“You should never stop grinding samples” Helldivers 2 community plea to keep gathering resources might fall on deaf ears

We have seen examples of Helldivers 2 players refusing to pick up samples at higher levels of both account and difficulty. It has gotten to a point where some players were outright kicked from groups for going to collect samples. If your ship is already maxed out, you don’t need them, right? Yet the average dive is made up of four players, some of which could be randoms who need them. If anything, players should look to help fellow Helldivers gather samples and upgrade their own super destroyers.

Even when at max upgrades, you should keep gathering samples

This issue is so widespread now that Legitimate-Egg5851 posted a thread on Reddit, commenting about it. They propose a few points to make others reconsider skipping on samples during their dives: “I have long been maxed out on ship upgrades and samples of every variety, but I have never stopped attempting to gather as many samples as I possibly can. Why do I put myself through this?” The OP then posted a few points that explain why players should keep going after samples:

1. I like that it adds stakes to each game. Even if I don’t “need” them, it’s fun to have something riding on my safe extraction.
2. Someone on my squad might need them. We are more lethal as a community if we have all the upgrades available to us. If you’re already maxed out you should be helping other divers get there as well.
3. The challenge is exciting. It takes little skill to complete a mission, a smidge more skill to complete it and extract, and a considerable amount of skill to complete all objectives and extract with samples.
4. It’s more fun this way. If you think you have nothing to gain by extracting with samples when maxed out I would invite you to consider that you’re neglecting an unmarked currency in this game: glory. Why would you cravenly retreat from a battlefield when you have nothing to gain by playing it safe, and nothing to lose by risking it all? If there is time left and a sample on the field I’m going for them. The thrill of hauling it back to the Pelican and securing the samples for my fellow divers keeps the game fun and fresh.

We would also add another point to the above list – we never know when Arrowhead might add another layer of ship upgrades. If you have a stock ready, you can unlock them as soon as they drop. It’s better to be prepared than to scramble for samples later on. Besides, if you make collecting samples a routine, then it won’t be much of a scramble anyway. In conclusion, the author added: “This of course is just my opinion and this way of playing is not going to resonate with everyone, but if you have masochistic tendencies like me, I highly recommend you treat every mission going forward like you have a pathological need for samples. I strongly advise you give it a try if gameplay has become stale for you recently. It really helped me stay engaged with each mission.”

Most players are happy to help… but not all

The community came out with some mixed reactions to this, as expected, though most were in support of gathering samples. DarkWarrior7878 added another point to the list: “5. The samples extracted are a stat that shows on your character’s stats.” Another diver, LilithSanders, agreed with the main point of the argument (from our point of view): “I’ve put hundreds of hours into the game, and I’m long past the point of needing samples myself. I do try to grab them when I can, however, and sometimes I do make a point of prioritizing them a bit more if I notice I’m mostly playing with lower-level players so they can use them.” 

Yet there are those who this thread writes about, players who don’t care. Like Epicp0w, who remarked: “I don’t need them, but unlike the gameplay of raiding bases for them and getting them for teammates that might, but I’m not gonna make the game unfun for myself to go collect them.” This really puts into perspective how some players still view the game in a self-centred light, which is why more awareness is needed to help the community band together. What is your take? If your super destroyer is maxed out, do you still go after samples to help others? We strongly encourage you to do so in your next game.