Helldivers 2 has a file size problem that’s getting out of control. The PC version sits at a bloated 150GB, which is three times larger than the console versions at roughly 50GB. Arrowhead Game Studios finally explained why this happens, and the answer is both simple and frustrating. They’ve been optimizing the game for players still using mechanical hard disk drives, and that optimization comes at the cost of massive storage waste for the 90 percent of players who already use SSDs.
Why PC Takes Up Three Times More Space
Arrowhead’s deputy technical director Brendan Armstrong broke down the problem in a detailed tech blog posted to Steam in early October 2025. The issue comes down to how mechanical hard drives work compared to solid-state drives. An HDD stores data on a spinning platter with a physical arm that moves across the disk to find and retrieve information. The time it takes for this arm to seek out data creates a massive performance bottleneck, especially in games with tons of assets like trees, rocks, buildings, and props.
To compensate for slow HDD seek times, Arrowhead deliberately duplicates certain data files throughout the game. A common tree texture might exist in multiple locations on the disk, placed close to wherever it’s needed. When a level loads, the HDD read head can access everything in one continuous sweep instead of jumping all over the disk. This drastically speeds up loading times for HDD users, but it means storing multiple copies of the same assets.
SSDs Don’t Have This Problem
The PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X and S use SSDs exclusively, which is why the console versions only take up 50GB. SSDs store data on flash memory chips with no moving parts, so seek time is virtually nonexistent. An SSD can access any piece of data almost instantly regardless of where it’s physically stored. There’s zero need to duplicate assets because the drive doesn’t care how scattered the data is across storage.
Modern gaming PCs overwhelmingly use SSDs too. Armstrong estimates that only around 12 percent of PC gamers still use mechanical HDDs, though he admits the data is unreliable and based on extrapolations. That means Helldivers 2 is forcing 88 percent of PC players to waste 100GB of storage space just to accommodate a small minority still running on old hardware.
The CEO Confirms They’re Looking Into It
For weeks after Armstrong’s explanation, the Helldivers 2 community debated whether Arrowhead should just drop HDD support entirely. The answer came on October 23, 2025, when CEO Shams Jorjani responded to a fan question on the official Helldivers Discord server. Someone asked if the studio was studying the possibility of dropping HDD support completely, acknowledging it would be a hard decision but that people would probably understand. Jorjani’s reply was short and direct: Yes. Being looked into.
That two-word confirmation sparked immediate reactions across Reddit and social media. Players who’ve been managing storage juggling acts for months finally had confirmation that relief might be coming. The possibility of cutting Helldivers 2’s install size by two-thirds is massive, especially for people with smaller SSDs or those who play multiple live service games that constantly demand storage updates.
The Squad Loading Problem
Dropping HDD support isn’t as simple as flipping a switch. Armstrong explained that Helldivers 2’s co-op structure adds complexity to the decision. When players drop into a mission, everyone’s load time is determined by the slowest member of the squad. If one person is running the game on an ancient HDD, the entire team sits there waiting while their hard drive churns through data. Removing asset duplication could add minutes to loading times for HDD users, making them effectively unplayable in multiplayer.
Arrowhead has expressed reluctance to completely abandon players who can’t afford to upgrade to SSDs. One potential compromise involves maintaining two separate builds. An SSD-optimized version would cut out all the duplicated data and run lean at console-sized file sizes. A legacy HDD build would keep the duplication intact for players still on mechanical drives. This approach requires extra development resources to maintain two branches, but it would let Arrowhead serve both audiences without forcing anyone to upgrade hardware.
How We Got Here
When Helldivers 2 launched in February 2024, it required over 100GB of storage space according to the official system requirements. After installation, the actual folder size dropped to around 70GB. That was already larger than console versions, but not outrageously so. The problem got worse with every major content update. By October 2025, the Steam page lists 135GB to 150GB as the storage requirement depending on which source you check.
Console versions grew too, but not nearly as dramatically. The PS5 version went from under 25GB at launch to approximately 35GB by September 2025. The Xbox Series X and S version launched in August 2025 at a similar size. Meanwhile, PC players watched their install folders balloon to three times that amount. Every new Warbond, every seasonal update, every patch added more duplicated assets that console players didn’t need.
Tech Debt Finally Catching Up
CEO Shams Jorjani has been openly discussing Helldivers 2’s technical debt for months. The game’s massive success caught Arrowhead off guard. They launched expecting modest player counts and instead got millions of concurrent users overwhelming their servers. The team has been scrambling to fix performance issues, crashes, bugs, and now the ballooning file size while simultaneously pumping out new content to keep the player base engaged.
The install size problem represents years of development decisions optimized for hardware standards that are rapidly becoming obsolete. In 2024, supporting HDDs made sense because a meaningful portion of PC gamers still used them. By late 2025, that percentage has shrunk dramatically. SSDs have gotten cheaper and more accessible. Many newer motherboards don’t even include SATA connections anymore, pushing users toward M.2 NVMe drives by default.
What Happens to HDD Players
If Arrowhead does drop HDD support, what happens to the estimated 12 percent of players still using mechanical drives? The harsh reality is they’d need to upgrade to keep playing. Entry-level SSDs have become affordable, with 500GB drives available for under 50 dollars and 1TB options hovering around 70 to 80 dollars. That’s not nothing, but it’s also not the massive investment it would have been five years ago.
The alternative is maintaining the two-build system, which adds complexity and workload for Arrowhead’s engineering team. They’d need to ensure every update, patch, and content drop works correctly on both versions. That splits development resources and creates potential for platform-specific bugs. Most game studios avoid this approach because it’s a nightmare to maintain long-term.
Industry Trend Toward SSD Requirements
Helldivers 2 wouldn’t be the first game to mandate SSDs. Many modern titles explicitly require solid-state drives in their minimum system specifications. Games like Starfield, Cyberpunk 2077 Phantom Liberty, and various recent releases list SSDs as mandatory. The reason is clear. Modern game engines are built around the assumption of fast storage. Streaming high-resolution textures, loading massive open worlds, and reducing pop-in all depend on storage speeds that HDDs simply can’t deliver.
The PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X and S standardizing on SSDs accelerated this trend. Developers can now design games assuming everyone has access to fast storage on consoles. The PC space is just catching up to that reality. As HDD usage continues declining, more studios will follow Arrowhead’s lead and drop support for mechanical drives entirely.
Community Response
Reddit threads and Discord discussions show overwhelming support for dropping HDD support. Players with SSDs are tired of wasting 100GB of storage on duplicated assets they don’t need. The common sentiment is that if 12 percent of players need to upgrade their hardware, that’s an acceptable trade-off for the other 88 percent getting their storage back. Some players pointed out that anyone still using an HDD in 2025 likely has other performance issues beyond just Helldivers 2 loading times.
A few voices defended HDD users, arguing that not everyone can afford to upgrade and that Arrowhead shouldn’t abandon players who met the minimum specs when they bought the game. These arguments have merit, but they’re increasingly drowned out by frustration over the storage crisis. The reality is that minimum specs evolve over time, and supporting outdated hardware eventually becomes unsustainable.
FAQs
Why is Helldivers 2 so big on PC compared to console?
The PC version duplicates assets across the hard drive to improve loading times for players still using mechanical HDDs. Console versions use SSDs exclusively and don’t need this duplication, resulting in a 50GB install size compared to 150GB on PC.
When will Arrowhead drop HDD support?
There’s no confirmed timeline. CEO Shams Jorjani confirmed in October 2025 that dropping HDD support is being looked into, but the studio hasn’t committed to a specific date or implementation plan.
How much will the file size decrease if HDD support is dropped?
Based on console versions, the PC install size could drop from 150GB to around 50GB, saving approximately 100GB of storage space for SSD users.
What percentage of Helldivers 2 players use HDDs?
Arrowhead estimates around 12 percent of PC gamers still use mechanical HDDs, though deputy technical director Brendan Armstrong admits this data is unreliable and based on extrapolations. The actual number could be higher or lower.
Will there be separate builds for HDD and SSD users?
This is one potential solution Arrowhead could implement, offering an SSD-optimized version with reduced file size and a legacy HDD build with duplicated assets. However, maintaining two separate builds adds development complexity.
What happens if I’m still using an HDD?
If Arrowhead drops HDD support entirely, players would need to upgrade to an SSD to continue playing. Entry-level SSDs are now relatively affordable, with 500GB drives available for under 50 dollars.
Do modern games still support HDDs?
Increasingly, no. Many recent AAA titles like Starfield and Cyberpunk 2077 Phantom Liberty explicitly require SSDs in their minimum system specifications. The industry is moving away from HDD support as SSD adoption increases.
How big is Helldivers 2 on PlayStation 5?
The PS5 version started at under 25GB at launch in February 2024 and has grown to approximately 35GB by September 2025. The Xbox Series X and S version is similarly sized.
Can I run Helldivers 2 on an HDD right now?
Yes, HDDs are part of the current minimum system requirements. However, loading times will be significantly slower, and you may cause delays for squadmates in co-op missions since everyone’s load time is determined by the slowest player.
Conclusion
Helldivers 2’s storage crisis perfectly illustrates the growing pains of PC gaming as the industry transitions away from mechanical hard drives. Arrowhead Game Studios built their optimization strategy around accommodating older hardware, but that decision is now punishing the vast majority of players who’ve already upgraded to SSDs. The confirmation that dropping HDD support is being looked into offers hope for relief, but there’s no guarantee when or how it will happen. The studio faces a tough choice between alienating a small percentage of players who can’t upgrade and continuing to waste storage space for everyone else. Given industry trends and community sentiment, the writing is on the wall. HDDs are going the way of DVD drives and floppy disks. Players still using mechanical drives in 2025 are living on borrowed time, not just in Helldivers 2 but across all modern gaming. Whether Arrowhead rips off the bandaid quickly or implements a gradual transition with separate builds, change is coming. For the 88 percent of players already on SSDs, it can’t come soon enough. Getting back 100GB of storage space would be like finding money in an old jacket pocket, except instead of money it’s room for three more games.