Last year's breakout hit in the multiplayer gaming world was Arrowhead's Helldivers 2, a game that championed spreading democracy through high-octane alien and robot battles. Building on this success, Steamforged Games, fresh from their acclaimed Elden Ring board game adaptation, is now transforming Helldivers 2 into a thrilling tabletop experience. Currently available for backing on Gamefound, IGN had the opportunity to play a prototype and discuss it with the game's designers, Jamie Perkins, Derek Funkhouser, and Nicholas Yu.
Helldivers 2: The Board Game
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Shortly after the video game's launch last year, development on Helldivers 2: The Board Game began, successfully capturing the essence of the original's excitement, teamwork, and chaotic gameplay, while introducing new twists to the formula.
Helldivers 2 remains a cooperative, objective-based skirmish game, designed for one to four players (solo players are recommended to control two characters). Each player assumes the role of a unique Helldiver class, equipped with distinctive perks, action cards, and a one-use-per-game "Act of Valor" ability. The demo showcased classes like the Heavy, Sniper, Pyro, and Captain, each outfitted with primary and secondary weapons, grenades, and three strategems. While suggested loadouts are provided, experienced players can customize their gear.
Gameplay unfolds on dynamic, grid-based boards that expand as players explore, revealing sub-objectives and primary mission locations, such as Terminid hatcheries in the prototype. As exploration progresses, tougher enemies emerge, and a mission timer adds urgency to the experience, maintaining the game's fast-paced and tense atmosphere.
The prototype focused on a single objective—destroying Terminid hatcheries—but the final version will offer multiple mission types. The base game will feature two of the three main factions from the video game, the Terminids and Automatons, each with 10 distinct unit types. While not confirmed, there's potential for the Illuminate faction to appear in future expansions, given Steamforged's history with stretch goals.
A key aspect of the adaptation is how it replicates the feeling of being overwhelmed and outnumbered. Unlike games like Zombicide, which use sheer numbers, Helldivers opts for fewer but more challenging enemies, fostering a tactical approach to combat.
Turns involve players and enemies adding action cards to a pool, which are then shuffled and placed on an initiative tracker, similar to Steamforged's Elden Ring game. Combat relies on dice rolls, with every four action cards played triggering a random event that can disrupt plans, often leading to thrilling and unpredictable moments.
Combat for Helldivers involves rolling dice based on weapon type, with damage calculated from the total roll value. Every five points dealt inflicts a wound on an enemy, simplifying the combat system by eliminating the need for modifiers or hit checks. Friendly fire can occur, especially with area attacks, adding a strategic layer to gameplay.
A notable addition to the board game is the 'Massed Fire' mechanic, which encourages teamwork by allowing players within range to join in attacking the same target, mimicking the cooperative feel of the video game.
Nic explained, “In the video game, obviously, you're encouraged to work together as a team. You have a heavily armored enemy, you need to flank around and shoot at the weak points if you don't have a support weapon to deal with it. But there wasn't a really good way to do that in a board game without going to lot of facing and armor mechanics. So what we implemented was we called 'massed fire,' so when anyone shoots at a target, if that's within range of another helldivers primary, secondary target, they can also focus far with you at that time, and so you're kind of explicitly rewarded or incentivized to work as a group.”
While players can choose to explore solo, the 'Massed Fire' mechanic reduces downtime and enhances engagement during other players' turns. Enemy actions, however, are somewhat straightforward, with set damage or effects, leading to players drawing wound cards. Accumulating three wounds results in character death, though respawn options vary based on chosen difficulty, allowing players to return fully equipped.
One element missing from the board game is the galactic war feature from the video game. The designers chose to focus on creating a unique experience, positioning the board game as a training simulation for Helldivers.
Jamie shared a fun piece of lore: “We're positioning it effectively as a training simulation. So you would get this board game as a helldiver as a training simulation to learn how to be a better helldiver.” This adds an immersive touch to the game's narrative.
Despite the new medium, the designers—Nic, Jamie, and Derek—aimed to maintain the essence of Helldivers. Nic emphasized, “We wanted to make sure that even though had different mechanics, it felt like Helldivers – like we want to have unexpected things that you have to deal with from turn to turn. We want to have stratagems that could go awry and actually blow up your friends in addition to the enemies. The pool of reinforcements that dwindles as you go through the game and calling in stratagems, those are things that feel uniquely Helldivers.”
Derek added, “We knew we needed to keep the core loop of what Helldivers is with the mission objectives, and just being able to chase the shiny, right? We've got points of interest and sub-objectives and the objectives to uncover and find, while also having to deal with enemies that are, you know, trying to eat you.”
Currently, the game's core mechanics are about 75-80% finalized, leaving room for community feedback and further adjustments. Jamie addressed concerns about recent tariffs affecting the board gaming industry, assuring that Steamforged's plans remain unchanged.
After playing the prototype, the systems in place are engaging, particularly the random events and the 'Massed Fire' mechanic, which lead to memorable moments. However, while the tactical focus with larger, more challenging enemies is appreciated, I found myself missing the sheer volume of smaller enemies to mow down, a hallmark of the video game experience. Additionally, enemy attacks feel somewhat static, and introducing varied outcomes via dice rolls could enhance this aspect.
I'm excited to see what other surprises Steamforged Games has in store for Helldivers 2. The prototype has left me eager to explore new Helldiver classes, mission types, and combinations with different enemies and biomes. My friends and I are already planning our next drop.
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