Helldivers 2 will require Steam players to link to a PSN account

Pay attention, defenders of democracy: Hell Divers 2 Steam players will soon be required to link their accounts to a PlayStation Network account. According to the advertisementall new players on Steam will be required to link to a PSN account starting May 6, while existing players will have a slightly longer period, with mandatory implementation delayed until June 4.

according to Hell Divers 2 Developer Arrowhead Game Studios, linking to a PSN account has always been a requirement for Steam players, and the policy is in place to ensure players are protected from griefing and other in-game abuses. But the game community is not convinced, and is strongly protesting the decision on social media and on Steam itself.

Shortly after the announcement, the game saw a torrent of negative reviews, receiving over 14,000 negative reviews today alone on Steam.

Although PSN accounts are free and quick to create, players have reason to be upset. PSN isn’t available everywhere, and the move will likely permanently turn players in certain countries away from their game. Players have also expressed concerns about the security of their data. Sony recently suffered a data breach, although the stolen information was related to employees, not customers.