Helldivers 2 for sale on Steam? Another developer's scam spoofs Arrowhead's game

The huge success of Helldivers 2 has prompted a developer on Steam to alter the page of a previously released game to pass it off as the Arrowhead Game Studios video game. It’s a scam that didn’t have much of an impact, as it took Valve less than 24 hours to fix the problem, but it’s still striking that someone would think of such a trick.

The developer of Figurality on Steam changed the game page with Helldivers 2 dates in a scam attempt

The popular Wario64 on Twitter/X has posted a supposed 50%/75% discount for Helldivers 2 on Steam, a video game that is not even a month old yet.

It is extremely rare for a newly released game to be discounted. Even more so if it is a sales success; developers would have no incentive to lower the price if it was already selling well. And indeed, there was something wrong with this supposed offer. All it took was a look at the game’s SteamDB page to discover the scam. This site automatically detects changes in the data updates of Steam game files, and on closer inspection, we can see that the supposed Helldivers 2 on offer is a game called Figurality by Bside Studio.

At the time of this writing, Figurality’s Steam page still has all the data for Helldivers II, even though the game has been taken down.

The reason for these changes is obvious: it is a blatant attempt at fraud, though neither well thought out nor too far-reaching. With the budding popularity of Helldivers 2, many players would have taken the bait and bought this video game at an offer of 50% to 75% of its original price. Theoretically irresistible... until the players started the game in question.

Steam’s refund policy allows for a full refund for a video game played less than two hours within the first two weeks of purchase, so those affected should be able to get their money back relatively easily.

This is a developing story and more details may be forthcoming in the short to medium term. At this time, we do not know what further action Steam has taken other than completely removing Figurality. On the other hand, Arrowhead Game Studios, the creators of Helldivers 2, would be well within their rights to take legal action against this developer for trademark misuse. This outrage could be very costly for Bside Studio, who are behind Figurality.

Helldivers 2 is a third-person co-op shooter available for PC (Steam) and PlayStation 5. Our Mike Reyes commented that “it’s not only an incredible third-person shooter wrapped in a satirical blanket, it is a wake-up call for the entire video game industry.”