Helldivers 2 dev doesn’t care about Halo or your console wars
You can take your console wars and shove them, that seems to be the no-nonsense feeling of Arrowhead Game Studios CEO Johan Pilestedt. Helldivers 2 is a game on the go, and as we try and restore democracy to the galaxy, all eyes are on the bug-blasting shooter.
Seeing a band of expendable grunts trying to take out an alien menace is a pretty generic storyline for any game, but that hasn't stopped players from pulling comparisons between Helldivers 2 and the long-running Halo series. It's an easy comparison to make, but Pilestedt isn't having it.
Helldivers 2 CEO tells you to stop making Halo comparisons
While Halo is a console-exclusive for Microsoft and was once the poster boy of Xbox, Helldivers 2 is PS5 and PC-exclusive, being a major win for the Blue Team in 2024. As Helldivers 2 toppled the Xbox console-exclusive Palworld from the top of Steam, those tired arguments of console wars are again rearing their head.
When someone took to Twitter and created a meme of Helldivers 2 being superior to Halo, it caught Pilestedt's attention. Responding to the tweet, the Arrowhead CEO said, "Why compare? Just let gamers love and enjoy both, either or neither. We need more compassion and union in the world, and less rivalry."
Even though the OP was fighting Helldivers 2's corner, Pilestedt is keen to shut down in-fighting and wants you to enjoy games for what they are. It's refreshing that the Helldivers 2 overlord isn't fuelling these fires because we're sure there are plenty of devs who'd bask in the competition.
Someone else said that a bit of "friendly rivalry" is healthy, with Pilestedt responding, "Indeed. Also in business. Neither monopoly or cut-throat competition makes the world a better place." Still, whatever comes next from Halo would be wise to take a leaf out of Helldivers 2's book.
We're worried for Halo
Click to enlargeUnfortunately, Pilestedt has inadvertently drawn attention to the failures of Halo and how the series is pretty stagnant right now. It's fair to say that Halo Infinite wasn't the franchise reset that 343 Industries was hoping for, and with seasons now being swapped out for 'Operations', there's not much life left in the old gal.
Responding to Pilestedt, one Halo critic wrote, "You are awesome Piles, but Halo still got DECIMATED by Helldivers," while another added, "I hope we can get halo collab with Helldivers if it comes to Xbox or before than. I really wanna rock some odst armor with halo weapons."
We'd be lying if we didn't say we were a little concerned for Halo right now. The long-rumoured Project Tatanka battle royale has reportedly been canned, Matthew "FormaL" Piper has called it "dead," and two years after Infinite proved it might not be as 'infinite' as we hoped, there's no news about where the franchise goes next.
