Helldivers 2 has earned itself a pretty impressive legacy during its tenure on PC and PlayStation 5. It has achieved the amazing feat of shrugging off the immensely negative sentiments towards live service games that permeate throughout much of the gaming community. Furthermore, Helldivers 2 also just offers an incredibly engrossing and enjoyable gameplay loop that people are still thoroughly enjoying to this day.
Of course, Xbox fans have wanted to be able to play Helldivers 2 ever since the impressive word of mouth got to their ears. Naturally, it felt like that would never happen, as Sony has always been fairly reticent to port PlayStation games to its competitor’s platforms, even despite there being so many Xbox games on PS5. However, in an amazing twist of fate, the impossible has happened. Unfortunately, it may give Xbox fans a false sense of hope.
PlayStation Is Porting Helldivers 2 To Xbox
It Is Finally Leaving The Nest
It is astonishingly true. Helldivers 2 is coming to Xbox after over a year on PlayStation and PC. Amazingly, Xbox users don’t have long to wait either, as it is dropping on August 26, 2025. Naturally, it won’t be coming to Xbox Game Pass, but slow and steady wins the race. Let’s not rush PlayStation just yet. Helldivers 2 coming to Xbox makes a lot of sense though, especially considering its live service nature, which lives and dies based on its player count.
While there are a lot fewer people on Xbox than there are on PlayStation or PC, it still has a large community of fans that are eager for their next live service obsession. PlayStation bringing Helldivers 2 over only helps to build its player base, especially as it will be cross-platform. It’s a logical move, one that will benefit both sides very well, although one that likely won’t be repeated, at least any time soon. Helldivers 2 really feels like it will be the first and last PlayStation exclusive ported to Xbox.
Xbox Fans Shouldn’t Expect More PlayStation Exclusives
Helldivers 2 Will Likely Be An Exception
Helldivers 2 is very much a unique case when it comes to PS5 games being ported to other consoles. As mentioned, its live service nature means that PlayStation will constantly be looking for ways to expand its player base, as once it runs dry, there won’t be anyone left to buy Helldivers 2’s Warbonds. Putting it on Xbox future proofs it for a few more years, enabling Sony to figure out what it actually wants to do with all of its seemingly doomed-to-fail live service games.
After having been used to the amazing value proposition Xbox Game Pass provides, people aren’t really keen on spending full-price for Xbox games anymore.
However, beyond that, Helldivers 2 will likely prove that Xbox users’ spending habits have changed drastically. After having been used to the amazing value proposition Xbox Game Pass provides, people aren’t really keen on spending full-price for Xbox games anymore. Final Fantasy 16 underperformed when it went cross-platform, despite Square Enix blaming the PlayStation exclusivity for its apparent commercial failure.
While Helldivers 2 will likely sell better than most games, it could also underperform thanks to it skipping Xbox Game Pass. Even if it does do better than expected, games sell better on PS5 than they do on Xbox, especially single-player titles. With a dwindling player count and an overreliance on Game Pass that has forced its user base to become accustomed and dependent on renting games rather than buying them, there’s little incentive for PlayStation to port to Xbox.
Related
“We Are Cooking”: Helldivers 2 Shares Warbond Announcement Date & “Exciting News To Come”
New content for Helldivers 2 has slowed to a crawl, but the developers have assured everyone that they’ve got plenty of stuff in store.
This is a problem for all developers, not just Sony. A lot of developers are seemingly skipping Xbox in favor of its competitors. Microsoft largely admitted this in a blog post that addresses how it is investing heavily in asking developers “If you aren’t on Xbox, we’d love to know why.” Of course, while PlayStation will likely avoid porting more games to Xbox, there is still a way for Xbox players to access all of its exclusives.
Xbox Users Can Still Access Some PS Exclusives
Via Steam On PC Game Pass
Xbox is already rolling out a feature that allows users to access their Steam library via the Xbox PC app. All it does is allow you to collate your collection in one place, but the games still launch via the Steam app. Still, for users who own the many PlayStation exclusives available on Steam, this technically allows you to play PlayStation games via Steam. Of course, that’s not quite the same, but still, it’s pretty nifty.
However, it could get even better, as Xbox looks to integrate Steam into its consoles. In a blog post from March, Xbox’s VP of Global Partnerships, Leo Olebe discussed how it is planning on incorporating the Xbox infrastructure into every device possible. An image showcasing a new, simplified UI was put at the top of the post, and, crucially, there was a tab for Steam games. That image has, coincidentally since been replaced with one lacking the aforementioned Steam tab.
Related
After 7 Years In Development, Xbox’s “AAAA” Game Has Been Canceled
Microsoft is undergoing a major restructuring, and one of Xbox’s most interesting projects unfortunately doesn’t appear to be surviving the changes.
Of course, this implies rather heavily that players will be able to remotely access their Steam library through their Xbox console. That would mean that they’d be able to play the likes of Marvel’s Spider-Man, Horizon Zero Dawn, Ghost of Tsushima, The Last of Us, and more, on their Xbox. It all remains to be seen how it will work out, but if Xbox does successfully integrate Steam into its consoles, then users could be playing a lot more than just Helldivers 2.
Source: Microsoft (1), (2)
Helldivers 2
9/10
- Released
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February 8, 2024
- ESRB
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M For Mature 17+ Due To Blood and Gore, Intense Violence
- Developer(s)
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Arrowhead Game Studios
- Publisher(s)
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Sony
- Engine
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bitsquid
