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The defeat of the Automatons was the first decisive victory by theHelldivers 2community. After a massive, months-long campaign that included the fall and reclamation of Malevelon Creek, the last known robot stronghold in the galaxy was destroyed. While players are rightly elated to have won this first chapter of Helldivers 2, the origins of the Automatons might hold some clues as to what comes next.
It’s not explicitly stated in the game, but eagle-eyed players have been able to piece together clues that trace the Automatons back to another mechanical menace that the Helldivers fought a hundred years ago; the Cyborgs.
Who Were The Cyborgs?
The Cyborgs were once humans, citizens of Super Earth whocolonized the planet in the Valdis Sector that became known as Cyberstan. These people sought to break away from the oppressive regime and form their own autonomous nation. At some point, they beganintegrating machinery into their bodies, possibly as a means of survival on frozen Cyberstan, or possibly because they thought it would simply make their lives easier overall.
The Cyborgs seem to have originally had acollectivized socialist government, which prompted occupation by Super Earth forces to enforce Managed Democracy. By this time, Cyberstan had become heavily industrialized, making Super Earth even more keen toexploit the Cyborgs for their labor and resources.
Ultimately, theCyborgs rose up and declared their independence from Super Earth, and the Helldivers were sent to reassert control. Following a prolonged war, theCyborgs were defeatedand their planets reintegrated into Super Earth’s growing empire.
Dialogue that you may hear on board the Super Destroyer indicates thatthe surviving Cyborgs were confined to Cyberstan for “rehabilitation.“Considering that it’s been a hundred years and there’s no indication that any Cyborgs have returned to Super Earth society,it’s likely that the Cyborgs are being used as slave laborto operate the planet’s factories.
Did The Cyborgs Build The Automatons?
Following the defeat of the Cyborgs, Terminids, and Illuminate in the original Helldivers game,Super Earth enjoyed a century of peace.The Helldivers were disbanded during this time. The peace ended with the outbreak of theGalactic War, which opened on two fronts almost simultaneously.
Around the same time that theTerminids broke containmentand rapidly spread across several systems, the Automatons appeared - primarily on planets that had once been held by the Cyborgs. Their flag and weaponry were all similar to those of the Helldivers' old enemies, but these new foes were entirely robotic with no biological components.
Officially, the origins of the Automaton are unknown. However, toward the end of the first conflict, anencrypted message was broadcast in binary code.According to theHelldivers wiki, the message was translated as follows:
We, the collective from Cyberstan, unanimously assert our independence from Super Earth. We have the right to defend our home from the brainwashed Helldivers. Our children the Automaton will not suffer as we have under the oppression of Super Earth.
We can assume that this message was a final statement of defiance from the defeated Cyborgs and a warning thatthe Automatons would carry on their fight. The Cyborgs must havedeveloped the robots and their fabrication facilities in secretand hidden them from the Helldivers; most likely underground on several planets to avoid orbital bombardments.
It is still unknown whether the Automatons were sentient, or if they had any directive apart from defeating Super Earth.
It stands to reason that the Automatons wereconstructed over a period of one hundred years, creating an army that could overwhelm Super Earth. While an aggressive campaign centered on Malevelon Creek defeated the Automaton vanguard in a matter of months, the true invasion force arrived the following day. The renewed Automaton assaultseized control of Cyberstan, making a possible resurgence of the Cyborg Nation imminent.
