Helldivers 2 Players Have Succeeded in Wiping Automatons From the Galactic Map, but What Comes Next?

Helldivers 2 players have completed their mission to completely eradicate the Automaton threat from the galaxy map, leaving many to wonder what new threat might arise to imperil Super Earth and stem the spread of managed democracy.

“You did it, Helldivers,” read a post from the game’s official X/Twitter account on Sunday. “Operation Swift Disassembly was a success! With the bots eradicated and bugs contained, the galaxy is free once more.”

Operation Swift Disassembly was the name given to the latest Major Order in the galactic-level war playing out in Helldivers 2, which sought to wrestle the last remaining hostile planets from Automaton control.

Following the success of the operation, players have once again returned to the Eastern front to wage war on the bug-like Terminids, which were contained to the outer systems in an earlier phase of the digital war, in which players were called upon to activate enormous “termicide” dispensing towers. With one faction penned in and the other pushed off the map entirely, many have been left pondering what the next curveball might be in the fight for galactic dominat… er, freedom.

You did it, Helldivers. Operation Swift Disassembly was a success! With the bots eradicated and bugs contained, the galaxy is free once more. pic.twitter.com/W7GolbDmHW

— HELLDIVERS™ 2 (@helldivers2) April 7, 2024

“Oh hell no something bad is about to happen haha,” wrote Reddit user GoatFarmer24 on a post discussing the victory. “Obviously this isn’t the end of the Automatons, or the bugs,” agreed Redditor CardiologistRoyal79. “But something tells me everything is about to go absolutely ****ing insane.”

Some among the suspicious yet jubilant playerbase have taken to social media to suggest that developer Arrowhead Studios may take the opportunity to introduce a new faction to the game – a technologically advanced faction from the original Helldivers known simply as the Illuminati.

The Illuminate faction was absent from the game at launch, but since then a number of strange sightings and occurances have left many in the community convinced that their appearance on the Helldivers 2 galactic stage is simply a matter of time. Last month, a number of players reported getting struck by strange beams of energy fired by a hidden combatant in a manner that was reminiscent of the Illuminate from the first game. Then, following the liberation of the infamous warzone of Malevelon Creek, players began to report sightings of mysterious cloaked warships in orbit around Automaton worlds.

Beyond that, models for the Illuminate faction have seemingly already been leaked, prompting Arrowhead CEO Johan Pilestedt to take on the role of a Super Earth propagandist to tweet “blue beams aren’t real, it can’t hurt you.”

Of course, it’s also possible that Arrowhead – and its appointed game master, Joel – could have something completely different lined up for the Helldivers. For example players have already discovered the remains of enormous burrowing creatures on Terminid worlds, and we know for a fact that the developers aren’t afraid to stealthily introduce an entirety new type of enemy, as evidenced by the sudden addition of flying bugs late last month.

Regardless, the latest Major Order has seen hundreds of thousands of Helldivers descend on the Draco and Mirin sectors to clear land for the construction of Terminid farms. Why not check out IGN’s Helldivers 2 wiki to read about the best end-game loadouts as you wait for the next major development, or catch up on the new Democratic Detonation premium warbond, which launched earlier this week?

Anthony is a freelance contributor covering science and video gaming news for IGN. He has over eight years experience of covering breaking developments in multiple scientific fields and absolutely no time for your shenanigans. Follow him on Twitter @BeardConGamer