Helldivers 2’s two-person reloading needs to refine its mechanics

Helldivers 2 has an incredibly useful cooperative mechanic that could turn the tide of battle, but how it currently works makes it far too niche to be popular.

Helldivers 2 has a lot of opportunities for players to work together to accomplish their goals, including a way for two teammates to join forces to reload some of the game’s most powerful weapons like the Recoilless Rifle.

Doing so gives the next a shot big damage boost that can be a huge help in the midst of battle. It can help Helldivers 2 players take out dropships and other bigger targets in a matter of seconds.

However, this involves one player using the weapon while the other has to bring an Ammo Pack with them to supply the ammo whenever needed.

Arrowhead Game Studios

This relegates the second person to the role of a “reloader,” which which is hardly an appealing job, and doesn’t feel like the mechanic can achieve its potential as a result.

In addition, when the ammo has to be carried by another person, the whole mechanic kind of breaks down. Helldivers 2 is a fast game, with enemies coming at you constantly, so when the person wielding the weapon has to rely on someone else to reload, it can be difficult to manage.

Plus, no one wants to follow another person around the whole time as if they were some kind of golf caddy. It’s a restricting role that feels counterintuitive to what the game does best.

Luckily, it feels like there is an easy solution: let players carry their own backpack to supply their ammo.

Sure, it would do away with the cooperative aspect of the process, but that’s worth sidelining in favor of giving players more freedom.

If a person has their own backpack, it can be balanced out by the fact that they have to use a Stratagem slot to call the backpack in. This forces players to decide to go this route or go for a loadout with more variety.

As it stands, Helldivers 2 has a conflict with how the cooperative reloading works that is forcing one of the game’s most useful boosts to be neglected. But with a little tweaking, hopefully, the game can take full advantage of a great tool.