...

=== PREVIOUS, BUT NOT ORIGINAL, REVIEW ===

I am, sadly, changing my review from positive to negative. SONY has decided to change the terms of the original contract we, as customers, agreed to when purchasing this game upon, or shortly after, release. And, although we can't return the game now that we've played for more than 2 hours SONY is allowed to unilaterally change the terms of the original contract and we have no choice but to agree to the new terms or stop playing and eat the purchase cost. The main gist of the change is that all players must now have or create a PSN account and link it to their Steam account. However, my change of review status is not about having to create yet *another* account just to play a game. This is about SONY unilaterally changing the terms of the contract after the sale is complete and the contract is in force. Not only did they change the terms of the contract, but the new terms mean that many people who purchased the game will no longer be able to play the game at all because they don't live in locations that can create a PSN account from PC - even if they are willing to do so...THE ONLY WORK AROUND is to buy a PS5 console! Can you imagine telling your customers that in order to continue playing a game they already purchased and have been playing is now to spend hundreds of dollars on a piece of hardware solely for the purpose of creating a PSN account?!?!? Adding insult to injury Steam won't allow returns for those of us with over 2 hours of play time, despite SONY's unscrupulous actions.

Both SONY and Steam are the bad guys is this situation. SONY for their actions, and Steam for aiding and abetting this breach of contract by not allowing its customers to get a refund for having terms they never agreed to, and might not have ever agreed to, forced upon them after the sale, with the only two options being to acquiesce or eat the purchase cost and stop playing the game entirely - and that's if the first option is even available to some players.

SONY was never a good guy. Valve, if they ever were, certainly isn't in this situation. Even if Valve changes their mind at this point, many gamers will remember that another company chose to screw Valve's own Steam customers on the Steam platform and Valve's first impulse was to help that company get away with it.

UPDATE: Steam is now allowing returns for those with game play time over 2 hours apparently. I'm not sure if it applies to all regions or just regions that are locked out of making a PSN account without a console. Either way, it's an improvement on Steam's part.

=== ORIGINAL REVIEW ===

Things have improved dramatically in the last few days. I am now very comfortable wholeheartedly recommending this game for the current price ($40 US). While connecting can still be an issue on occasion, the major connection problems plaguing the game earlier seem to be gone and most (but not all) of the major game stopping bugs have been eliminated. With the rapid pace of updates and repairs the dev team is making I have little doubt this game will be in ship shape and Bristol fashion in no time at all.

The game can be repetitive, but if the game play loop is your kind of thing there are few games that do it as well as Helldivers 2. Suit up, grab your gun, bring in the cat, and hop into a hellpod, Helldiver - Democracy needs you!

=== FINAL REVIEW UPDATE? === The game is good. It's repetitive, but still very good if this particular game play loop is your thing. The content additions have slowed to a more reasonable rate and there is enough content now that new players will have plenty to unlock. Sadly, some of the most recent ship modules are stupidly expensive without providing corresponding value, but it's easy enough to leave those for last. As for the past drama, Sony is still a bad guy having not completely put the big middle finger they gave gamers back in their pocket. Valve, after sitting back and watching Sony screw Steam customers, realized what a foolish move that was and changed their tune...and gamers have mostly forgotten. It's almost as if it never happened. In the end, it's a good game, and if you can get it on sale, even better...but there's no reason to wait since there are few games that offer as much enjoyment as this game for the price. If you are hesitant to buy the game because of Sony or Valve, do it to support the devs - they definitely deserve it. === THINGS HAVE MOSTLY RETURNED TO NORMAL === Aaaaaand my review returns to positive. The community came together and sent a crystal clear message to Sony - don't try to unilaterally change the terms of the contract that we already agreed to and is already in force or we're out...full stop. It took until the game reached a "recent reviews" rating level of "Overwhelmingly Negative" (and many players completely abandoning the game, which they had been playing daily since release), but Sony finally capitulated and has agreed to continue honoring (and offering to new players) the original agreement that was made with so many of us when we purchased the game - no PSN account required, no PSN account linking required. Maybe Sony has learned that interfering in any way with the spread of Democracy is gaming treason, and will be dealt with accordingly. Helldivers to your hellpods... === PREVIOUS, BUT NOT ORIGINAL, REVIEW === I am, sadly, changing my review from positive to negative. SONY has decided to change the terms of the original contract we, as customers, agreed to when purchasing this game upon, or shortly after, release. And, although we can't return the game now that we've played for more than 2 hours SONY is allowed to unilaterally change the terms of the original contract and we have no choice but to agree to the new terms or stop playing and eat the purchase cost. The main gist of the change is that all players must now have or create a PSN account and link it to their Steam account. However, my change of review status is not about having to create yet *another* account just to play a game. This is about SONY unilaterally changing the terms of the contract after the sale is complete and the contract is in force. Not only did they change the terms of the contract, but the new terms mean that many people who purchased the game will no longer be able to play the game at all because they don't live in locations that can create a PSN account from PC - even if they are willing to do so...THE ONLY WORK AROUND is to buy a PS5 console! Can you imagine telling your customers that in order to continue playing a game they already purchased and have been playing is now to spend hundreds of dollars on a piece of hardware solely for the purpose of creating a PSN account?!?!? Adding insult to injury Steam won't allow returns for those of us with over 2 hours of play time, despite SONY's unscrupulous actions. Both SONY and Steam are the bad guys is this situation. SONY for their actions, and Steam for aiding and abetting this breach of contract by not allowing its customers to get a refund for having terms they never agreed to, and might not have ever agreed to, forced upon them after the sale, with the only two options being to acquiesce or eat the purchase cost and stop playing the game entirely - and that's if the first option is even available to some players. SONY was never a good guy. Valve, if they ever were, certainly isn't in this situation. Even if Valve changes their mind at this point, many gamers will remember that another company chose to screw Valve's own Steam customers on the Steam platform and Valve's first impulse was to help that company get away with it. UPDATE: Steam is now allowing returns for those with game play time over 2 hours apparently. I'm not sure if it applies to all regions or just regions that are locked out of making a PSN account without a console. Either way, it's an improvement on Steam's part. === ORIGINAL REVIEW === Things have improved dramatically in the last few days. I am now very comfortable wholeheartedly recommending this game for the current price ($40 US). While connecting can still be an issue on occasion, the major connection problems plaguing the game earlier seem to be gone and most (but not all) of the major game stopping bugs have been eliminated. With the rapid pace of updates and repairs the dev team is making I have little doubt this game will be in ship shape and Bristol fashion in no time at all. The game can be repetitive, but if the game play loop is your kind of thing there are few games that do it as well as Helldivers 2. Suit up, grab your gun, bring in the cat, and hop into a hellpod, Helldiver - Democracy needs you!