Many different elements come together to make playing a video game worth it, and what makes Sony’s Helldivers 2 special is how it offers a unique co-op experience with friends, allowing players to spread democracy in the galaxy. However, apart from the features already available in the game, fans have been demanding the addition of another mechanic ever since the game came out.
For context, players have been demanding a better customization system in-game, allowing them to have better cosmetic freedom for their characters. While this is a good idea to implement in theory, the CEO of Arrowhead Studios, Johan Pilestedt, agrees otherwise.
Helldivers 2’s CEO Johan Pilestedt Rejects To Give More Customization Freedom To The Players
As stated before, players have been looking forward to a better customization mechanic in Helldivers 2, giving them more freedom for their character. Users like @EnigmaAMC on Twitter have pointed out how the game can implement a transmog system in place, but Johan Pilestedt swiftly shut the idea down by replying-
We are not doing transmog. It doesn't make sense – equipment looks different because it has different effects. Swapping one for the other is like having an apple that tastes like bacon or the other way around.
— Pilestedt (@Pilestedt) April 12, 2024
Pilestedt talked about how it is not logical to add such a system in place for the game. He mentioned how equipment is made to look different to distinguish them accordingly with their respective effects, and giving freedom to customize the same would not make any sense/
For those who might not know, transmog is a mechanic often implemented in video games, allowing players to change the appearance of their character’s cosmetics and items without affecting its stats and effects.
What makes Arrowhead Studios better than others in their comparison is how the developers as well as the Pilestedt himself from the studio remain active amongst the community, often engaging with players. However, this has backfired for them in the past once, when a savage reply from a developer led to the situation getting out of hand.
How A Helldivers 2 Developer’s Reply To A Player Backfired On The Studio
A month ago, Helldivers 2 was under fire for the way a few developers had replied to the community’s outcry after a patch was released for the game nerfing the guns most used at the time. This was followed by Arrowhead Studios getting called out on social media platforms with fans demanding an explanation for the behavior.
The growing controversy prompted Pilestedt to step in once again to the rescue, as he took responsibility for the developer’s actions and revealed how action had already been taken. He assured that developers would be further educated on how they represent the organization and how to engage with the community in the future.
