Helldiver Review
Developer Arrowhead Games
Publisher Sony
Platform PS4 (PS3 & Vita)
Release Date March 2015
HellDivers Review By Dan Sheehan
HellDivers is a top-down shooter that supports four player Co-Op, it takes the generic (often overused) story of mankind versus aliens/robots/insects and adds very little to the formula. Despite this it is very enjoyable outing as you go blasting your way through exhilarating alien worlds to bring peace to the universe through superior firepower.
The game is best enjoyed when teaming up with other players. It’s a multiplayer twin stick shooter which pits you and your fellow soldiers against three other races in an interstellar war. Players are given the choice of which foe to wage war against: the creepy bugs; the super technological illuminate, or the cyborgs. The game’s human leadership are nearly always spouting some form of propaganda about the enemies of humanity which reminded me a lot of the movie Starship Troopers.
The super Earth government calls the Cyborg Species “terrorists who resort to using suicide bombers”, but at the same time they have no problem with waging a war for little more than gaining possession of the precious resources (such as oil) to maintain “our way of life”. Helldivers is in no way trying to be a serious commentary on war. Instead it takes a more tongue in cheek approach.
Helldivers is a persistent online universe where battles are won or lost even if you don’t take any part in them. The war theater is viewed from a console on your ship and is split into three areas that are in turn broken into many smaller areas. These smaller areas are claimable once enough community points have been earned. Points are earned by completing missions on the planets available. Once all the smaller areas are under human control the final battle on your enemies homeworld can begin.
The ultimate goal is to conquer all three homeworlds and once that is achieved it all begins again. It is unfortunate that the missions themselves feel very unoriginal and get repetitive quite quickly. Most of the mission require you to either activate a device, capture and hold an area or the ever annoying escort mission. Completing missions does give you a variety of awards thankfully. Levelling up will unlock new weapons and equipment to be used in your campaign.
The game excels in making players work together in online play and is also brilliant in how deeply strategical it can require players to be. Teamwork has never been more vital in a game before. The excitement derived from playing as part of a four man team that all need each other to survive will mostly overshadow the more dull parts of the game.
Combat within the game is very organic. Players can use stealth, haste, go all guns blazing or carefully pick their targets to complete their missions. Helldivers is an easy game to pick up but a difficult one to master.
Overall: While Helldivers is by no means the most beautiful looking of games it easily makes up for this shortcoming by delivering such a large variety of challenges to gamers in an action filled setting. If you are a fan of intense action and brilliant multiplayer then you wont be disappointed with Helldivers.
Score: 4/5
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