Helldivers 2 boss explains why 500kg bombs ‘miss,’ but I still have questions

When it comes to bang for your buck, the 500kg bomb is the best Helldivers 2 stratagem. Precise. Big explosion. Fast call in time. If you get it in just the right spot, the Eagle stratagem is absolutely devastating. It doesn’t have the widest radius, but that just means you can bask in the glow of bug guts to your heart’s content. So why is it sometimes tricky? Well, the boss behind Helldivers 2 has now explained it, but I still have questions.

With so many Helldivers 2 stratagems to choose from and far too many of them making big explosions, it can be difficult to pick just a few for your loadout in the co-op game. The 500kg bomb is always on my list, but I do have to admit that it has some quirks in Helldivers 2 – which I can’t be sure are deliberate or not.

This sentiment is shared by many, as one player had the chance to ask Arrowhead CCO Johan Pilestedt, who just stepped down as CEO, about the stratagem after his talk at the recent Nordic Game conference.

During the question and answer session after Pilestedt’s presentation, the player jokingly asks him who’s responsible for dropping the 500kg on your own feet, rather than the enemies.

“Don’t ask [a plane] to drop a bomb just below a shelf, right?” Pilestedt says while miming how the 500kg bomb is dropped at an angle. “Don’t stand on that shelf at that point. It just makes sense. I’ve done it myself, been blown up by my own creation.”

You can watch the question and answer at the 5:21:25 mark in the stream below.

The long and short of the 500kg bomb is this: a plane swoops in and drops the bomb at an angle, so if there’s something in the way of your stratagem drop point the bomb will hit that and explode in the wrong spot.

My issue is, and I’d love to hear from Pilestedt if he reads this, you don’t reliably know where the Eagle is going to come in from. Unless you’re in a largely flat area, that could cause some problems. The last thing you want is for a big rock or cliff to be in the way of the Eagle’s entry point and for it to completely miss your drop zone.

It is worth noting that the radius for the 500kg bomb’s explosion is a lot smaller than the size of the eruption would have you believe, so you’ve got to be good with your aim.

While none of them can save you from a 500kg bomb dropping right on your dome, there are some great Helldivers 2 armors to choose from that aren’t purely cosmetic, and with a lot of guns to choose from we’ve already broken down the best Helldivers 2 weapons for any situation.

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