Arrowhead struck live service gold when it launched Helldivers 2 early last year. Garnering many accolades since its release, including some Game Awards nods, the Swedish studio is still hard at work adding new content on a regular basis. However, its success may have cost more than just time. According to the game’s creative director Johan Pilestedt, he has been working on the same franchise for over a decade which cost time with his loved ones. As such, he will be taking a deserved sabbatical, but already has his sights set on the studio’s next adventure.
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In a recent X post, Pilestedt announced his leave. He offers his reasoning behind the sabbatical in his own words. Beyond just working on Helldivers in 2013, he wants to “redeem what was lost” and spend time with his family, and friends, as well as take some time for himself. At the end of his statement, he gives a nondescript tease of their Arrowhead’s next game.
“11 years of working ‘around the clock’ on the same IP has made me set aside family, friends and my lovely wife… and myself,” says Pilestedt. “I am going to take some time now to redeem what was lost from all of those that supported me for over a decade.”
“When I’m back – I will start working on the next Arrowhead game,” Pilestedt continues.
Related: 7 Actors We Think Would Be Perfect for the Helldivers Film
Details on Arrowhead’s next game are still under wraps. It is uncertain if it will be another title within the Helldivers universe or something completely different. However, with Pilestedt working on the same franchise for over a decade, it wouldn’t be a surprise if we saw the Swedish studio depart from the now-popular shooter series.
Even if Arrowhead decided to go a different route for its next game, Helldivers 2 will probably be supported for years to come. The game was incredibly successful in 2024, becoming the third best-selling game for the year according to games industry analyst Mat Piscatella. It also defied expectations as a critical success. On review aggregate site Metacritic, it has an 82 metascore over 69 critic reviews.
The sequel’s unexpected success has led to PlayStation Productions and Sony to greenlight a film adaptation of the Arrowhead game. The project was revealed during CES 2025 alongside a sneak peek at The Last of Us Season 2, and the Horizon Zero Dawn movie. While details are sparse about the upcoming film, Pilestedt did confirm the studio will be involved with the movie in some capacity. However, due to the studio’s inexperience with film, others will be helming the adaptation.
“The short answer is yes. The long answer is that we’ll see,” Pilestedt said in a previous X post when asked about the studio’s involvement. “We are not Hollywood people, and we don’t know what it takes to make a movie.”
Helldivers 2 is currently available for PS5 and PC via Steam for $39.99. A Super Citizen Edition is also available for $59.99, and includes a bunch of extra goodies. Arrowhead recently released its newest update for the game which primarily resolved issues with crashing.
