Helldivers 2 is a game about dictators, but that doesn't automatically crown you as one. Design director Niklas Malmborg thinks you should actually loosen up about how you play – for the sake of Democracy. "Like, we had in the beginning of the game with like, 'Oh, you didn't bring a Railgun to the lobby?'" Malmborg says about the support weapon many players felt they couldn't conquer the galaxy without. "And then you got kicked, because they're like, 'Oh no, you're just making bad choices.'" Helldivers 2 studio Arrowhead has an entire "Meta" team internally, but they aren't in charge of the best guns: "They define the rules of the whole game, and you’ll find your beloved Game Masters in this" "I'm not sure if I should go into this": Helldivers 2 nerfs the beloved Coyote, devs say "we tried to keep it as intact as we possibly could" but didn't want one "obviously" best gun Helldivers 2 boss says "realism is not the goal" and "player fantasy matters more," but Arrowhead is still careful to remember that "it needs to be Helldivers" But committing to one weapon like this ensures that each Helldivers 2 session starts "becoming the same, all of the time," says Malmborg. "For you, there's not a big toolbox. There's just a small toolbox, which you will get tired of. And those players might go then, "Well, bring everything else up so I can play my power game. My bigger power fantasy than everyone else power fantasy.'" "At some point we have to say, 'Game is good here. Shake hands,'" the director continues about developer Arrowhead's approach to gameplay balance. "That's what we're trying to achieve. And it's because of all the things that happens when you don't achieve it." "You might all only notice it when the community turns toxic," Malmborg observes, "and then you say, 'Ah it used to be a good community here, but now it's just toxic.'" Helldivers 2 High Command gets passive aggressive over how much we suck on magma planets, but don't worry, at least the Killzone collab is returning.