Helldivers 2 has a ‘Game Master’ modifying the galactic war in real-time

Despite mostly going under the radar before it came out, Helldivers 2 proved that it’s got what it takes to reach the top charts. With a concurrent player cap of 700,000 players, Helldivers 2 has now revealed that it’s got a veritable “Game Master” coordinating its war efforts.

Notably, it’s plain as day that Helldivers 2‘s galactic war efforts are not just a randomized series of combat scenarios thrown together by an algorithm. A prime example of this being the case was the rapid onslaught of Automaton forces after Super Earth won its first clash against the Terminid. Not only can Arrowhead Studios thus create a custom “campaign” for the entire community to participate in, though, but there’s a developer whose job is specifically to spice things up in the live game. That developer’s name, as per Arrowhead Studios’ recent interview, is Joel.

Arrowhead Studios’ Joel is Helldivers 2’s Game Master

In his recent talk with PC Gamer, Arrowhead Studios’ CEO Johan Pilestedt said that “[Arrowhead] has actual person with the job title of Game Master,” Pilestedt told PC Gamer in an interview today. His name is Joel, and he takes his job very seriously.”

As per Pilestedt’s comments, the Game Master “has a lot of control over the play experience. It’s something that we’re continuously evolving based on what’s happening in the game, and as part of the roadmap, there are things that we want to keep secret because we want to surprise and delight.” The upcoming combat mechs are, presumably, one of these future delights.

“There have been some sudden moments where maybe one planet was too easy or one was too hard and [Joel] had to get up in the middle of the night to give the Automatons a bit of reinforcements so the players don’t take [the planet] too quickly,” Pilestedt explained. Another example of the Game Master’s influence on the war effort is the random Stratagems that Helldivers suddenly get access to every so often. Unlimited access to railguns and incendiary mines are just two examples of Joel intervening on behalf of the Helldivers.

According to Pilestedt, Arrowhead Studios does have a broad, general idea of how it wants the galactic war campaign to go, going so far as to devise future “setpieces” for Helldivers to experience. That said, however, the campaign is set to change depending on how Helldiver forces and Super Earth at large perform in action, so everything is on the table from the looks of it.

Further, Pilestedt has also said that Arrowhead is looking at ways to make certain planets more interesting and significant as the campaign continues. Malevelon Creek, for one, is sure to pop back up sometime down the line, and Arrowhead plans to “reconsider [certain important] planets to become more of a character going forward.”

Helldivers fans have got much to look forward to however you look at it. Even from an outsider’s point of view, Super Earth’s fight to spread “democracy” is sure to entertain, and who knows what else Joel might have in store for us.