In Helldivers 2's clearest 'are we the baddies' moment yet, players can remove safety systems protecting the community's favorite character just to buff Stratagems

It might not be very democratic to say it, but it's always been pretty obvious that Helldivers 2's prosperous planet of Super Earth might not be the kindest place in the universe. From the game's in-universe propaganda, the denial of information like the existence of flying bugs, and the fact that Helldivers are treated so poorly, the signs have always been there – just don't tell them I said that. 

While the question of whether or not we're actually the bad guys has already come up plenty of times before within the fanbase, patriotic Helldivers are usually pretty quick to shut it down. However, a recent discovery is making it very difficult for even the most loyal to turn a blind eye, as Super Earth is now endangering the community's favorite character, Eagle-1. 

If you were unfamiliar, Eagle-1 is the pilot NPC who delivers sweet liberty in the form of the Eagle Stratagems. While we don't see her in the game, she has some pretty great voice lines when she's called in to drop airstrikes and bombs on the bugs and bots, and she's become an icon within the fanbase. Unfortunately for her, we got a number of new Ship Module upgrades earlier this week, and one of them – the XXL Weapons Bay – serves to expand the Eagle weapons bay and allow the Eagle Stratagems to drop extra bombs… by "removing unnecessary systems" like airbags and the ability to eject.  

Concerned Eagle-1 defenders on Reddit were quick to ask, "Why is Super Earth so mean to best girl?" Others are now adamant that it's "not worth making her suffer for just a single bomb," while one says that they "feel bad for unlocking this" given the consequences. 

Why is Super Earth so mean to best girl? from r/Helldivers

You claim to love her but then also turn her workplace into a coffin from r/Helldivers

However, devoted, democracy-loving Helldivers have a slightly more optimistic outlook on the matter – perhaps "she's too good to be shot down" in the first place. One suggests: "Eagle-1 is so good at her job and so proficient at flying in active combat zones that she went to the Ministry of Defense and begged them to remove those useless systems so that better and bigger weapons could be added on for more efficient spreading of democracy."

For Eagle-1's sake, we'll just have to hope that that's true. The latest Ship Module upgrades are incredibly expensive, demanding an eye-watering amount of samples to unlock, so some players might need to save up a bit first, anyway.

Be sure to check out our guide to everything you can unlock in Helldivers 2's new Democratic Detonation Warbond, too.