The recent patch for Helldivers 2 has received praise from some players for fixing balance issues, but the community has expressed its disdain regarding one issue. The melee support weapon “One True Flag” has undergone some radical changes; thus, disappointing players who relied on its astonishingly insane power. A user on Reddit with the name PickledAsbestos stated that now, the flag has become almost worthless against certain armored foes.
It was once a bug when the flag did continuous damage to armored enemies heavily, like the strong Chargers. During the meantime, players used the flag to damage-over-time but with unintended consequences: it gave them some bonus against armored threats. Now this gameplay loop where players would use the flag like a lance, provided a unique and fun way to address some of the toughest challenges this game throws at you; however, the mid-July update fixed this loophole, allowing the Chargers to ignore the flag altogether.
The inconsistency is, quite understandably, annoying players immensely. While Chargers are now immune to flag damage, mechs, which are also armored, are not. There are complaints about the reasoning behind such inconsistencies and whether this change was warranted, as for many, the bugged flag was one of the game’s joys.
Arrowhead Game Studios, the developer, have yet to reply to player opinions. It remains to be seen if they reconsider its functionality. This is extremely relevant because the console will release on Xbox Series X/S this month, thus ensuring new players will miss the flag’s brief moment of meta relevance.