Helldivers 2‘s huge Escalation of Freedom update is here, and while there’s plenty to be excited about with social menu fixes and an eerie new swamp planet, Super Earth citizens everywhere are baffled by a change made to the beloved FLAM-40 Flamethrower.
In the latest patch notes, Arrowhead has confirmed that the third-person shooter’s flame effects have been adjusted to “work more realistically.” The developer explains: “It doesn’t go through various bodies/objects where bounce off would be the expected behavior, like on armors and static objects.”
What this means out in the field is that the Helldivers 2 Flamethrower is no longer the Charger-cooking machine it once was. Previous buffs to the Flamethrower meant you could roast the enormous Terminid enemies right in their sturdy shells, but as has been pointed out by disgruntled players on Reddit, this is no longer the case. “Flamethrower can’t kill Chargers now. Doesn’t go through their leg armor anymore. It also feels like crap to use, weirdly high recoil,” one Super Earth solider reports.
Another, who says “not one single person is happy about this change,” points out the strange timing of the nerf coming right before the release of the Helldivers 2 Freedom’s Flame Warbond, which, as the name suggests, is fire-themed and will add two new flamethrowers to the fray. “Why would I buy this Warbond if the weapon it’s designed for might as well be a squirt gun?” the player questions.
This sentiment has been echoed throughout the community, with another Reddit user saying that the timing “makes no sense at all.” They add: “Why the f**k is anyone going to take the weapon now?”
Of course, we’re yet to get our hands on the new Warbond’s flamethrowers, so they might not have been as badly affected as the poor ol’ FLAM-40. Still, nerfing the throwers just before a thrower-themed Warbond drops is a weird move – that’s set to release on August 8, so watch this space.
