Bosses and Helldivers 2

Bosses are something every good video game needs, and if Johan Pilestedt is genuinely interested in making Helldivers 2 last forever, then a boss for each faction should add a lot of value to the game. Bosses (also known as Masters in the previous game) can give many players a run for their money because they usually test the mastery of game mechanics. When encountering bosses for the first time, they can add a cinematic experience and a sense of awe. Considering that the previous game had bosses for each faction, Arrowhead should have this on the development pipeline.

Including bosses in Helldivers 2 would be a no-brainer, considering the previous game had faction bosses and players loved taking them on. They are such enjoyable fights because each boss fought differently and required its own set of strategies to take down.

The Hive Lord, similar to the Shalai-Hulud from Dune, attacked players by burrowing and spawning bugs. It required players to wait for an opening to bring democracy to this tyrannical ruler. Because of its ability to dodge orbital bombardments by burrowing, players needed to choose the right equipment to take this colossus down. Additionally, one or two players must also manage the growing population of bugs that appear on screen, or the team can easily be overrun.

On the other hand, the Cyborgs (The Automatons’ ancestors) had a Siege Mech as their boss. This colossal tank requires firepower superiority in the field, making stratagems like orbital bombardment a must. Players often saw the Siege Mech as an easy boss because it couldn't avoid player bombardments, but it was still a formidable opponent with its immense firepower.

Finally, the Illuminates had the Great Eye as their master. The Great Eye can easily make the game a bullet hell since many Illuminates rely on precision attacks and this master could spew fire all around. The enemies it spawned also required Helldivers to bob and weave their attacks while focusing on the boss itself, making this the hardest boss to face. Even the most experienced Helldivers can find each boss challenging, and if we follow the previous game, it can serve as an end goal once specific requirements have been met.

Bosses were challenging, but even getting the opportunity to confront one could be a struggle. Before players faced a boss, they had to accomplish missions to accumulate 50 influence points in a quadrant, assuming that the quadrant had a master. Players could then try to kill the boss, with the game allowing up to three hours for the attempt. Once players had slain the boss, they could repeat the process and do it all over again.

Many players in the first game commonly use boss farming as a tactic because it provides more XP and influence than level 12 missions, which are now known as Helldive difficulty. It also gives players an end goal to look forward to after a gaming session.

So are bosses coming to Helldivers 2? 

There's currently no definite answer to this question, but a few Easter Eggs give a nod back to the bosses in the previous title. One of the most obvious is the skeleton of the Hive Lord found on bug planets. Many fans of the last game were thrilled to see that this appeared in the game, even in its deceased form.

With this in mind, Arrowhead may be planning to add bosses to the game, but maybe not soon. Doing so would be a challenge due to the third-person perspective and limited stratagems. Who knows, maybe Arrowhead might even add unique ways to take these behemoths down. 

If you want to know some unique ways to do boss battles not just in Helldivers but also in other video games, check out this article that looks into how Lost Planet 2 walked so Helldivers could run.