- Helldivers 2 goes from occupying 154 GB to only 23 GB on PC, with an 85% reduction in size.
- Optimization is based on removing duplicate data, keeping loading times almost unchanged even on HDDs.
- The new "Slim" version is available as a public technical beta on Steam for all PC players.
- If the tests are successful, the lightweight version will replace the current one starting in 2026.
The cooperative shooter from Arrowhead Game Studios a huge weight has been lifted from his shouldersAnd that's not just a figure of speech. The PC version of helldivers 2Known until now for demanding an enormous amount of disk space, it is about to undergo a major change thanks to a deep optimization of its files.
The study has announced a technical review that reduces the Helldivers 2 installation size reduced from 154 GB to just 23 GB on a computerWe're talking about liberation 131 GB of the disc, something that many players from Spain and the rest of Europe are going to notice, especially those with limited SSD storage or share space with other big-budget titles.
Helldivers 2 goes on a diet: from 154 GB to 23 GB on PC
Arrowhead has detailed on its Steam technical blog that the game has undergone a real overhaul “express diet” of data. Of the 154 GB original that occupied the PC installation, the new version remains at approximately 23 GB, Representing a reduction of approximately 85%For a title that was constantly adding content, this price reduction is not exactly a minor adjustment.
The origin of that bulky size lay in a previous design decision: mass file duplication to help players with mechanical hard drives (HDD)The system stored copies of a lot of data (such as textures or geometric information) in different areas of the disk, so that the HDD head had to move less to find them and thus avoid excessively long loading times.
Over time, and after months of patches, that strategy resulted in an installation that ballooned to over 150 GB. In comparison, the PS5 version It's around 35 GB, which had created a clear contrast between consoles and PCs. This difference was especially noticeable in markets like Europe, where lower-capacity SSDs are still common.
The new approach involves eliminate that duplication and completely restructure the dataThe result is the so-called “Slim” version Helldivers 2 on PC, which retains all the content but in a much more compact package, designed to coexist better with other heavy games in Steam libraries.
Alliance with Nixxes and data deduplication: this is how the reduction has been achieved
To achieve this aggressive reduction, Arrowhead has collaborated with Nixxes Software, a PlayStation Studios studio specializing in ports and optimization for PC. Together they have applied a process of file deduplication and data reordering which allows the game to "slim down" without cutting content or lowering its visual quality.
According to those in charge of the project, the key has been “completely reduce the data”That is, to detect and eliminate all redundant copies that had been generated to favor mechanical hard drives. In numerical terms, the operation translates into a total saving of about 131 GBthe installation is located around the aforementioned 23 GB.
One of the most sensitive points was the impact on performance. On paper, eliminating HDD backups could translate into much worse loading times for those who still use this type of unit. However, internal and external testing has yielded far more optimistic results than the study feared.
Arrowhead indicates that, after the battery of tests carried out together with Nixxes, they have verified that the main bottleneck in Helldivers 2 was not in the reading of the assets, but in the level generationThis part of the process is more closely linked to the CPU which to the disk, and occurs in parallel with the data loading, so the final times are not as affected as the initial estimates suggested.
In practice, the study states that, even in Mechanical HDDsThe increase in loading times with the lightweight version is only “a few seconds at worst”For most users with SSDThe change should, in fact, feel like a slight Improved speed when entering a game.
Real impact on players with HDDs and current usage data
Part of Arrowhead's fear stemmed from industry projections indicating that, without duplicating files, HDD loading times could be up to ten times slower than SSD loading times.With the game already released and millions of sessions recorded, the context is very different: now they have real and specific data from Helldivers 2.
The study shared that, during the last week analyzed, Only around 11% of active gamers still used a mechanical hard driveIn other words, the vast majority of the community has already switched to solid-state drives, which fits with the general trend in Europe and other markets where PCs have been renewed in recent years.
Most importantly, with the Slim version installed on a traditional HDD, tests show that the The difference in charging time is between "nothing and very little"Procedural map generation runs at the same time as reading from disk, which greatly dilutes the impact of having fewer copies of the data in storage.
In the team's own words, “Our worst-case projections did not materialize”Direct experience with the game, once launched and with a massive user base, has dismantled the most pessimistic scenarios they considered during the planning phases.
Given this context, Arrowhead believes that There is no compelling reason to maintain the giant version long-term.This is especially true when disk space remains one of the most valued resources for PC gamers, whether in Spain, the rest of Europe, or other territories where high-capacity NVMe SSDs still come at a high cost.
The "Slim" version arrives in public technical beta on Steam
The new light edition of Helldivers 2 has not yet been released as a mandatory update, but as a public technical beta on SteamThis allows players most interested in freeing up space to get ahead, while the study gathers performance data and potential errors in a real-world environment.
Access to this reduced build is through the Valve client itself. To try the Slim version, PC users must manually enroll in the test branch of the game. Once applied, the title then occupies approximately 23 GB and the complete file restructuring is downloaded.
Arrowhead has clarified that Those who participate in this beta will continue to use the same servers as the rest of the players. And they'll maintain their progress intact, so there's no risk of being "isolated" from the rest of the community. It's the same experience as always, just with a much lighter client.
Furthermore, the company has explained that the reduced version It has already passed several rounds of internal quality assurance (QA)Therefore, they expect the number of incidents to be low. Even so, they prefer an open trial period to iron out any unexpected behavior before making the massive change.
Their roadmap is based on the idea that, if everything goes according to plan, This lightweight edition will definitively replace the current one in early 2026In the medium term, the goal is for Helldivers 2 to stop requiring an "exorbitant" amount of space on PC and to fall into a much more reasonable range for the average home computer.
How to activate the lightweight version of Helldivers 2 on Steam
For those who want Take advantage of the size reduction nowArrowhead has detailed the steps to follow on Steam. The process is simple and can be completed in just a few clicks from the user's library.
The first step is to locate helldivers 2 in the library and access its properties. From there, the player must enter the betas section and choose the appropriate branch, which is where the Slim version prepared for live testing is located.
Once the correct option is selected, Steam will apply the update and download the necessary files to convert the installation to this new optimized formatThe client will automatically manage the change and free up the excess disk space.
- Open your Steam Library and right click on HELLDIVERS 2.
- Select option "Properties" in the context menu.
- In the window that opens, go to the tab “Betas”.
- In the participation dropdown, choose the branch “prod_slim”.
- Close the window and wait for Steam to download and apply the new version.
The studio has taken advantage of this move to Thank you for the community's patience and feedback.who had been pointing out the game's size as one of its major weaknesses for months. They also extended special thanks to Nixxes for their role in implementing and debugging the new data structure.
Alongside this technical update, Helldivers 2 continues to receive content and gameplay improvements, while Arrowhead also works on its next project. The title remains available on PC, PlayStation 5 and and is even preparing to make the leap to film with an adaptation that will feature Justin Lin, linked to the Fast & Furious saga, as director.
With all these changes, Helldivers 2 sheds its "SSD hog" label on PC and comes much closer to the typical file sizes for the genre. The combination of 85% reduction in required space, virtually unchanged loading times, and gradual implementation via beta This update makes it one of the most significant technical changes to the game to date, especially for those with limited storage who need to squeeze every available gigabyte out of it.
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