“Join forces with up to three friends and wreak havoc on an alien scourge threatening the safety of your home planet, Super Earth.” Sony’s language around Helldivers 2 has always committed fully to the bit, and yesterday’s announcement was no exception. Arrowhead Game Studios’ co-op multiplayer shooter has joined the PlayStation Plus Game Catalog — and Sony appears to have kept quiet about it until the morning it went live.
The addition of Helldivers 2 to the catalogue lands as part of the August 2026 update and comes alongside a substantial new game update, which the team has chosen to make available on the same day. The two announcements reinforce each other: new content gives returning players something fresh, while the PS Plus arrival brings in a wave of subscribers who may never have tried it.
Extra and Premium Only — Essential Is Left Out
Helldivers 2 has joined the PS Plus Game Catalog as a downloadable title for PlayStation Plus Extra and Premium subscribers. Essential-tier subscribers — the lowest tier of PS Plus — do not have access to the Game Catalog and will not be able to claim the game through this route.
If you are on the Extra or Premium tier, the game appeared in your catalogue on 12 August 2026 and is available worldwide. If you have a PS5, you can download it directly from the Game Catalog section of the PlayStation Store. You can download and play it as long as your subscription remains active. Per Sony’s standard language, digital streaming access will vary by region.
Devoid of Liberty: What the New Update Brings
The Devoid of Liberty update is the bigger story for existing players. The expansion introduces a new threat built around the Illuminate faction — players must now destroy Illuminate spires and gateways, complete data reconnaissance missions, and infiltrate Illuminate structures alongside their squad.
The Void itself is a new layer of challenge. Planets within the Void’s reach have been altered by strange mutations, with changes described as growing more severe the closer a planet sits to the Void’s centre. High Command has ordered reconnaissance missions into these zones, and the press release leaves the contents deliberately vague: “What lies inside?”
New enemies have been added — described as “ghoulish diversions wrought into existence by the Illuminate scourge” — and the rank system has received a significant expansion. Players can now unlock 300 ranks in total, with new rank titles and privileges attached to progression. A community challenge has also launched alongside: collectively eliminate 500 million enemies by 18th August to unlock four Helldiver PlayStation avatars.
The Rest of August’s PS Plus Catalog
Helldivers 2 is the headliner, but it is not the only game arriving in August. The rest of the Game Catalog additions become available from 18 August:
August 2026 PS Plus Game Catalog additions: Helldivers 2 (12 Aug, Extra/Premium) · Kingdom Come: Deliverance II (18 Aug) · Vampire Survivors (18 Aug) · Hell is Us (18 Aug). PlayStation Plus Premium also gets Onimusha: Dawn of Dreams and Disney’s Atlantis: The Lost Empire.
Kingdom Come: Deliverance II is the standout addition alongside Helldivers 2 — a sprawling open-world RPG set in 15th-century Bohemia, with an authentic historical simulation underpinning the combat and dialogue systems. Vampire Survivors and Hell is Us round out a varied month.
For anyone who missed Helldivers 2 in 2024 or has been sitting on the fence, the PS Plus window is the obvious moment to dive in. The player counts have held up well across the two years since launch, the community events remain active, and the Devoid of Liberty content gives the game a proper new chapter to work through on arrival.
