Sony turned it around. Helldivers 2 won’t require a PSN account after massive criticism

• The game has been removed from Steam in 177 countries due to an update
• Sony backed down after a wave of criticism, signing in to a PSN account will not be necessary

It was announced on PlayStation’s official Twitter that the update, which was scheduled for May 6, has been canceled after a wave of negative feedback from the community. Gamers resorted to bombarding the game’s reviews on Steam, causing one of the most acclaimed titles of the year to drop to mostly negative reviews. The following is written in the statement:

Helldivers fans – we’ve heard your thoughts on the account linking update for Helldivers 2. The May 6th update, which required new players and existing players to link their Steam and PlayStation Network accounts starting May 30th, will not be happening.

We’re always learning what’s best for PC gamers, and your feedback is invaluable. Thanks again for your continued support of Helldivers 2 and we’ll keep you posted on future plans.

The biggest problem was the fact that the game was pulled from over 177 countries due to the update, so players lost access to it. Even before the decision was overturned, Johan Pilestedt, Creative Director and CEO of Arrowhead, took to Twitter to comment on the whole situation. In response to a question from one of the fans who asked what they should do now that the game is unavailable, Pilestedt blankly replied, “I don’t know.” It was clear from the start that this decision was out of Arrowhead’s hands and came directly from Sony. However, once the update is cancelled, it will likely be a matter of time before the game returns to Steam in the affected countries.