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Since hot-dropping last month, Helldivers 2 has quickly become one of 2024's biggest PC and PS5 games. Arrowhead Game Studios' intense co-op third-person shooter has attracted thousands of fans that are ready to do their part and live out their Starship Troopers fantasy by blasting hordes of Terminid aliens and Automaton robots to smithereens, and it's breaking records for PlayStation Studios games on PC.
But as space marines worldwide fight to serve up piping hot mugs of liber-tea to these extra-terrestrial threats, a number of different bugs and launch issues have been reported by players as well as the developers of the game. Arrowhead is working hard to get these fixed as soon as possible, but in the meantime, we've put together an extensive list of each one below so you know what to look for while playing.
Notably, this list includes all known workarounds and instructions on how to fix the issue you're having, if possible. Though these solutions aren't guaranteed to work, they're worth a shot, and many players have had success with them.
Helldivers 2 server status
The explosive success of Helldivers 2 has put significant strain on the game's servers, and as a result, many have encountered stability and connectivity issues while trying to play. Here, we're tracking the status of the servers, and are also sharing the latest information from Arrowhead regarding server maintenance.
Is Helldivers 2 down?
Helldivers 2 isn't down at the moment, but many players seem to be having an issue connecting to the game's servers. Several Helldivers have also reported that they're unable to get past the game's opening cutscene and have run into infinite loading screens, so overall, its network is going through a bit of a rough time right now.
If you run into a "failed to connect to server" error at the main menu, allow Helldivers 2 to keep trying to reconnect and eventually you should get in. Other issues such as infinite loading screens can generally be resolved by restarting the game, though if the problem persists, you may need to wait for Arrowhead to improve the servers and/or perform maintenance.
Arrowhead's CEO Johan Pilestedt has shared an update on X (Twitter), noting that the ongoing server hiccups are due to too many players trying to get their hands on Helldivers 2's newly-unlocked mechs at once.
"With the successful push from the community to take Tien Kwan and the subsequent enabling of the mechs our servers have a hard time coping, the team is aware and doing what they can to mitigate," he wrote. "This intermittent issue is caused by too many trying to acquire the mech at the same time. Service will be restored eventually, but for now I ask for patience."
When will Helldivers 2 servers be back up?
If the Helldivers 2 servers do end up going offline — either due to maintenance or because of another issue — you can expect them to come back up within a few hours, if not much sooner. More serious problems may lead to longer outages, which we'll keep you informed about if and when they occur.
Helldivers 2 failed to connect to server
You may run into this error while trying to get past the game's main menu screen. In most cases, you can eventually connect by repeatedly retrying. If that doesn't work, you can also try to close and restart the game, which has worked for many players.
Helldivers 2 Servers at capacity. Please try again later
If you encounter this error at the title screen, all you can really do is wait and allow the game to keep trying to connect. Currently, we don't recommend restarting the game if you run into this, as you don't want to reset your position in the game's queue.
Helldivers 2 maintenance update
Arrowhead most recently performed maintenance for Helldivers 2 on February 12, 2024 at 9:30 a.m. PT / 12:30 p.m. ET for roughly an hour. This was live maintenance, meaning that the servers remained active while it was performed but players likely experienced an increased frequency of issues while the developers were working on them.
We'll keep this section updated with the latest server maintenance news, but keep in mind that you can follow the official Helldivers 2 X (Twitter) account for live maintenance updates as well.
Helldivers 2: Known bugs, launch issues, and errors
Are you able to connect to the server and play, but still running into other problems? It's very likely that we've recorded them here in this section, along with any known details about potential workarounds and fixes. If you don't see the issue you're having below, drop us a comment and we'll add it to the list.
Helldivers 2 acquisitions not working
Occasionally, you may find that you're unable to use the Warbonds you earn in missions to purchase things like new weapons and armor pieces from Helldivers 2's Acquisition Center. At the moment, it's unclear if this occurs due to server problems or something else, but closing and restarting the game or verifying the integrity of Helldivers 2's game files on Steam are both effective workarounds to fix the issue.
Helldivers 2 no rewards after mission
It's sometimes possible to not get any rewards after finishing a mission, even if you complete all your objectives and safely extract from the battlefield. This appears to be a rare, but frustrating issue with Helldivers 2's networking, and if you encounter it, all you can really do is wait for improvements.
Notably, Arrowhead says it's implemented fixes for this issue in Helldivers 2's latest patch, but will continue to monitor the situation and make further improvements if necessary.
Helldivers 2 not getting XP
This is a variation of the previous issue that gives you earned currencies like Warbonds, Requisitions, and Samples after completing a mission, but not XP that you need to level up. Again, all signs point to this being a server problem, so you'll have to wait until the developers fix this glitch.
Helldivers 2 failed to join game lobby
When trying to join someone's game, you may run into this error message. To get around it, simply keep trying to connect. If this doesn't work, closing and restarting the game will do the trick in most cases.
If the failure to connect is instant, it's likely that there root of the problem is server-related. In those instances, there's nothing you can do other than wait for Arrowhead to fix the problem.
Helldivers 2 quickplay not working
Helldivers 2's quickplay matchmaking in particular has been pretty spotty since the game's launch, and often spits the "failed to join game lobby" error back at you when you try to queue into it. You can eventually get into a match by retrying to matchmake in quickplay, but the following workarounds can be used as well:
- Quickplay may work better if you go to a planet with fewer players on it than others.
- Join players directly, either through your Steam/PS5 friends list or Helldivers 2's Friend Code system.
- PS5 players can turn on crossplay, launch a mission solo, and then throw an SOS beacon to allow PC players to connect.
Helldivers 2 black screen on startup
After a recent patch, some players have reported that they've been unable to get past a blank black screen when launching the game. To fix this, navigate to the user_settings.config file in C:\Users\[YourUsername]\AppData\Roaming\Arrowhead\Helldivers2 and edit the "fullscreen" value to false. If that doesn't work, try deleting the file and then starting the game.
If you're still running into a black screen at that point, you could try waiting and seeing if the game eventually loads, which has happened for some users. If the problem persists, though, your only option is to close and restart Helldivers 2, validate Helldivers 2's game files, or uninstall and reinstall the game.
This appears to be a server-related problem, as it only seems to happen whenever the game's servers are experiencing significant capacity or stability issues. Because of this, none of these suggested fixes are guaranteed to work, and you may need to simply wait until the game's network improves.
Helldivers 2 stuck on Defrosting Helldiver
While trying to get past the game's title screen, you may encounter an issue where you get stuck on the "Defrosting Helldiver" step of the login process. This is essentially a themed way of saying that the game is trying to connect you to its servers, and when it gets stuck like this, it means that it's not able to do so due to a server or connection problem.
Unfortunately, all you can really do here is close and restart your game if the issue is server-related, which it probably is given how rough things have been with Helldivers 2's networking in recent days. You can also try verifying the game's files to see if you've got corrupted files interfering with your connection, or rebooting your router to ensure you've got a smooth connection on your end.
Helldivers 2 crash on startup
Some players have reported that Helldivers 2 is instantly crashing after it's launched. So far, the developers have put forth two workarounds for this problem:
- Select "Disable Steam Input" in Helldivers 2's Properties > Controller menu in its Steam settings.
- If playing on Windows 11, enable Windows 8 compatibility mode for the Helldivers2.exe (found in the game's files in the bin folder).
Helldivers 2 crash on extraction
This is a rather infuriating bug that causes the game to sometimes crash when you're extracting at the end of a mission. Sadly, there's no known fix that ensures this won't happen, so you'll have to wait until Arrowhead patches the issue.
Helldivers 2 crash on AMD GPUs
There are widespread reports of significant Helldivers 2 performance issues for players using AMD Radeon 7000 GPUs. The developers are working with both the community and AMD to figure out what exactly is going wrong here, but in the meantime, you can improve the issue by turning down Helldivers 2's settings and turning off screen space global illumination.
Helldivers 2 can't launch
If you're not able to launch Helldivers 2 at all, Arrowhead suggests trying one of the following workarounds:
- Update Microsoft Visual C++ files as admin, then run Helldivers 2 as admin
- Run Helldivers 2 as admin
- Remove Microsoft Visual C++ files from your system that released before 2012
- Ensure your firewall isn't blocking Helldivers 2
- Disable your VPN, if you're using one
- Disable the Steam overlay
The studio also says that this issue can happen — albeit quite rarely — due to the game's GameGuard anti-cheat catching false positives. Arrowhead is currently working with the software's seller to see what adjustments can be made, but in the meantime, try closing other programs when trying to play Helldivers 2. Notably, antivirus, fan cooling, and streaming video overlay programs all give GameGuard the most trouble, so make sure these are inactive.
Helldivers 2 is available now for $39.99 on both PS5 and PC, and so far, it's one of the best PC games of the year. Notably, the game also supports cross-platform play between PS5 and PC.
