User:Pokelego999/sandbox/Joel (Helldivers)

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Role in Helldivers 2
In the game Helldivers 2, an intergalactic war is waged between the player-based community and CPU alien enemies, the Terminids and Automatons. Joel, a developer at Arrowhead Games who is listed as the "Game Master," reacts to what is happening in the game's community and controls various features in response. Joel's true identity is unknown.

Development
Joel's role was stated to have been inspired by the tabletop game Dungeons & Dragons, with Arrowhead Games stating that they wanted to recreate the experiences provided by Dungeons & Dragons within Helldivers 2. Joel's role is akin to that of a Dungeon Master, with Joel controlling various aspects to suit the narrative. Though Arrowhead has stated they have a proper narrative laid out, it will change in response to player involvement and the reactions Joel will produce to counteract or aid players. Joel's role specifically was laid out in a Twitter post, stating that Joel's role was to give the player's order and daily bonuses, and also to choose the enemies attacking during a given time. Joel additionally can give the community temporary equipment and send reinforcements to the enemy side. Other abilities are stated to be usable by Joel, but are being kept secret by Arrowhead. Arrowhead knew the system of only having one person in charge of the game would be divisive before launching it, but believed it would work out all the same.

Moments of improvisation occurred multiple times. In some cases, planets were too easy or difficult, requiring Joel to get up in the middle of the night to provide reinforcements to the enemy. Another case occurred after players raided Terminid planets too quickly, causing Joel to brainstorm an off-day with free mining to occur to represent how victors in a war act after getting a minor victory. The game's scope was originally intended to be much smaller, though this was disrupted due to the game's surprise burst in popularity. As a result, Joel ended up taking on more work than was originally anticipated. Due to the fact Joel was managing everything by himself, it has taken a toll on Joel's sleep schedule. Arrowhead acknowledged the need to expand the team of those managing the game's narrative so as to relieve pressure from Joel, and later expanded the team to include more than just Joel.

Reception
Joel's role in Helldivers 2 has received... Tessa Kauer of TheGamer found that Joel's existence and the extent of his power made him comparable to that of a God, believing that it made the player question the extent of their free will due to how much Joel controls the individual variables in the game. A major battle in the game, in a location known as Malevelon Creek, resulted in much player uproar regarding Joel's role, believing him to be the reason for the loss of a planet that had been fought over for a large amount of time. As a result of Joel's power over the game, he became a meme within the Helldivers community. Despite not being a real character in-game, players have treated him like one, resulting in him becoming a mythic figure in the community, with some labelling him as a "bogeyman" of sorts.

Due to Joel's popularity in the community, impersonators became frequent in the game. One pair of impostors used it to advertise a paid service to boost players in game, though the moment where they did so was cropped out of a recording and published on Twitter to heavy popularity, which they did not expect. Arrowhead responded by stating that the Joel was fake, and that Joel appreciated the impersonator's wishes for players to have fun with the game.