Helldivers 2 servers buckle as player count continues to explode

Helldivers 2 continues to be a surprise hit for PlayStation, with the game surpassing a veteran studio’s live service title and another studio’s newest IP despite server instability.

2024 has been the year of smaller titles going on miracle runs throughout the industry, with Palworld and Helldivers 2 being perfect examples of that sentiment. While the former has certainly cooled down a bit, the latter is showing no signs of stopping.

Since the game’s arrival, it’s claimed the crown of most played PlayStation title on Steam, previously held by God of War. Its fight for freedom and democracy knows no bounds, as players think it might even end console wars.

However, despite the overwhelming success, the title has been plagued by server instability. That said, it hasn’t stopped Helldivers 2 from continuing its upward trend.

Helldivers 2 reaches incredible player count amid server issues

While an unfortunate situation, server issues aren’t a new topic in the gaming space. However, Helldivers’ conundrum centers on the devs not expecting the game to become as popular as it has. Arrowhead Game Studios originally planned a 250,000 total server capacity but then increased to 360,000 after launch.

Just before the weekend kicked off, social media was ablaze with players mass reporting issues of the servers being at capacity. With nearly 257,000 players on Steam alone, safe to say there was plenty of democratic justice being dished out in the game.

And, while it seems that those who have been able to access the game’s servers haven’t been having too many issues related to servers, getting in is a real challenge with just how many people are trying to play.

However, the story only progresses positively for Arrowhead. As the weekend was underway, Helldivers 2 leapfrogged over Destiny 2 and Starfield’s all-time peak player count with 333,827 players.

Arrowhead’s CEO has mentioned the team is looking to bolster their team given the unprecedented level of success experienced. Hopefully, that helps cure the server capacity issue and spell a bright future for Super Earth.