Sony Interactive Entertainment recently revealed that the Steam version of HELLDIVERS 2 will soon require all their players to use a PlayStation Network (PSN) account.
Sony Interactive Entertainment released this information via Steam. If you are interested in new games, you can check out our other articles here.
Helldivers 2 Will Soon Require All Steam Players to Use PSN Accounts
The requirement for PlayStation Network (PSN) had already appeared when HELLDIVERS 2 released in February 2024, but after its unexpected initial success led to ongoing technical issues, it was temporarily removed.
Now, a recent message from Sony Interactive Entertainment on the HELLDIVERS 2 Steam page confirms that the requirement will return on May 30, 2024 and all players will need to link their Steam and PSN accounts on June 4, 2024.
Below is the official announcement from Sony Interactive Entertainment:
Attention Helldivers,
Due to technical issues at the launch of HELLDIVERS 2, we allowed the requirement of linking a Steam account to a PlayStation Network account to temporarily become optional. That grace period will now end. See the details below in this post.
Account linking plays an important role in protecting our players and upholding the values of safety and security provided in PlayStation and PlayStation Studios games. It is our primary way of protecting players from griefing and abuse by enabling the blocking of players who engage in these types of behaviors. It also allows players who have been banned to appeal.
As such, starting May 6, all new HELLDIVERS 2 players on Steam will be required to connect their Steam account to their PlayStation Network account. Current players on Steam will start seeing a mandatory login from May 30 and be required to connect their Steam and PlayStation Network accounts on June 4. PlayStation Network accounts are free and easy to set up using this link.
We understand that this may be inconvenient for some of you, but it will help us continue to build a community that you are all proud to be a part of.
Thank you so much for your continued support of HELLDIVERS 2!
Sony Interactive Entertainment
HELLDIVERS 2 Bomb Review on Steam Happens
The announcement sparked the ire of PC players on social media, with players threatening to quit the game due to the new mandate, demanding refunds, and flooding HELLDIVERS 2 on Steam with negative review scores.
At the time of this article’s publication, SteamDB notes that there are around 76K negative review scores appearing for HELLDIVERS 2 on Steam.
Some players have also expressed concerns about the security of PSN, given Sony Interactive Entertainment’s track record when it comes to data breaches. Some are now wondering what happens to HELLDIVERS 2 players on Steam who live in countries that don’t have PSN.
HELLDIVERS 2 Players from China Blocked?
Interestingly, an X account called @Helldiversmedia pointed out that some HELLDIVERS 2 players in China had been banned after trying to link their Steam accounts to PSN using a VPN.
Director of research & insights at Niko Partners, Daniel Ahmad, also added that Steam players in China will have to use Hong Kong or other countries’ PSN accounts as Chinese accounts will not work.
“It shouldn’t be this complicated for unsupported countries. So hopefully they announce a solution or cancellation before May 6,” Ahmad wrote on X.
Ahmad also gave his opinion on the drama surrounding HELLDIVERS 2:
- This is not so that Sony can increase its PSN numbers.
- It doesn’t matter if the Steam page says this is going to be a thing, no one reads that stuff.
The problem, as small as it is, is that this was not put in place at launch. That’s why some people reacted negatively and it’s not surprising that some people reacted that way. Regardless of whether you think it’s excessive or not.
As per the first post, linking third-party accounts at launch is not unusual. Many games do this. The only reason for the spike in negative reviews is because we’re already a few months after launch.
Either Sony/Arrowhead were blinded by the reaction or they went ahead with it anyway knowing that they would get this reaction. Having said that, I am saying that I think they should have approached the first upload differently.
Daniel Ahmad, Director of Research & Insights at Niko Partners
Arrowhead Game Studios CEO Apologizes
Hours after the announcement of the controversy, Arrowhead Game Studios CEO, Johan Pilestedt, has revealed that anyone with questions can contact Sony Interactive Entertainment through the PlayStation page link he provided.
Interestingly, some people found a change in the PlayStation page, where the use of PSN accounts by players on PC that was previously written as “optional” changed to “required for some games”.
HELLDIVERS 2, whose negative reviews have drastically increased on Steam, also made Pilstedt apologize: “Ouch, that’s right on the review score. Well, I guess it was deserved.”
“Sorry everyone for this incident. I hope we will make up for it and regain trust by delivering a great gaming experience. I just want to make great games!” Pilestedt wrote.
