Helldivers 2, Arrowhead’s unexpected runaway success, has been out for almost 2 months now, but the hype hasn’t slowed down one bit. The co-op shooter regularly sits towards the top of most played the charts on Steam, boasting a staggering 450,000 concurrent players at its peak.
Although not officially announced, the game is also estimated to have sold over 8 million units across PS5 and PC, according to a report from Bloomberg. With success this huge, Xbox owners have wanted to get in on the action as well, but a new report diminishes their hopes even further.
Helldivers 2 Achieves Breathtaking Success
A recent report from Newzoo, a leading video game data research firm, reveals astonishing stats, with Helldivers 2 reigning supreme as the highest-grossing title globally in February 2024, and ranked 15th overall in Monthly Active Users across PC and PS5.
It also secured the top spot in key markets like the United States, United Kingdom, and Italy. While EA Sports FC 24 managed to snag the top spot in other regions, Helldivers 2 remained a close contender, consistently placing second, which is a brilliant sign of success, considering the rampant popularity of football games.
The story doesn’t end there, though. In addition to staggering sales, Helldivers 2 boasts impressive player engagement. The report shows that players clock in a surprising 20.2 hours per month on average, up from the 17 hours Arrowhead announced a while ago. This playtime translates to a 7th place in the shooter genre on PC and PlayStation.
The title has racked up loads of popularity on streaming platforms as well. Ranking 7th among shooter games and 17th across all genres, the co-op shooter has amassed a whopping 21 million hours of total watch time.
Don’t Expect An Xbox Release In The Near Future
No one at Arrowhead could see Helldivers 2 becoming this much of a juggernaut. It was the biggest PlayStation Studio launch on Steam, as it struck immense popularity among PC gamers. It performed strongly on PS5 as well, with sales tipping 40% towards PS5 and 60% towards PC in Europe, according to Chris Dring from GamesIndustry.biz.
The Newzoo report, along with the data released before that, demonstrate the massive profitability the game accrued from PC and PS5 alone. Xbox users have been campaigning for an Xbox release of Helldivers 2 since it launched, even going so far as to set up a Change.org petition that has crossed over 100,000 signatures.
Sadly, though, it’s unlikely that the game will ever see the light of day on Microsoft’s console, as Sony owns the Helldivers IP, and with how successful the game already is, the financial viability of an Xbox port may not be enough for PlayStation. However, hope should never be in short supply.
It’s entirely possible that Helldivers 2 could gradually drop off in player counts over time, and in that situation, Sony might just port it to Xbox to reinvigorate interest. Conversely, the game could grow even more, to the point where its reach would be more important than the platforms it’s on. The future can hold anything, but for now, Xbox players have to pick up a PS5 or PC.
