Helldivers 2 is full of powerful weapons to smash up bots and squash bugs, ranging from satisfying firearms to explosive orbital strikes that often do more harm to you and your team than the actual enemies. Out of them all, though, one weapon stands out to game director Johan Pilestedt for having the best design.
The weapon in question is the AC-8 Autocannon, which can be called in as a Stratagem from level 10 onwards. Responding to a Helldivers 2 player on Twitter who praised the gun for its "interesting design," which includes an "oversized charging handle" and "top loading fixed magazine from stripper clips," Pilestedt says he's "overjoyed" to see it get "the recognition it deserves" from fans.
"I think it's the team's best weapon design. I am overjoyed that all the hard work they put into it gets the recognition it deserves," he writes.
"Massive shout-out to 'Frippe' [Fredrik Eriksson, animator] and Patrik Lasota [head of product testing] who were the main drivers for it, and everyone else that contributed [of course]."
Agree. I think it's the team's best weapon design. I am overjoyed that all the hard work they put into it gets the recognition it deserves.Massive shout-out to "Frippe" and @PatrikLasota who were the main drivers for it, and everyone else that contributed ofc. https://t.co/ZJP6yvzBGQMarch 15, 2024
It's not just the aesthetics of the AC-8 Autocannon, which the Helldivers 2 devs love. Back when the game's first big balance patch was rolled out, one of Helldivers 2's designers pointed to the Autocannon as a "good example of a well-balanced weapon," noting that its power and range is counterbalanced by the need to "carry an ammo backpack or have a friend assist you." As such, it wasn't one of the weapons nerfed in the patch, unlike the Railgun and Breaker, which both saw significant changes.
In other Helldivers 2 news, Pilestedt recently responded to a popular fan request to add a Guard Dog Flamethrower to the game – a companion robot that would have the power to spew flames at enemies (and potentially friends) automatically. The director warned us to be "careful what you wish for" as he revealed that other devs at Arrowhead Game Studios are rather excited by the idea, even if they expect that it would bring absolute chaos to the game thanks to friendly fire being turned on at all times. It's not been confirmed if it'll actually be added, but if it is, we can probably expect to fry a lot of teammates by mistake.
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