Helldivers 2 developer Arrowhead has created a “slim” model of its explosive co-op third-person shooter that massively reduces its file dimension on PC.
For a while now PC players have complained about Helldivers 2’s bloated set up dimension on PC, and Arrowhead not too long ago outlined plans to convey it nearer to the scale of the console model. In a put up on Steam, Arrowhead stated it had labored with Sony-owned PC port specialist Nixxes to attain its purpose ahead of anticipated, decreasing the PC set up dimension from 154GB to 23GB for a whole saving of 131GB (85%).
Arrowhead has now rolled out this slim model of Helldivers 2 as a part of a public technical beta, which PC gamers are free to choose into. “Our testing exhibits that for the small share of gamers nonetheless utilizing mechanical arduous disk drives, mission loading instances have solely elevated by a few seconds within the worst instances,” Arrowhead defined.
The studio had warned that altering the file dimension of Helldivers 2 may need elevated load instances by a issue of 10 — certainly that’s why it duplicates knowledge with replace releases. Nevertheless it seems that its worst case projections didn’t come to cross.
“These loading time projections had been primarily based on trade knowledge — evaluating the loading instances between SSD and HDD customers the place knowledge duplication was and was not used,” Arrowhead defined. “Within the worst instances, a 5x distinction was reported between situations that used duplication and those who didn’t. We had been being very conservative and doubled that projection once more to account for unknown unknowns.
“Now issues are completely different. We have now actual measurements particular to our recreation as a substitute of trade knowledge. We now know that the true variety of gamers actively enjoying HD2 on a mechanical HDD was round 11% over the past week (appears our estimates weren’t so dangerous in spite of everything). We now know that, opposite to most video games, the vast majority of the loading time in Helldivers 2 is due to level-generation relatively than asset loading. This stage technology occurs in parallel with loading belongings from the disk and so is the principle figuring out issue of the loading time. We now know that that is true even for customers with mechanical HDDs.”
As soon as the beta confirms no points, Arrowhead will roll out the slim model of Helldivers 2 to all gamers and make it the default model for everybody. Assuming all goes easily, the legacy model might be discontinued a while subsequent yr.
The slim model arrives concurrently Helldivers 2’s large 5.0.0 patch in addition to its jungle-themed Python Commandos Warbond, which provides a variety of fan-requested weapons together with a minigun.
Wesley is Director, Information at IGN. Discover him on Twitter at @wyp100. You possibly can attain Wesley at wesley_yinpoole@ign.com or confidentially at wyp100@proton.me.