Video Games

Helldivers 2 players are hungry for more WW1-themed weapons after tasting the glory of bayonet charges

The R-2124 Constitution may be old, but it’s still lethal

Marco Wutz

Arrowhead / Sony

What weapon could drive home the satirical theme of Helldivers 2 even more than the ones that are already in the game? How about a World War 1-inspired bolt action rifle with a bayonet? Yes, that sounds great, developer Arrowhead thought, and provided the R-2124 Constitution to players for free.

A “reproduction of the old M1903 service rifle used in ancient times, it is fairly ineffective in combat but is used within the Super Earth Armed Forces as a ceremonial rifle,” the description of the gun reads. “Every citizen is issued one once they turn sixteen to encourage service.”

Any Helldiver rushing into combat with this thing over the weekend can probably vouch for that ineffectiveness in ranged battles, but at the same time players seem to be enchanted with the rifle’s bayonet, enabling them to get up close and personal with the enemies of Super Earth – and stab them. Repeatedly. The only thing missing now is a dedicated charge mechanic that allows players to mount the bayonet, spring forward, and automatically attack the first enemies they hit for some extra damage.

Many Helldivers 2 players now yearn for more World War 1-themed weaponry as well as melee armaments in general – a sword plus pistol would go pretty hard, for example.

There is some discussion around the weapon’s perceived power level, as many users think that it’s too weak in ranged combat, even for a meme weapon. No matter how powerful it is, this bayoneted rifle is a perfect addition to your glorious Helldivers 2 Death Korps of Krieg loadout.

In any case, it looks like Arrowhead has recaptured some of the magic it lost throughout the year with Helldivers 2: The community seems happy and engaged, surprise developments land, and the seemingly endless cycle of negativity around the game has largely disappeared.

More content for Helldivers 2 is on the way with the Truth Enforcers Warbond, which will be out on October 31, 2024, for PC and PS5.

Published
Marco Wutz
MARCO WUTZ

Marco Wutz is a writer from Parkstetten, Germany. He has a degree in Ancient History and a particular love for real-time and turn-based strategy games like StarCraft, Age of Empires, Total War, Age of Wonders, Crusader Kings, and Civilization as well as a soft spot for Genshin Impact and Honkai: Star Rail. He began covering StarCraft 2 as a writer in 2011 for the largest German community around the game and hosted a live tournament on a stage at gamescom 2014 before he went on to work for Bonjwa, one of the country's biggest Twitch channels. He branched out to write in English in 2015 by joining tl.net, the global center of the StarCraft scene run by Team Liquid, which was nominated as the Best Coverage Website of the Year at the Esports Industry Awards in 2017. He worked as a translator on The Crusader Stands Watch, a biography in memory of Dennis "INTERNETHULK" Hawelka, and provided live coverage of many StarCraft 2 events on the social channels of tl.net as well as DreamHack, the world's largest gaming festival. From there, he transitioned into writing about the games industry in general after his graduation, joining GLHF, a content agency specializing in video games coverage for media partners across the globe, in 2021. He has also written for NGL.ONE, kicker, ComputerBild, USA Today's ForTheWin, The Sun, Men's Journal, and Parade. Email: marco.wutz@glhf.gg

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