Helldivers 2 major order challenges players to scrap 2 billion bots, but Super Earth warns it'll be much harder than last time

(Image credit: Arrowhead Game Studios)

A few weeks ago, Super Earth offered Helldivers 2 players two new stratagems and let them decide which one to unlock by voting with their guns. The winner was the Airburst Rocket Launcher, beating out the less flashy Anti-Tank Mines by a super mile. It was the correct choice, given how satisfying the Airburst's scattershot explosions are, but Super Earth has granted us another opportunity to complete the pair.

"Following the tragic, unavoidable loss of MD-17 Anti-Tank Mines on Choohe to the Automatons, and the civilians too, production began elsewhere immediately," reads a new in-game dispatch. "The Helldivers are ordered to conduct a forceful, large-scale decommissioning of Automaton forces. The recovered scrap of dismantled bots will then be put toward the construction of MD-17 Anti-Tank Mines."

"Large-scale" indeed. The new major order asks that we scrap two billion bots in five days. At the time of writing, daytime divers have gotten a headstart with over 40 million bots slain so far.

helldivers 2 — (Image credit: Arrowhead Game Studios)

Now, before you cite our victorious two billion bug campaign a few weeks back, it's important to know that particular accomplishment was apparently due to a bug (the code kind) that recorded more Terminid kills than we actually earned. That bug has now been fixed, and Arrowhead says we should expect this order to be much harder as a result.

Still, we got this. After a few weeks of TCS tower malfunctions in Terminid space, I'm in the mood for Automaton huntin'. The major order is also a good excuse to try new Polar Patriots weapons against the other faction—the Tenderizer assault rifle is pretty bland so far, but I'm hearing great things about the Pummeler SMG and its uncanny ability to stagger basically everything.

Morgan has been writing for PC Gamer since 2018, first as a freelancer and currently as a staff writer. He has also appeared on Polygon, Kotaku, Fanbyte, and PCGamesN. Before freelancing, he spent most of high school and all of college writing at small gaming sites that didn't pay him. He's very happy to have a real job now. Morgan is a beat writer following the latest and greatest shooters and the communities that play them. He also writes general news, reviews, features, the occasional guide, and bad jokes in Slack. Twist his arm, and he'll even write about a boring strategy game. Please don't, though.