HELLDIVERS™ Dive Harder Edition

Have fun with others and enjoy the chaos! Or play things safe and venture out solo. I did most of the game with other people, but if you're just trying to farm samples, playing alone is way less of a headache. I got to level 25 with all weapons and Strat's upgraded with about 30,000 kills, and I think at about 80 hours in, then I had a couple of rubber bands carry me to 100,000 in about 32 hours of farming. The fights can get pretty epic, especially when everyone's loadout is in sync, but I'm glad I was able to cheese the last part and be done with it. I liked the camaraderie while playing with randoms, but sometimes people can join ill equipped and just ruin your run. I also recommend you bookmark the online war map here https://helldivers.bot/ so you can keep tabs on when special events are happening for that sweet double xp, and if you still need achievements for participating in a war or defending a capital and so on. I had actually played Helldivers 2 first when it launched, with a gang from work, but everyone sort of fell out and moved on to other things. To be honest, I actually prefer HD1 mechanics. I really like the fixed screen and as much as friendly fire sucks it definitely adds to the experience. Everything feels smaller here which is totally fine with me, definitely a lot less room to move. Illuminates were the easiest (bring a jetpack to jump over their walls!), Cyborgs were pretty tough, and the Bugs.. the Bugs! You just need to slow them down then hammer away from the skies. Sometimes all you really need to do is run away! Careful where you stand! Don't forget to duck!

Helldivers is an absolute GEM of a niche cooperative twin-stick shooter that has kept me hooked for countless hours. From its intense gameplay to its dark humour immersive sci-fi universe, this game nails every aspect. The core mechanics are tight and responsive, blending strategic teamwork with chaotic, edge-of-your-seat action. The variety of missions, planets, and objectives ensures every session is fresh, with environmental hazards and randomized enemy spawns capable of taking you out at any time, the moment you drop your guard, you're dead. The progression system is fantastic, offering a wide array of weapons, perks, and stratagems that let you customize your playstyle. Unlocking new gear feels meaningful, and the majority of them are at least viable, and the sense of accomplishment when you finally master a tricky stratagem drop is unmatched. The visuals and sound design are BASED on the patriotic vibe of Super Earth's war effort. The friendly fire adds a layer of hilarious unpredictability that makes every match memorable. It's never been so fun to get teamkilled I’m proud to say I’ve unlocked all the achievements in Helldivers. The grind to 100% completion was challenging but fun. The only downside I’ve found is in the highest difficulties (13, 14, and 15), where the enemy composition heavily favors armored units. This forces you to rely almost exclusively on anti-tank stratagems, which can feel restrictive and slightly diminish the variety of viable loadouts. But once you become a veteran, the lower difficulties don't cut it anymore so your hand is forced. I can’t recommend Helldivers enough to anyone who loves a challenging shooter. This is a game I’ll keep coming back to for years.

Picked this game up again after I got bored of Helldivers 2. I played the hell out of this on PS3 but now that console is so old that the server connection is always shaky. But man have I missed this game. Still the best couch coop game of all time and a smash hit from out of nowhere. I don't even mind having to unlock and upgrade everything again, cuz its just so much fun.

While it's quite different from the block-buster sequel, Helldivers has its own satisfying team-based chaos design that- like Magicka before it, encourages lots of stupid fun and blowing up your friends by mistake. The game has both a solid amount of content and grind that makes it worth playing! That being said, should you get this game I'd recommend it most during a sale so that you can get the DLCs along with it for quite cheap.

Played after almost 400hrs in HD2 and it still holds up. A lot harder than 2, difficulty is no joke but its really good

After more then 800 hours on Helldivers 2, I decided to give Helldivers a shot and its fair to say is very fun! I highly recommend it. I also got the deluxe edition for 80% off which is a awesome deal.

helldivers 1 is good because it is almost identical to helldivers 2 gameplay-wise and it actually runs on my toaster of a labtop and i'm not even joking i put a piece of bread the keyboard of my labtop and then i launched helldivers 2 on steam and closed my labtop and after about 3 minutes i had a perfectly toasted piece of toast and i started toasting bread on it every day and sold it around my neighborhood and made millions

One of the Best Purchases I have made in STEAM SUMMER SALE!!!.....THB i did not expect an Indie game to be this immersive and Good ASF....I'm really thankful i Bought this game and The Multiplayer is one of the best things i have experienced on Co op...if u want a fun game that will make ur bros synergy good....go for this one

played only on steamdeck, and its fully playable at 60 fps super smooth and no issues. should be fully verified imo. gameplay is really fun and hectic especially as you progress to higher diffivulty. only played with randoms and its so fsr been great and no griefrrs. 100% recommend wish i got it years ago !

Always was a great formula, and the evolution to 2 feels so cool and done right. This one feels a bit harder than 2 mostly because of the dimension shift and how projectiles fly through it. Still a great co-op game

i played the 2nd one and thought i would try out the first because of the deal, but sadly just not my thing, top down style games just don't sit right with me for some reason and i just cant get past it, the game itself is okay but top down kinda just ruins it for me. but if you dont mind top down view points then yeah i would recommend this.

Never played this one and wanted to try it out. I did not play it long because im spoiled from the new one. It is hard for me to go back in time/tech/graphics with games. If those things do not bother you give it a go!

Very fun! I recommend playing online with others to have a better experience.

A whole lot more difficult and unforgiving than the 2nd. Needs a good cohesive team because of the camera mechanics.

Very buggy game but not as many bots as the sequel.

🎖️ Review: HELLDIVERS (2015) Hours Played: 7+ Recommended? 👍 Yes – with friends 💥 TL;DR: A tight, tactical top-down co-op shooter that still holds up remarkably well. If you're a Helldivers 2 fan and have a squad, HD1 is a fantastic companion experience—especially for just a few bucks. Solo players, be warned: this one is brutal alone. 🔍 Pros: 🎨 Stylized Graphics & Smooth Performance Still looks great for its age and runs flawlessly, especially on the Steam Deck. 🤝 Teamwork is Mandatory Missions scale in difficulty and require you to coordinate roles: anti-armor, healing, crowd control, utility, etc. No Rambo runs here. 🤖 More Variety Than You'd Expect Mechs (yes, 3 types!), vehicles, unique stratagems, satisfying weaponry—even some surprises HD2 is still missing. 🎮 Steam Deck Verified Plays fantastically on the go. Perfect side-game if you're burned out or maxed out on HD2. 💰 Dirt Cheap on Sale Frequently $3.99 or less—great value for the content you get. 😐 Mixed: 🧱 DLC Stratagems Locked Away Some of the most fun gear is behind DLC paywalls. Not ideal, but common for games from that era. 🧭 Perspective Shift The top-down view and older visuals may be jarring if you're coming straight from HD2’s third-person style. It grows on you though. 📉 Tough to Recommend Solo Without a reliable group, higher difficulties can feel punishing and progress can stall. ❌ Cons: 🧠 No AI Teammates Unlike newer co-op games, there's zero bot support. It's full co-op or bust. 📦 Older UX/UX Quirks The UI, menus, and controls take some getting used to—especially if you’re used to modern QoL updates. 🧠 Final Verdict: HD1 is not just a curiosity for HD2 fans—it’s a leaner, meaner sibling with its own strengths. It’s more tactical, more punishing, and in many ways more refined in its design. As long as you go in expecting a very different game, and preferably with friends, you’ll be glad you gave this classic a shot. ✅ Recommended for fans of: Tactical co-op, challenging combat, teamwork-focused gameplay ❌ Not recommended for: Solo players, people who hate friendly fire 😅 🗳️ Steam Score: 👍 9/10 with a squad 👎 5/10 solo 🕹️ “Managed democracy never looked so good from 60 feet up.”

It's a good game. I played alot more on the ps3 then on steam. But the only complaint i have is the FUCKING HOUNDS!

Such a good game. Love the whole theme and the art style. The music is perfection too

TLDR Rating 85/100. Positives: - One of the best co-op game in my opinion. - A lot of upgrade options/ decision making when going in a mission (e.g. weapons, stratagems, gear ..etc). - High level mission are difficult even for experienced players. I've seen missions with 3 level 50 chars failing. It has a high skill cap and learning curve. I see this a good design decision. - Three major enemy factions which does offer a reasonable amount of approaches. - Despite being a 10 year old game, I still play every now and then with friends. That's a testament of a good game - at least as far as I am concerned. Negatives: - The game is not playable as a single player. You can generally find enough people of public for a good run but most likely you will need at least a friend or two to play the game effectively.

very fun game, not much players unfortunately

very good game, helldivers 2 is better but this game is still amazing and i love it. great option for if you cant afford/play helldivers 2.

I can't even play the game since it keeps disconnecting. How was this ever acceptable back in the day? How can I comment on the quality of a co-op game when I can't even maintain connection with other players?

Super Earth needs YOU. Bring Managed Democracy to the stars and claim the birthright of humanity.

As always, Arrowhead makes a game that comes close to greatness but falls short by it's many, many, many, bugs (no pun intended). This game is riddled with problems that most players overlook: frequent crash to desktop incidents (just like Magicka), disconnecting from servers (and losing all your progress), invisible hit boxes that prematurely cause weapons to explode. Arrowhead needs to learn to spend more time with their games in a QA process. I bought this as a "party game" for multiple family or friends to enjoy together but it's nothing but frustration. Aside from the poor software programming that went into this, the game design itself seemed more interested in creating an experience that aims to frustrate more than encourage fun. The illuminates can shoot players from about three screens away, walls randomly appear boxing in players, spawns can happen anywhere, right where you're standing, resulting in an instant-kill, or maybe right on top of a tower you're supposed to defend. Hellpods that bring in other players actually target living players (by programmatical design). The entire game is based around a community contribution experience so you can have the misfortune of ONLY being allowed to fight illuminates (usually the case, since almost nobody enjoys those missions); watch what happens once the Cyborgs and Bugs have been defeated: the player count effectively drops to zero until the galaxy resets. It's really too bad, like I said in my opening line: Arrowhead makes games on the verge of greatness but can't seem to escape a handful of design decisions that ruin the overall experience. Somebody in the design room literally sat back and said to themselves "What would be the most challenging thing we could throw at players, whether fair or not?" without asking the question whether the challenges enhanced or took away from the overall player experience. I play to have fun. But this game is all frustration.

a very different experience to the second one, for the curious

overall fun. Some enemy faction are way harder than other.

While not the worst twinstick shooter ever made, Helldivers 1 does [i]not[/i] hold up well to modern standards. The atmosphere (especially voice acting) is underwhelming, the combat is clunkier than its successor, and the game as a whole lacks the polish that is present in HD2. The atmosphere, in particular, is worth singling out above all other flaws present in HD1; while the core gameplay is passable, the atmosphere simply [i]is not there[/i] compared to HD2. Comparing the intro cinematics between the two games is enough to summarize the difference, especially as that difference in quality persists long after the intro ends. I strongly recommend steering clear of this and opting for the sequel unless you absolutely need an unforgiving twinstick shooter in your life, or you just really, really, [b]really[/b] want to experience the first iteration of Helldivers. It's far from the worst game ever, but it's much more of a slog to acclimate to than HD2.

This review was removed by the ministry of truth under suspicion of Treason.

You know, the developers of helldivers 2 could learn a thing or two from this game.

LIBERTY PROTECTS Helldivers 1 is a objectivlly better game to me than hd2 it has way more variety and the dlcs add very cool new ways to play the game:sfire:

im honestly not sure what causes my affinity towards this game it just scratches a certain itch within my noggin and it is easily one of the best gaming purchases ive made in my life.

Top-down, isometric action co-op shooter in space with bugs and robots. That simplifies the description a lot, but for a decade old, it was a fun time. Even though there's usually only a handful of players, in the lower hundreds on daily basis, you can always find a match, since you only need 1 - 3 other players. Generally speaking, it's a fun game with lots of unlockables to keep you busy and play for a long while, there's a Galactic War that requires the community's effort, ideally unified, instead of random and sporadic. Key thing to note, however, is that the camera is locked to one place on the entire map - that is you, as the Helldivers, Meaning all 4 players are always in the center of your screen and the map follows the 4 players, so one guy wanting to go full far left and the other completely and far right means nobody gets to go anywhere, lol. For a decade old game with a very unique design in many ways, this was amazing. Played it a few months before getting HD2 to get familiar with what started this universe and it was worth it, however, not necessary. [b]8/10[/b]

Absolute cinema of democracy and freedom

Terrible game. Bad balance and weird ui.

Only thing that would make this better is crossplay.

WE NEED REINFORCEMENTS TO MELEVELEON CREEK COME BE A HELLDIVER TO CRUSH THE ENEMIES

Absolute cinema gameplay. Would dive again

This Game Was Part Of My Childhood I Used To Play On My Ps Vita On The Go And Still Do Love Helldiver 2 And Got That Game Too FOR DEMOCRACY!!!!!!!!!

even the original is fire, what the flippity flop

Absolute peak holy sh¡t (Bastion tank best stratagem)

this game gives good vibes for how chill it is............. :l

twin stick shooter multiplayer fun

Very good game, highly recommend

both helldivers games are PEAK

Very fun PVP game

It's like peak.. but the first one!

its still good even in 2025!

its so fun

GOOD game

Great game 👍