Sony Reverses Helldivers 2 PSN Account Linking Demands on PC

Sony's online PSN service is growing year-on-year at the moment, as 118 million monthly active users for the Q4 period of fiscal year 2023 represents an increase of 10 million compared to Q4 FY2022. The result beats all totals in the past fiscal year, with the only blemish on the record being it could have been even better for Sony. In Q3 of FY2023, it had 123 million active users, meaning it lost five million active members between individual quarters.

A new Helldivers 2 patch is here and will hopefully put the whole PlayStation Network account linking debacle to bed once and for all, as it's now been added as an explicitly "optional" setting.

The Helldivers 2 PSN debacle might be over, but a similar requirement is restricting access to Ghost of Tsushima's PC port in over 170 territories. 

Helldivers 2 developer Arrowhead has released the Polar Patriots Premium Warbond as planned after the boss of the studio polled fans on whether it should go ahead so soon after what he called “negative sentiment” over the game’s PlayStation Network account linking.

Helldivers 2 Community Manager 'Spitz' is seemingly no longer with Arrowhead Game Studios following outings he did over the now-canceled mandatory PSN account linking update.

Helldivers 2 developers are reportedly working on a new cape inspired by the account-linking controversy. While the community can breathe a sigh of relief knowing the worst of the fiasco has passed, some fans have additionally taken to sharing designs for costume accessories inspired by Helldivers 2's Steam page. Some of these designs even managed to reach the offices of developer Arrowhead Game Studios and, if one executive is to be believed, will soon hit live servers as an official cosmetic.

Being a Helldivers 2 fan has been an absolute rollercoaster over this past weekend, with the game being the most loved live service game out there, to the most hated, and back again over the course of just a few days. Most of you will know that this was down to Sony's sudden implementation of its PSN account system, requiring Helldivers 2 players on Steam to sign up for the PlayStation Network if they want to continue playing.

Helldivers 2 has been a huge hit this yea,r with a consistent player base since its launch in February and a peak of over 450,000 players. Fighting for Super Earth, players have been waging war against monstrous insects and deadly robots and laying down their lives for democracy. But the game’s reputation took a hit recently when it was announced that PC players would have to register for a PlayStation Network account to continue playing the game — a move that would have left players in parts of the world with no PSN support high and dry.

It’s been a tumultuous few days for Helldivers 2, as one of this year’s most beloved runaway hits managed to seemingly undo all of its goodwill and earn the ire of thousands of players in the blink of an eye.

After the backlash and subsequent U-turn on Helldivers 2 requiring players to link their Steam account to a PlayStation Network account, the next PlayStation flagship headed to PC has sought to reassure players that you won’t need a PSN account to play its single-player campaign. Multiplayer’s a different case, though.

In response to the recent negativity surrounding Helldivers 2 and PlayStation Network account requirements, Sucker Punch issued a statement in an attempt to clarify its use in the upcoming PC version of Ghost of Tsushima. It's been a rough few days for Arrowhead Game Studios, who took the brunt of the controversy surrounding a recent announcement that would require Helldivers 2 players to link to a PSN account. The backlash was so severe that Helldivers 2 was actively review bombed on Steam, the refund policy was changed, and ultimately, Sony issued a statement abandoning its PSN plans.

Sony has reversed a decision that would have required Helldivers 2 players to link their Steam accounts to PlayStation Network accounts.