Helldivers 2’s First Big Update of 2025 Lets You Emote While Ragdolling Once Again, Tweaks Balance, and More

Helldivers 2's substantial 2025 update, patch 01.002.101, is now live, introducing significant gameplay adjustments and bug fixes. This over 5GB patch extends the gas duration from spray weapons, reinstates emoting during flight or ragdoll states, and implements numerous balance changes.

Approaching its first anniversary, and with the recent Illuminate faction addition, players eagerly anticipate the next chapter in the Galactic War storyline. The update's substantial size hints at potential unannounced content beyond the documented changes.

A noteworthy fix, albeit strangely described, addresses a visual glitch with the Stalker's tongue.

Helldivers 2 Update 01.002.101 Patch Notes:

Balancing:

• General Changes: Spray weapon gas effect duration increased from 6 to 10 seconds. A despawn timer for Illuminate dropship wreckage prevents path obstructions.
• Helldiver: Jogging while carrying two-handed items (barrels, SEAF Artillery Rounds) is now permitted.
• FRV: Grenade and stratagem deployment while leaning from the FRV is authorized. FRV handling improved for cornering.
• Sidearms: Starting magazines increased from 2 to 3; spare magazines from 4 to 5.
• Stratagem Support Weapons (TX-41 Sterilizer): Crosshair drift and camera climb recoil reduced. Gas effect duration increased to 10 seconds.
• Armor Passives (Siege Ready): A bug granting extra ammo to all weapons (not just primaries) remains unfixed, pending further evaluation. Armory description will be updated later.
• Backpacks (AX/TX-13 "Guard Dog"): Reworked for improved effectiveness, prioritizing gas-unaffected enemies. Targeting logic refined, range increased from 10 to 20 meters. Gas effect duration increased to 10 seconds.
• Stratagems (MD-6, MD-I4, MD-17 Anti-Personnel/Incendiary/Tank Mines): Cooldown reduced to 120 seconds. Damage increased. Mine deployment spread increased to reduce chain explosions.
• SH-20 Ballistic Shield Backpack: Now blocks melee attacks until destroyed.

Fixes:

• Top Priority: Emoting during falls/ragdolls restored. Illuminate spawner ship shields now take impact grenade damage. Collision gaps in Illuminate ships fixed. Health packs fully restore stims. High-damage weapons detonate Hellbombs.
• Crash Fixes: Numerous crash fixes addressing various scenarios (mission abort, hot-joining, emote switching, fire, drop-in, reloading, armor changes, tutorial completion, extraction, projectile fire, objective carrying, text language changes, SG-20 Halt reloading).
• Social & Matchmaking: Improved matchmaking for regional proximity. Matching with similar difficulty lobbies. Chat history persistence fixed.
• Weapons & Stratagems: Emplacement retention while using text chat. Arc weapon accuracy against Impaler tentacles improved. E/AT-12 armor penetration tag corrected. Stratagem turrets no longer target Tesla Towers. Heat weapon visual bug fixed. Melee weapon physics adjusted. B-1 Supply Pack stim sharing restored.
• FRV: FRV reinforcement to prevent minor impact explosions. Camera improvements. Reduced rooftop drops. Non-QWERTY keyboard support added. Enemy launch distance adjusted.
• Helldiver: Ragdolling into FRV fix. Civilian car vaulting restored. Ragdoll ground sliding fixed. Stuck prone animation fix. Animation fix for item pickup.
• Enemies: Stalker tongue visual bug fixed. Enemy reaction to missed shots improved.
• Miscellaneous: Various audio, civilian pathing, visual, and other minor fixes.

Known Issues:

• Top Priority: Black box terminal clipping. Stratagem ball unpredictable bounces. DSSP balancing/functionality. Pathfinding issues in Evacuate Colonists missions. Dolby Atmos issues on PS5.
• Medium Priority: Pelican-1 extraction issues. Explosive ragdolling. Cape display issues. "This is Democracy" emote spacewalk bug. Guard Dog ammo indicator. Barrager Tank stats. LAS-5 Scythe zoom. Charge-up weapon firing rate issues.

This update significantly enhances the Helldivers 2 experience, addressing critical issues and introducing substantial balance adjustments. However, players should be aware of the remaining known issues.