Helldivers 2 is now the fastest-selling PlayStation Studios game ever, with over 12 million copies sold across PlayStation 5 and Windows PC
Helldivers 2 rises to the top as the fastest-selling PlayStation Studios game ever, with 12 million copies sold since launch.
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Helldivers 2has crossed 12 million copies sold as of May 5, 2024, as shared during a Sony earnings call and reiterated by Arrowhead Game Studios CEO Johan Pilestedt viaTwitter.
“It’s crazy to think that there are more Helldivers than there are Swedes,” he wrote. “What a massive achievement from everyone involved in realizing @Helldivers2. A massive thank you to the community for your support, passion and dedication in the fight for democracy! All love.”
This makes Helldivers 2 the latest game to lay claim to the crown of being the fastest-selling PlayStation Studios game ever. Previous claimants included The Last of Us Part 2 in 2020, which reached 4 million copies sold in its first three days, as well as Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 in 2023, which crossed 2.5 million copies sold in its first 24 hours. Obviously, the definite “winner” depends on exactly what timeframe is being compared, but with Helldivers 2 being measured over a course of months, not days, its success is indisputable.
Helldivers 2 was thebest-selling game of February 2024 in the U.S, per Circana, with the firm also confirming it was thesecond best-selling game of March 2024in the U.S. Unlike manyPlayStation Studios games on Windows PC, which are ported a year or two after the initial console launch, Helldivers 2 was available from day one on both PlayStation 5 and PC.
PlayStation leadership is also changing soon
Alongside this big win comes big shake-ups, with a change in how PlayStation leadership structure works. Following the departure ofSony Interactive Entertainment CEO Jim Ryan earlier this year, Sony hasannouncedRyan’ssuccessors. Yes, plural.
Hermen Hulst, head of PlayStation Studios, is set to become CEO of the new Studio Business Group, which encompasses PlayStation’s first-party games business, as well as PlayStation Productions film and TV efforts. Meanwhile, Hideaki Nishino, a 16-year veteran at PlayStation, will be CEO of the new Platform Business Group, encompasses relationships with third-party developers, as well as hardware, features, and networks.
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These changes are set to take place on June 1, 2024, with Sony president Hiroki Totoki retaining his role as chairman of Sony Interactive Entertainment. Both Nishino and Hulst will report to Totoki moving forward.
Analysis: A much-needed live service win
Helldivers 2 has been a gargantuan success, and it’s one that’s sorely needed after many of PlayStation’s various live-service ventures have fizzled out, including the now-cancelled The Last of Us Online at Naughty Dog and the fantasy multiplayer game at London Studio, the latter of which wasrecently shuttered in a brutal round of cuts that saw 900 PlayStation employees laid off.
With Firewalk Studios' first-person shooter Concord slated to launch later this year, I expect we will continue to see more and more of an emphasis on PlayStation games launching on PC as well as console day one, including future single-player games.
Samuel Tolbert is a freelance writer covering gaming news, previews, reviews, interviews and different aspects of the gaming industry, specifically focusing on Xbox and PC gaming on Windows Central. You can find him on Twitter@SamuelTolbert.
