Common Sense Media Review
By Marc Saltzman
,
based on child development research. How do we rate?
Sci-fi shooter game is fun but gory and violent.
Parents Need to Know
Why Age 15+?
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Helldivers II
Parent and Kid Reviews
Based on 5 parent reviews
What’s It About?
Developed by Sweden's Arrowhead Game Studios and published by Sony Interactive Entertainment, HELLDIVERS II is a third-person military shooter for PlayStation 5 (PS5) and Windows PC. As a soldier, you first enlist as a freedom fighter with the elite Helldivers "peace-keeping force," and complete a mandatory training course to familiarize yourself with controls and objectives. Once you earn your cape, you travel across the galaxy to fight against several challenging threats, whether you choose to do so by yourself or with a squad of up to four Helldivers online with other players. You're tasked with completing missions like taking out the eggs of giant bug-like Terminids or finding and using new armor-piercing artillery on a hoard of Beserkers. Along with the weapons you'll have access to in-hand -- assault rifles, grenades, flamethrowers, turrets and rocket launchers -- Helldivers II has you call up Stratagems from the sky to help you in battle. The main goal of this chaotic war game (with dark humor) is to stay alive as long as you can, complete all missions (some of which are timed), and capture enemy planets. Both the PS5 and PC versions look and play the same, and there's optional cross-platform support.
Is It Any Good?
Despite some technical issues, Helldivers II is a super fun and rewarding sci-fi shooter about "spreading democracy" across the galaxy -- one kill at a time. But with its violence and gore, the game is better suited for older teens and adults. For gamers who like to play co-op games, this $39 "Mature"-rated sequel -- arriving nine years after the original -- will no doubt impress even the most finicky of gamers for its depth and breadth. Playing out over months in real-time, there are multiple areas to visit, providing seemingly endless playability. The many choices you can make per mission also adds to its stickiness, not to mention locations can vary greatly -- from frozen tundra to lush forests to hilly deserts. It's a blast to dive away from enemy fire and switching between weapons to destroy a hive of nasty Terminids, all the while coordinating with others to call up a much-needed Strategem drop. It's fast, frenetic, and fun. But finding people to play with could be tough because of full servers, not to mention some performance issues when there's a lot of on-screen action going on at the same time. If your PC doesn't have a fast graphics card, you likely won't enjoy the game because it's slow, choppy and buggy. Hopefully these bugs will be zapped -- just like the relentless Terminids you'll face in the game. Those without a newer gaming computer should opt for the PS5 version if they own the console. Overall, Helldivers II is one of the first blockbusters of the year, deservingly so, and delivers a lot of bang for the buck.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about Helldivers II being a more violent third-person sci-fi shooter than similar games like Fortnite. Does the extra violence and gore add anything to the game? Or is this mature content really not needed to make Helldivers II a fun and engaging game?
Helldivers II relies on co-op play, so is it positive to work together on a common goal? How does the experience of playing games alone differ from playing with others?
Parents and caregivers can use our helpful tips to talk to kids about violence in video games.
Game Details
- Platforms: PlayStation 5 , Windows
- Pricing structure: Paid ($39.99)
- Available online?: Not available online
- Publisher: Sony Interactive Entertainment
- Release date: February 8, 2024
- Genre: Third-Person Shooter
- Topics: Adventures , Bugs , Monsters, Ghosts, and Vampires , Robots , Science and Nature , Space and Aliens
- ESRB rating: M for Blood and Gore, Intense Violence
- Last updated: September 4, 2024
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