Helldivers 2 Battle Pass (Warbonds) explained
Helldivers 2 is now out in the wild and despite a few bugs, the general reception has been generally favorable. The third-person squad-based shooter — a sequel to 2015's top-down shooter — is priced at an affordable $39.99 for the base edition but, as a live-service game, does include in-game microtransations.
Chief among these microtransactions is a battle pass system which comes with many questions. The Helldivers 2 Season Pass is referred to in the game as "Warbonds."
There are two types of Warbonds tracks in the game. There's the Helldivers Mobilize Warbond, which is the equivalent of a free season pass, and the Steeled Veterans Premium Warbond, which is the premium paid season pass.
So what's the difference between these two and do you need to purchase the Premium Warbonds to enjoy Helldivers 2?
What's included in the Warbonds?
Both free and premium Warbonds includes a variety of in-game items that you can unlock with medals that are earned by completing missions. By spending these medals, you can unlock things like new armor with special perks, new weapons and guns, grenades, emotes and more.
Each Warbond is divided into multiple pages of items. You must spend a minimum amount of medals on the first page before you can progress to the next and start unlocking new items on that one.
The Helldivers Mobilize Warbond is completely free and available to anyone who owns Helldivers 2. As you play the game and earn medals, you'll eventually be able to unlock everything in this battle pass.
The Steeled Veterans Premium Warbonds costs 1,000 Super Credits ($9.99) to unlock. Like the free Warbond pass, you must still spend Medals to unlock the content in the Steeled Veterans Premium Warbonds pass. This version also includes weapons, armor, grenades and other digital goodies.
While some may argue this makes the game "pay to win," the general consensus is the items in the Premium Warbond aren't very good, so technically you'll be fine if you stick to the free pass. That being said, some people like to collect everything and feel they are missing out on the overall game experience if they don't access this Premium track.
Can you unlock the Steeled Veterans Premium Warbond without paying real money?
Theoretically, you should be able to unlock the Steeled Veterans Premium Warbond without spending real money, but it may take some time.
Some of the pages in the free Helldivers Mobilize Warbond offer the ability to unlock Super Credits. You can also find Super Credits while out on missions, so be on the lookout while exploring these hostile planets. While it may take some grinding, you should eventually accumulate enough Super Credits to purchase the premium pass without spending any actual real money.
How important is the Premium Warbond?
As I mentioned, the items themselves in the Premium Warbond aren't considered overpowered. In fact, many believe they are quire weak, especially compared to the free items. To that end, it's not terribly important that you unlock the Premium Warbond.
Helldivers 2 is still a very fun game regardless of season pass content. You may miss out on some extra weapons and emotes, but none of it should impact your enjoyment with the game.
The other good news is that Warbonds don't expire. So if you choose to wait to purchase the Premium Warbond right now, you should be able to do so at a later date without fear of missing out on anything.