Helldivers 2 patch confirms what must be wretched Automaton sabotage, because none of my weapons are working as intended

Apr. 16, 2024

Snipers, Arcs, Spears, and more are all just a little bit busted

When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.Here’s how it works.

A newHelldivers 2patch is live now, confirming that it’s not just you - a whole bunch of weapons don’t really work as intended.

What catches my eye, however, is not what the developer says it’s fixed, but what it says it’s got its eye on. The ‘Known Issues’ section of the patch notes - issues introduced in this patch or that are still being worked on - suggests that there’s some low-level sabotage going on around Super Earth: an awful lot of weapons and other mechanics aren’t really working as they’re supposed to.

For instance, theSuperior Packing Methodology module doesn’t work properly, which is bad news for peoplewho spent tons of samples on unlocking it. But it gets worse - damage over time (DOT) might only work when it’s applied by the host, meaning any auxiliary Helldivers might not be doing any Bleed or Burn damage. Speaking of Bleed damage, that’s not netting you any points towards your Personal Orders.

Then, there are weapons themselves that are simply not working: weapons like the Sickle can’t shoot through trees, which is very bad news on some planets; scopes on weapons like the Anti-Material Rifle are misaligned, which obviously explains those headshots I’ve missed; Arc weapons can misfire; the Spear’s targeting system is inconsistent, which means that it’s less effective against the big enemies that you’d most want some extra firepower to deal with. The good news is that currently, explosions don’t break your limbs (though the related impact with a nearby rock might), but that’s also up for a fix.

There’s no timeline as to exactly when these known issues will be addressed, so you might want to reconsider your loadout before your next drop. Personally, I’d recommend a trusty Stalwart or Machine Gun - if, as I suspect, this is all a case of Automaton sabotage, then the ‘spray and pray’ strategy seems like a sensible one, regardless of any technical issues.

Helldivers 2 devs are reworking “fire as a whole” after admitting the way it works now is “ridiculous”.

Sign up to the GamesRadar+ Newsletter

Weekly digests, tales from the communities you love, and more

I’m GamesRadar’s news editor, working with the team to deliver breaking news from across the industry. I started my journalistic career while getting my degree in English Literature at the University of Warwick, where I also worked as Games Editor on the student newspaper, The Boar. Since then, I’ve run the news sections at PCGamesN and Kotaku UK, and also regularly contributed to PC Gamer. As you might be able to tell, PC is my platform of choice, so you can regularly find me playing League of Legends or Steam’s latest indie hit.

It’s only taken 3 days for Overwatch’s worst meta to manifest in Marvel Rivals: “Games change. GOATS is inevitable.”

Marvel Rivals celebrates a successful launch, with NetEase Games' Overwatch rival hitting over 10 million players in just 3 days

Todd Howard “rolled his eyes” at the idea of Troy Baker playing Indiana Jones in the Great Circle, but the Bethesda boss later told him “you’re doing a hell of a job”