Arrowhead Game Studios has been hyping up its big upcoming patch with promises of buffs to countless Helldivers 2 weapons and gadgets, but the developer has also promised that at least one annoying bot enemy is getting nerfed.
Rocket Devastators are the hulking Automatons that have, well, rocket launchers mounted on each shoulder, ready to fling Super Earth squads across the game's small maps. Their only weak points are their tiny heads and rocket shoulders, making a one-on-one fight with them hellish since you can't really flank them on your lonesome.
Leading up to Helldivers 2's September 17 update, game director Johan Pilestedt and design director Niklas Malmborg have been teasing small changes to the game in a series of short videos. Today, they announced that the pesky Rocket Launchers are having their shoulder blasters nerfed.
- Helldivers 2 update makes the shooter a "little bit harder, but hopefully in a fun way" as Automatons get smarter and weapons get buffed to help deal with them
- Helldivers 2's Fallout-grade Ultimatum mini nuke has been nerfed, but maintains its "core identity as a powerhouse" because the devs are "huge fans of big booms booming big"
"The Rocket Devastators, they [now] have limited ammo," Malmborg explained. "When they fire a rocket you'll see one go away. I think they can only fire three bursts or something. Then they need to reload because they have an extra pack. They can reload once."
Maybe they just run up to us with bare, steely fists once they're spent, but I'm sure botdivers everywhere are elated.
Rocket Devastators now has a limited number of rockets, and you can see them disappear when they are spent. A reload mechanic is added from their backpack to replenish the rockets.In addition, the rocket physics collision is now smaller, making them easier to avoid. #BuffDivers pic.twitter.com/exOD3D5rTHSeptember 13, 2024
Not only do Rocket Devastators have less ammo, the collision of rocket is also being reduced by 80%. Similar nerfs are also affecting Gunship, so all you need to do is wait for them to empty their clip before they become basically defenceless.
Pilestedt puts it simply at the end of the clip, where he thinks deeply about a hypothetical scenario. "I'm hiding behind a rock," he says seriously. "They blow their load all over me, and then I can move out of cover... That'll be a bit of a walk of shame, but I think it'll be nice." Perfect strategy.
Arrowhead also announced that the Breaker shotgun, the Railgun, and the Flamethrower are all receiving buffs too.
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