Sony's Live Service Strategy May Have Failed, But Helldivers 2 Has Been a Monstrous Hit 1

Helldivers 2 is one of the most played PlayStation games ever made.

Sony’s confirmed in a corporate blog post that the Arrowhead outing has now attracted over 22.9 million players since launching in 2024 – and that number’s accurate prior to its recent addition to PS Plus Extra.

I’d expect the title to comfortably top 25 million players over the coming weeks, as it’s already become one of the most downloaded games on Sony’s subscription.

These numbers are accurate across PS5, PC, and – unusually – Xbox Series X|S. The title has proven popular on all platforms.

As a rare live service success story, the game will also continue to evolve, with a new Warhammer 40k warbond and the addition of a fresh narrative campaign named ‘Devoid of Liberty’ available now.

Sony’s also plotting a movie adaptation of the franchise for release on 10th November, 2027, which is sure to keep the title’s popularity churning.

It’s a reminder that the manufacturer is capable of releasing hit live service games.

Unfortunately, outside of established franchises like Gran Turismo and MLB The Show, it’s the only real live service game that’s worked out for Sony since it aggressively started chasing the business model earlier in the generation.

[source sonyinteractive.com]