After facing controversy with PlayStation Network, Helldivers 2 has been removed from Steam in 177 countries.
On May 3, 2024, Arrowhead, the developers of Helldivers 2, announced that starting immediately, all new players on Steam will be mandated to link their account to a PlayStation Network account. This precautionary measure aims to combat disruptive behavior, such as “griefing”and “abuse,”within the game.
In addition, current players will also be required to link their game to an active PlayStation Network account by June 5 in order to access the Sony-published game, causing frustration among players.
It has been observed by many that PSN is currently limited to only 70 countries, which may result in players being unable to access the game. This could potentially lead to a significant amount of anger and negative reviews on Steam.
Despite receiving hundreds of thousands of negative reviews, Helldivers 2 was removed from Steam on May 5 in 177 countries, primarily in regions where PlayStation Network is not accessible to users.
Helldivers 2 is no longer purchasable in 177 countries where PSN is not available (but some are still available like Baltics).This game has now received 215,000 negative reviews. pic.twitter.com/jJrb9QFafR
— SteamDB (@SteamDB) May 5, 2024
Ever since the initial announcement, players had their suspicions that the sudden changes were not the work of the developers, Arrowhead. And it seems their intuition was correct, as confirmed by the game’s community manager, Spitz.
“According to him, our development teams have expressed mostly negative feedback and we are in search for superior alternatives.”
Despite the immense criticism towards Sony’s imposed changes, the community remains optimistic that the decision will be reversed once the game receives a flood of negative reviews.
Fortunately, Steam has decided to allow players to receive a refund for the game, even if they have played for more than the usual two-hour limit.
Sony’s PlayStation has also apparently changed their stance. The Publisher confirmed that the scheduled May 6 update for Helldivers 2 will not be happening, and Steam users will now be able to play without having to create a PSN account.
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