Summary
One of the biggest recent trends in gaming, the live-service model has simultaneously been associated with some of the best games in recent memory, and some of the worst. In theory, a live-service game should offer the ideal gaming experience, promising fans a never-ending experience that’s often completely free to play. However, in practice,many live-service games will often failto deliver on this core premise, with many publishers/developers instead using the model as more of a facade to hide half-baked content that they plan to fix post-launch.Helldivers 2, thankfully, is a far cry from that.
Released back in February,Helldivers 2has managed to make quite a name for itself over the last few months, apparently selling over 8 million copies so far across both PS5 and PC. Though it’s still early doors forHelldivers 2, and there’s plenty of time for it to all go suddenly downhill, right now it’s the perfect example of a live-service game done right. IfCivilization 7was ever going to model itself after a live-service game,Helldivers 2is the ideal choice.
Civilization 7 Could Make Great Use of Helldivers 2’s Live-Service Strategy
Helldivers 2 Is The Perfect Example of Live-Service Done Right
One of the biggest things that setsHelldivers 2apart from the live-service games that came before it is its launch-day state. On release day,Helldivers 2had a fairly impressive amount of content. Two unique enemy factions with plenty of distinct unit types, and a slew of unlockable Stratagems, weapons, and equipment all came together to makeHelldivers 2feel like the complete package on launch, especially when the game retailed for just $40. To unlock everything inHelldivers 2’s base game, players would have to spend at least 50 hours blasting awayTerminids and Automatonsand it’s debatable whether that’s worth a reduced price point or not.
But as a live-service game,Helldivers 2promises an ever-evolving ecosphere, and that’s exactly what it’s delivered over the last few months. Set in a satirical Sci-Fi universe in which players take on the role of soldiers spreading “democracy” throughout the galaxy,Helldivers 2’s core gameplay and narrative looprevolves around its live-service component, with players capturing planets in real-time by performing missions together. As the game’s live-service story has continued to play out over the last few months,Helldivers 2has been continually updated with new weapons, Stratagems, and enemy types in a consistent stream that’s kept players coming back week after week.
On top of that,Helldivers 2offers a genuinely great version of a battle pass. Called Premium Warbonds, these battle passes give players access to new weapons, armor, and equipment.
While these can drastically improve a player’s arsenal,Helldivers 2’s strict focus on PvE gameplay keeps it from being pay-to-win, and the ability to earn the in-game currency needed to purchase Warbonds by simply finding caches littered throughout a mission makes them even more impressive. All ofHelldivers 2’s Premium Warbondsalso remain available forever, meaning that there’s no fear of missing out.
How Civilization 7 Could Use Helldivers 2’s Live-Service Model
TheCivilizationfranchise has always dabbled with big DLC expansions, andCivilization 6tripled down on that concept, delivering over 20 separate DLCs throughout its life, with the last one dropping in March of last year. So, a natural next step fortheCivilizationfranchisemight be some kind of live-service approach, where new world leaders are added to the game frequently after its initial launch.
Of course, this could fail in a million different ways, but ifCivilization 7stuck closely toHelldivers 2’s approach to live-service contentit could find a successful new avenue that benefits all parties involved. This means thatCivilization 7would need to launch at a lower price initially, but still have plenty of content on day one to ensure that both long-time fans and newcomers feel as though they’ve gotten their money’s worth, regardless of promises of any future content.
From there, Firaxis could start introducing new leaders and nations gradually over the course of the following months, letting players either purchase them as part of a battle pass system with real-world currency or earn enough credits via gameplay to unlock them.Civilization 7could even bring backCiv 3’s leader cosmetics to fill out the battle pass a bit more.
Helldivers 2
WHERE TO PLAY
Do you believe in freedom? Can you stand in the face of oppression – and defend the defenceless? Wage war for peace. Die for democracy.Join forces with up to three friends and wreak havoc on an alien scourge threatening the safety of your home planet, Super Earth, in this multiplayer co-op shooter for PS5 and PC from Arrowhead Game Studios.Step into the boots of the Helldivers, an elite class of soldiers whose mission is to spread peace, liberty and Managed Democracy using the biggest, baddest and most explosive tools in the galaxy.Helldivers don’t go planet side without proper backup, but it’s up to you to decide how and when to call it in. Not only do you have a host of superpowered primary weapons and customizable loadouts, you also have the ability to call on stratagems during play.Helldivers 2 features Arrowhead’s best cooperative gameplay yet. Collaboration will be vital: Teams will synergize on loadouts, strategize their approach for each mission and complete objectives together.1Enlist in Super Earth’s premier military peacekeeping force today. We are heroes… we are legends… WE ARE HELLDIVERS.
