Helldivers 2 developer Arrowhead has released the Into the Unjust: 4.1.0 update, which it said is designed to make the game “feel better to play.”
This much anticipated update overhauls how Arrowhead approaches patching “to better target the pain points you’ve shared with us.” The studio said that means “more focus on stability, balance, and the issues that affect your experience the most.”
Over 200 bugs have been fixed, along with key balance updates and quality-of-life improvements. Arrowhead said that while new features are coming, this patch marks “a big step forward: both in the game itself and in how we work to improve it.” More refinements are already underway, the studio continued.
In terms of balance, the overall effectiveness of primary weapons, sidearms, throwables, and stratagems is increased. SMGs and pistols, for example, have been adjusted to emphasize their role as close-quarters weapons, with increased close-range damage and increased damage falloff.
It’s worth noting changes are made to enemies across the board. The Dragon Roach, for example, has seen its spawn rate decreased, and destruction of the wings now results in instant death. Each wing has a health pool, and the Dragon Roach should be more susceptible to explosions because even if you hit the body you now also hit the wings and do more damage. Overall, there should be fewer Dragon Roaches and they should be easier to take down.
Check out the patch notes, courtesy of the Helldivers 2 Discord, below:
Helldivers 2 Into the Unjust: 4.1.0 patch notes:
Balancing
General changes
Primaries, Sidearms, Throwables, and Stratagems
Improvements have been made to increase the overall effectiveness of primary weapons, sidearms, throwables, and stratagems
Light vs. Medium Penetration Weapons
Light and medium penetration weapons now offer more distinct advantages.
Light penetration weapons generally deal a higher percentage of their total damage against durable enemies, differentiating them more clearly from medium penetration options
SMGs and Pistols
SMGs and pistols have been adjusted to emphasize their role as close-quarters weapons. Close-range damage has been increased, and damage falloff has been increased to reinforce their short-range combat identity
Melee Weapons and Throwables
Melee weapons and throwables have been improved to make each feel more impactful and unique in their function
Resupply Rack
The resupply rack is not climbable anymore
Primary weapons
SG-8P Punisher Plasma
Damage projectile decreased from 100 to 0Damage explosion increased from 150 to 225
SG-8S Slugger
Damage increased from 280 to 330Durable damage increased from 75 to 90
AR-23 Liberator
Damage increased from 80 to 90Durable damage increased from 15 to 22
AR-23A Liberator Carbine
Damage increased from 80 to 90Durable damage increased from 15 to 22
AR-23P Liberator Penetrator
Damage increased from 60 to 65
AR-23C Liberator Concussive
Damage increased from 65 to 75Durable damage increased from 30 to 35
AR-61 Tenderizer
Durable damage increased from 22 to 30
AR-32 Pacifier
Damage increased from 50 to 55Stun value per projectile increased from 1.5 to 2
SMG-37 Defender
Damage increased from 80 to 100Durable damage increased from 8 to 18Drag increased from 0.6 to 1.2
MP-98 Knight
Damage increased from 70 to 90Durable damage increased from 7 to 18Drag increased from 0.6 to 1.2
SMG-32 Reprimand
Damage increased from 125 to 135Drag increased from 0.6 to 1.2
SMG-72 Pummeler
Damage increased from 70 to 85Durable damage increased from 7 to 18Stun value per projectile increased from 1.5 to 2Drag increased from 0.6 to 1.2
LAS-16 Sickle
Damage increased from 55 to 60Durable damage increased from 5 to 6
MA5C Assault Rifle
Damage increased from 80 to 90
M7S SMG
Damage increased from 70 to 80Durable damage increased from 7 to 16Drag increased from from 0.6 to 1.2
StA-11 SMG
Damage increased from 70 to 90Durable damage increased from 7 to 18Drag increased from 0.6 to 1.2
PLAS-39 Accelerator Rifle
Extra spare magazines increased from 8 to 12Ergonomics increased from 40 to 60
Sidearm weapons
CQC-2 Saber
Damage increased from 110 to 125Durable damage increased from 55 to 65
CQC-5 Combat Hatchet
Damage increased from 110 to 160Durable damage increased from 55 to 80Attack speed has been slightly reduced
CQC-42 Machete
Damage increased from 170 to 200Durable damage increased from 80 to 100
P-2 Peacemaker
Damage increased from 85 to 95Durable damage increased from 25 to 30Drag increased from 0.6 to 1.2
P-19 Redeemer
Damage increased from 60 to 70Durable damage increased from 5 to 12Drag increased from 0.6 to 1.2
P-113 Verdict
Damage increased from 125 to 135Drag increased from 0.6 to 1.2
M6C/SOCOM
Damage increased from 100 to 110Drag increased from 0.6 to 1.2
P-92 Warrant
Drag decreased from 0.3 to 0Gravity multiplier decreased from 1 to 0.3
Throwables
TED-63 Dynamite
Damage increased from 700 to 1000Armor penetration increased from Medium to HeavyDemolition strength increased from 30 to 40Stagger increased from 30 to 40Uses decreased from 4 to 3
G-7 Pineapple
Shrapnel from main explosion increased from 7 to 18Demolition strength on the main explosion increased from 20 to 30Inner radius on shrapnel explosion increased from 1 to 2.5mDamage on shrapnel explosion increased from 70 to 100Removed lifetime on the shrapnelShrapnel from the shrapnel explosion decreased from 6 to 0
G-50 Seeker
Higher priority for flying enemiesHighest target priority for marked targetDamage increased from 400 to 500
G-6 Frag
Uses increased from 5 to 6
G-3 Smoke
Uses increased from 4 to 5
Throwing knifes
Damage increased from 250 to 300Durable damage increased from 100 to 150
PLAS-1 Scorcher
Plasma projectiles will now pass through foliage without losing velocity
Stratagems
PLAS-45 Epoch
Duration until explosion increased from 3 to 3.25 secDelayed muzzle charge VFX by 0.5 seconds so it now appears when the projectile is overcharged, improving visibility of the charge stateDamage on standard projectiles explosion increased from 400 to 500Demolition strength on overcharged projectile increased from 10 to 30
M-105 Stalwart
Damage increased from 80 to 90Durable damage increased from 15 to 22
FLAM-40 Flamethrower
Canister capacity increased from 130 to 150Starting canisters increased from 2 to 3Max spare canisters increased from 4 to 5
APW-1 Anti-Materiel Rifle
Durable damage increased from 180 to 225Starting magazines increased from 4 to 5Max spare magazines increased from 6 to 8
AC- 8 Autocannon
Damage increased from 260 to 325
GL-52 De-Escalator
Damage increased from 55 to 100Durable damage increased from 55 to 70
MS-11 Solo Silo
Health increased from 800 to 1500Enemies will not attack itIncreased demolition strength needed to destroy it
Orbital Railcannon Strike
Cooldown decreased from 210 to 180 sec
EXO-45 Patriot Exosuit
Missile Armor penetration in worse angles increased from 6-6-4-0 to 6-6-5-0Rotary gun ammo capacity increased from 1000 to 1350
Enemies
The goal is to make light and medium armor-piercing weapons equally effective against certain common enemies by adjusting their durable damage and durable resistance values
Illuminates
Fleshmob
Targeting the faces deals extra damage to its main health, effectively creating weak spotsMain health decreased from 6000 to 5000Most health zones are slightly more durableSlightly less vulnerable to fire to balance health decrease
Elevated Overseer
Main health decreased from 600 to 450Head health increased from 150 to 200Head zone armor decreased from 3 to 2Torso health decreased from 600 to 450Arms health decreased from 300 to 250Slight increase on how easy it is to set on fire
Leviathan
Now equipped with beam-based weaponryLeviathans will not show up in missions outside of cities
Terminids
Rupture Strain enemies
Updated textures for all Rupture Strain enemies for better readability
Rupture Warrior
Movement speed when underground has been decreasedNeeds to surface more often when moving undergroundIts burrow attack is slightly slower and leaves more space to be dodgedSmaller damage boxes when attacking from belowFront legs armor decreased from 3 to 2Will prefer to emerge before attacking turrets instead of destroying them from below ground
Rupture Spewer
Retuned the timing of how fast it starts to act from when it unburrows
Bile Spewer Variations
Increased size of its mouth weak spot
Brood Commanders
Slightly harder to set on fire
Warriors
Slightly harder to set on fireSlight durable increase in head and body
Dragon roach
Spawn rate decreased50% lower on difficulty 5,640% lower on difficulty 7,8,933% lower on difficulty 10Destruction of the wings results in instant termination of the DragonWings now have their own health pool of 4000Increased how much damage wings take from explosion
Bile spewers
Slightly harder to set on fireLarger body parts are slightly more durable
Hive Lord
Improved performance during Hive Lord encounters.
Automatons
Base Alarming
Automaton troopers in bases will require better visual confirmation before calling in reinforcements, instead of calling them in immediately
Devastators
Slightly harder to be put on fireLarge body parts are slightly more durable
Command Bunker Turret
Removed ragdolling from its projectiles explosion
Factory Strider
Slightly less vulnerable to fire
War Strider
Shoots 2 fewer grenades per salvoShoots grenades less oftenRemoved ragdolling from its projectiles explosionsAdded weak spots aim for the eyes and the vents on the back
Scout Striders
Armored top shield is more durable
Fixes
Stratagems
Fixed an issue where Helldivers were unable to call down stratagems in the objective area of the “Nuke Nursery” cave missionFixed an issue with the B-100 Portable Hellbomb stratagem sometimes falling on Cave roofs in the “Destroy Spore Lung” missionFixed an issue with the drill objective stratagem sometimes landing in unintended places such as on top of caves, in Nuke Nursery Hive World missionsPlayers can now stay aiming down sights when activating the LIFT-860 Hover Pack
Crashes
Fixed a rare crash occurring when fighting IlluminatesFixed a crash when hotjoining and readying up before other hotjoinersFixed a crash occurring when a player would re-join multiple timesFixed a rare crash caused by Eagle-1Fixed a rare bug where the Eagle-1 would never be removed from the game session and eventually cause crashesFixed rare crash bug that could happen when spawning in groups of enemiesFixed crash affecting Helldivers trying to lean out from a vehicleFixed a crash that could happen when scrolling through the weapon customization menuFixed a crash that could happen during game shutdown
Weapons
Fixed armor penetration values in the Stats Menu for CQC-5 Combat Hatchet, CQC-30 Stun Baton,CQC-19 Stun Lance, CQC-2 Saber, CQC-1 One True Flag and the G-7 Pineapple grenade; the armor penetration value displayed as Medium instead of LightImproved initial bullet alignment while strafing and riding in vehiclesMoved the first person camera further away from the MS-11 Solo Silo’s Target Designator scopeFixed the weapon reload animations desyncing when wielding armor passives that give increased reload speedThe FAF-14 Spear can now lock onto Automaton AA turretsFixed projectiles hitting direct center of sights when extremely close to objectsHaptics feedback is now present throughout the firing of the FLAM-40 Flamethrower stratagem
Miscellaneous
Fixed a bug where Hive Lord body parts would not spawn properlyFixed an instance where the Helldiver couldn’t re-join their previous host, if said host left a joined game in progress from the loadoutFixed a bug where the LIFT-182 Warp Pack would sometimes get stuck suspended in the air or crash Fixed Adreno-Defibrillator armor passive animation bugFixed disconnection issues when joining a solo player with 3 cross-platform playersFixed mesh clipping for the arms on some animationsReduced the chance of the Extraction Shuttle clipping through terrainFixed a flickering bug on the avatar when the Helldiver gets affected by mud or snowFixed a bug hole covered by terrain in one of the CR10 Mega NestsRupture Warriors can no longer destroy deployable turrets while still undergroundFixed an issue where the front door of the GATER could become inaccessibleFixed a rare issue where the player could be disconnected when they are a part of a mixed platform, 3 person lobby that joins a solo player under poor network conditionsFixed an issue with Illuminate dropships not taking correct damage during the “Repel Invasion Fleet” missions The currency symbol for Saudi riyal is now displayed correctly in the in game shopThe Oil Rigs reverse audio will no longer continuously play if the player attempts to reverse during oil extractionFixed Helldivers going through the floor in the tutorial mission, when diving near the barbed wiresFixed a rare soft-lock in tutorialHelldiver is now killed when driving into drill holes during Nuke Nursery missionsFixed an issue where Helldivers could enter a vehicle even though the seat got claimed by someone else firstFixed controller vibrations behaving incorrectly when connecting or disconnecting controllers on PCFixed miscellaneous threading issues in the audio systemFixed minor texture clipping issues on the floor between hellpod launchers on the shipFixed an issue where voice chat could sometimes change volume unexpectedly – particularly when entering caves
Optimizations
Optimized status effectsOptimized physics by only enabling powered ragdolls when neededOptimized physics body handling for damage calculationsOptimized Automaton units and NPC eyes, by changing them from particle effects to shadersOptimized AI behaviors by analyzing and stripping out redundant codeReduced stuttering during drop-in sequence for missions on Hive WorldsImproved audio IO performanceSnow distribution and overall look has been reworkedImproved performance by tweaking LOD settings for charactersOptimized asset distribution for several planets typesOptimized scattered assets such as grass on various planet typesOptimized asset distribution in Hiveworlds and Terminid cavesOptimized asset setup and geometry for assets used in Hiveworlds and Terminid cavesOptimized status effect physics and particle systems while maintaining visual feedback and fidelityOptimized various Automaton explosion VFXOptimized Acid Rain effects during Acid StormsOptimized Dragonroach fire attack VFXMade various optimizations to the fire system, including particle and light optimization.Improved performance by optimizing the rendering of several shaders
Wesley is Director, News at IGN. Find him on Twitter at @wyp100. You can reach Wesley at wesley_yinpoole@ign.com or confidentially at wyp100@proton.me.
