There’s no denying the brilliance of Helldivers 2’s satire, sharing the same flippant tone with Bethesda’s Fallout sequence. This route makes fascinating gameplay within the shooter, as comrades don’t know whether or not to snicker or cry throughout campaigns in opposition to the Terminids and Automatons. Due to this fact, it’s good to listen to that the inspiration behind the sequel’s angle attracts from numerous sources.
What was as soon as the projected sport of the 12 months, Helldivers 2 has been battling controversy these days relating to territory bans, and the fanbase wasted no time in turning up the warmth. Whereas Arrowhead navigates a path by way of this rocky terrain, a former lead author for the shooter weighed in on the popular culture stimulus chargeable for inspiring the successor’s tongue-in-cheek writing.
Helldivers 2 Calls Upon Science-Fiction And Actual-Life Satire
Offering perception throughout an interview with Inverse, Russ Nickel recalled well-liked literature, revolving round “dystopian stuff”, that intrigued him as a child the identical method the vitality of Helldivers 2 invited avid gamers. “I beloved a variety of dystopian stuff since I used to be a child. Fahrenheit 451, 1984, and V for Vendetta, have been all formative for me. Even the trashier stuff, just like the movie Equilibrium, all of these sci-fi dystopias that attempt to dissect how this dystopia got here to be are very a lot part of my DNA.”
It’s no secret that Helldivers 2 has been in comparison with the visuals and style belonging to science-fiction motion pictures Starship Troopers and Robocop, however Nickel additionally “pulled from actual life” and collaborated with fellow author, Stephen Flowers, to repurpose a number of the satire present in on a regular basis matters.
A extra particular pocket of real-world battle used to gas the unique Helldivers sport stemmed from George W. Bush’s service. Nickel defined: “The unique sport was very a lot impressed by the weapons of mass destruction, George W. Bush-era stuff. So I used to be seeking to replace that. As a author I do imagine that you must simply put the work on the market after which let the viewers discover the inspiration and the parallels and stuff.”
Dungeons & Dragons And Improv Go Hand-In-Hand
In relation to world-building, Nickel was fast to spotlight American excessive fantasy and science-fiction author, Brandon Sanderson, as his “go-to individual”. Nickel continued: “I believe he is a world-building grasp and that is why he is so profitable. I’ve watched so a lot of his lectures on tips on how to world-build.”
The interviewer referenced Westworld, evaluating the HBO present’s “convolutedness”, fuelled by writers studying Reddit threads, to Arrowhead’s stability between “writer company” and participant suggestions relating to the Malevolen Creek carnage.
Referring to Helldivers 2’s distinct comedy, Nickel talked about that he and Flowers share the same humorousness and even revealed that the writers have been as soon as roommates and carried out improv collectively.
Lastly, well-liked tabletop RPG, Dungeons and Dragons, was additionally listed as a driving pressure behind the sport design for Helldivers 2 with Nickel being a dungeon grasp. “…I believe being a DM has been so useful for sport writing. You construct the sandbox with plans, however you’ve to have the ability to let go of these plans. I like how collaborative it’s. It is so loopy to me that proper now there is a dungeon grasp who’s taking part in a sport with 10 million folks, they usually’re all collaborating on a narrative.”
