Helldivers 2 Won’t Require Steam and PlayStation Network Account Linking, Sony Says Following Backlash

Amidst widespread backlash, Sony has walked back on its decision to make PlayStation Network logins mandatory for Helldivers 2 on PC.

Last week, the company announced that going forward, PC players would have to link their Steam accounts with their PlayStation Network accounts in order to play Helldivers 2. The decision sparked massive backlash from the community, with the game going on to accumulate over 215,000 negative reviews on Steam over the course of the weekend. As fans continued to loudly voice their displeasure, Steam began issuing refunds even to players with a hundred hours of play time in Helldivers 2, while the game was also delisted on the platform in over 170 countries, where PSN isn’t available.

Helldivers 2 director and Arrowhead CEO Johan Pilestedt provided assurances that the studio was “talking solutions with PlayStation”, and now, as many may have expected (or at least hoped), Sony has announced that it won’t be going ahead with its decision to make PlayStation Network logins mandatory for Helldivers 2 players on PC.

“Helldivers fans — we’ve heard your feedback on the Helldivers 2 account linking update,” the company wrote on Twitter. “The May 6 update, which would have required Steam and PlayStation Network account linking for new players and for current players beginning May 30, will not be moving forward.

“We’re still learning what is best for PC players and your feedback has been invaluable. Thanks again for your continued support of Helldivers 2 and we’ll keep you updated on future plans.”

There’s currently no word on how long it’ll be before Helldivers 2 is once again made available for purchase on Steam in the countries where it was delisted over the weekend.

Sony is set to introduce PlayStation Network and Trophies integration in its PC games with a new PlayStation overlay that will debut with the upcoming port of Ghost of Tsushima Director’s Cut. Ghost of Tsushima itself, however, won’t require a PSN account for those who only wish to play its single-player campaign.

Helldivers fans — we’ve heard your feedback on the Helldivers 2 account linking update. The May 6 update, which would have required Steam and PlayStation Network account linking for new players and for current players beginning May 30, will not be moving forward.

We’re still…

— PlayStation (@PlayStation) May 6, 2024