(Image credit: Arrowhead)
Long before Helldivers 2 emerged as a worldwide sensation, its creative lead had a pivotal discussion with his team to craft a design ethos he believed would lead them to wealth.
At GDC, Helldivers 2 director Johan Pilestedt recounted an influential moment from his gaming career, born of a debate with CTO Anton Stenmark. Reflecting on his time working on Magicka, a magic-themed series by Arrowhead Game Studios, Pilestedt shared, “I told him ‘if I launch a massive rock at an enemy and it doesn’t kill them, we must ensure the rock has an impact. Can’t we have it bounce unexpectedly?'”
Though Stenmark agreed to implement the feature, he cautioned, “it’s just a singular physical projectile; it might never hit anything.” Yet for Pilestedt, the potential – “even one in a hundred million” – was worthwhile. Stenmark then integrated this new element into Magicka.
About two months later, that decision bore fruit. Pilestedt observed a play-tester from the Magicka team aiming a rock at a foe, retreating fearfully, only for the rock to ingeniously land back, creating a dramatic scene. It was then Pilestedt realized, “this works. I think we’re gonna be rich someday.” This occurrence convinced the studio of the strength behind the ‘it could happen’ design approach.
Ultimately, Pilestedt’s foresight proved correct. The unpredictable chaos of Helldivers 2‘s gameplay, where inadvertent explosions launch players or grenades accidentally hit back at them, fueled buzz that rocketed the game to success. Despite a rocky start post-release, Helldivers 2 solidified its triumph for Arrowhead. Perhaps that journey started with just one whimsical rock.
In an amusing twist, Pilestedt advised launch players to hold off buying until server issues stabilized, remarking how “within 5 minutes I got a call from the friendly folks at PlayStation inquiring what I was thinking.”