What are the best Helldivers 2 mods? After months of silence, it looks like our dreams of Helldivers 2 mods might actually come true. It was originally thought by fans that Helldivers 2 couldn’t be modded at all due to Sony’s strict anti-cheat measures, but this may not be the case after all.
When it comes to mods, there’s always the slight possibility that you could be banned for tampering with game files. This isn’t exclusive to Helldivers 2, practically every multiplayer game follows similar rules to this, but some developers are more lax than others. Here’s what you need to know about the state of Helldivers 2 mods, including what you can use now and why there aren’t more mods available.
The best Helldivers 2 mods
Most of the mods you will find for Helldivers 2 are going to be cosmetic mods that replace models, or macro mods that make it easier to use the Helldivers 2 stratagems. The anti-cheat system used by Helldivers 2 is extremely sensitive — if you try to use anything the game believes is a cheat, you will receive a ban that stops you from playing online.
While there haven’t been any reports about players receiving a ban using the mods we’ve listed below, there’s no way to know whether the system could decide that cosmetic mods are suddenly not allowed. You have been warned.
The best mods for Helldivers 2 right now are:
- Star Wars Enemies
- Star Wars Ships
- The Mandalorian
- Clone Trooper
- Master Chief
- Stratagem Macros for Razer Devices
Star Wars Enemies
It finally happened. Helldivers 2 received the mod that most space game fans have been dreaming about since it launched. This is the first of ToastedShoes’ mods on this list, replacing the Automaton enemies with iconic Star Wars enemies. From Battle Droids to AT-RTs, ToastedShoes has successfully turned Helldivers 2 into one of the best looking Star Wars games out there.
While things might look perfect on the surface, there are a few issues with the model’s hit boxes. There are some enemies that feature replacement models where the hit boxes don’t fully align. You may miss a few shots when fighting against some of the Automaton’s bigger targets, but that’s a small price to pay to change the enemy into the Empire.
Star Wars Ships
Fly onto planets in style by replacing the Super Destroyer with the Star Destroyer, and swap out the Pelican-1 with a Republic Gunship. Another one from ToastedShoes, the Star Wars Ships mod is purely cosmetic and continues to add another layer to the Star Wars-ification of Helldivers 2. Be warned that you may need a powerful computer to utilize this mod, as ToastedShoes notes, “Noticeable pop-in is expected to be encountered, especially on weak systems”.
The Mandalorian
Complete the Star Wars look by equipping the legendary armor of Din Djarin, also known as The Mandalorian. This mod replaces the FS-05 Marksman armor and helmet, and it features an invisible cape to replace Liberty’s Herald cape. In order to use this mod, you need to set your Helldiver to the ‘lean’ body type.
Clone Trooper
To match the rest of ToastedShoes’ Star Wars mods, the Clone Trooper mod swaps out the B-01 Tactical armor and helmet for the Clone Trooper. Sadly, this armor set isn’t as prestigious as The Mandalorian, but if you don’t mind being a clone of another guy, then that’s cool too. This mod requires you to set your Helldiver’s body type to ‘brawny’ to avoid any visual issues.
Master Chief
Moving away from Star Wars, ToastedShoes has been inspired by the Halo series to bring Master Chief’s iconic armor to Helldivers 2. The Master Chief mod replaces the B-01 Tactical and FS-55 Devastator armor and helmet with John ‘Master Chief’ Halo’s legendary Spartan gear. Just like The Mandalorian mod, you also have the option of using an invisible cape to appreciate your new armor in all of its glory. You need to set your Helldiver’s body type to ‘brawny’ to use this mod without any issues.
Stratagem Macros for Razer Devices
Learning the codes for every important stratagem can be incredibly tricky, especially when you find yourself being bombarded by enemies from every angle. Fortunately, Delta616’s Stratagems Macros mod makes it easy to assign macros to your Razer Synapse 3 enabled devices.
This allows you to assign your most used stratagems to a single button press, ensuring you always get the ability you need without having to worry about any dropped inputs. The best part is that this mod can’t get you banned for using it, as it technically isn’t cheating!
Why aren’t there more Helldivers 2 mods?
As is the case with most games, as long as you aren’t actively cheating, modding is usually fine. With Helldivers 2, it looks like mod creators are being very careful as they look to avoid a swift ban from Sony. Johan Pilestedt, Arrowhead’s chief creative officer, confirmed on X (formerly known as Twitter) that players risk receiving a ban if the anti-cheat suddenly detects cosmetic mods as tampering.
Questions have been raised about why a PvE game like Helldivers 2 requires a strict anti-cheat system, but this shouldn’t come as a surprise. Not only does the co-op game feature cross-platform multiplayer between PC and PlayStation 5 players, it also offers Helldivers 2 Warbonds that feature premium currency for completing in-game challenges. If players could cheat to complete these difficult challenges, it would make it easy to earn the premium currency, and Sony definitely doesn’t want that to happen.
In addition to this, Sony is fairly new to the PC gaming space and may be reluctant to give modders so much power. In addition to this, Sony has a reputation for being strict, infamously refusing to participate in cross-platform multiplayer for years, despite Nintendo and Microsoft’s efforts to unite all platforms. While Sony ultimately backtracked on its initial decision, it isn’t as open as other publishers regarding mods.
That’s everything you need to know about the state of Helldivers 2 mods. If you consider yourself to be a decent Helldiver, you’re going to want to check out our best Helldivers 2 armor guide to ensure you’ve equipped yourself with the strongest equipment. We also have a best Helldivers 2 weapons guide if you weren’t sure which weapons you should bring with you on the battlefield.