“Truth Enforcers” leaves a big debate on chemical warfare hanging

As the end of 2024 approaches, Helldivers 2 introduced eight new premium warbonds since the game's initial release in February of this year. Of these new War Bonds, Chemical Agents was the only premium War Bond to include Stratagems, effectively locking them behind a paywall. While Helldivers 2The sequel to Chemical Agents did not include Stratagems, but the Chemical Agents Warbond still leaves the door open for future Warbonds that include Stratagems.

While the Stratagems featured in Chemical Agents Warbond are considered niche compared to the current Stratagem meta, the decision to lock Stratagems behind a paywall has almost become another controversy Helldivers 2with concerns that this could turn the game into a pay-to-win game. Despite the initial backlash that came from it Helldivers 2 When adding Stratagems to Premium War Bonds, there are arguably more benefits to this recurring trend than risks.

Helldivers 2's Chemical Agents Warbond opens the door for additional stratagems to appear in future Warbonds

Chemical Agents was the first premium warbond in Helldivers 2 So far, stratagems have not been taken into account, which initially raised concerns Helldivers 2 could move towards a pay-to-win model. However, these two stratagems are the TX-41 sterilizer and the AX/TX-13 “Guard Dog” Dog Breath are probably not a cause for concern as they are considered niche compared to the current Stratagem meta Helldivers 2. Ultimately, there are valid arguments in both directions as to whether Warbond-exclusive Stragems could be beneficial to the game in the long run, but so far it seems like the benefits of this approach outweigh the potential risks.

The pros and cons of Helldivers 2's future War Bonds, including Stratagems

Advantages

• Stratagems increase the value of War Bonds without increasing their price.
• Premium Super Credits can be earned through natural gameplay.
• Premium War Bonds aren't the only way to earn Stratagems.
• Premium War Bonds are permanently available.
• Premium War Bonds are optional content.

Disadvantages

• It's a slow process to earn enough Super Credits for a Premium Warbond solely through gameplay.
• Stratagems becoming a regular addition to War Bonds could result in an increase in the price of Premium War Bonds.

On the one hand, Stratagems are some of the best weapons around Helldivers 2so that adding it to future War Bonds increases the value of the War Bond without increasing the price. Not to mention that players can earn the premium currency Helldivers 2Great credits, of course through gameplay. Premium War Bonds aren't the only source of Stratagems either Helldivers 2Major contracts occasionally offer combat rewards for successful completion.

Collect super samples in
Helldivers 2

can be a slow process as players typically only collect 10 Super Samples per pickup, although there is a rare chance for players to find a stack of 100 Super Samples.

On the other hand, Helldivers 2 already has a price, and locking increasingly sought-after items like Stratagems behind paywalls can be frustrating for players who have already purchased the game. If these Stratagems immediately become the new meta, if the price of future War Bonds increases significantly, or both, adding Stratagems to War Bonds could potentially be postponed Helldivers 2 to the always controversial pay-to-win format. However, these are incredibly big “ifs” and so far there is no concrete evidence that this will ever come true.

So despite the strong initial reaction to Warbonds with Stratagems, it's possible that this will become a trend in future updates Helldivers 2and a harmless one at that. Since the “Chemical Agents” warbond has already let the cat out of the bag without being too problematic, the regular addition of stratagems to future warbonds is probably not a cause for concern.