Easter Eggs

Easter eggs are intentional hidden extras found within media that are often jokes or references. Helldivers has its own Easter eggs, and many other games and media contain Easter eggs related to the series.

General

 * The game plays out in the year 2084, confirmed by Arrowhead Studios to be in homage to George Orwell's watershed dystopian novel 1984.


 * The randomly created crew names: lasota, wineberg and bauer are names from the cast.


 * The eagle fighter is practically an x-wing from star wars.
 * The spacecraft the Helldivers operate out of are designed by a certain Arrowhead Space Agency. Supposedly, earlier versions of the ships were full of bugs.


 * The way the Helldivers operate is similar to that described in Robert Heinlein's book Starship Troopers, dropping in from orbit with overwhelming firepower. The Mobile Infantry in the book are often nicknamed "Helljumpers".
 * The release date of the Starship Troopers novel was October 26th, 1959. Liberty Day is celebrated by the citizens of Super Earth on... October 26th.
 * The development team has mentioned the 1997 Paul Verhoeven film adaptation and its two sequels being a significant influence on the game.
 * In the movie, the Mobile Infantry is deployed and extracted via shuttle; in the book version they deploy in drop pods and extract by boarding a shuttle, which is called in by... activating a beacon.
 * The phrase "Aim for their center mass" (and variants thereof encountered in the game's text and dialogue) are also a nod to a line from the Starship Troopers film.
 * The C1-PERM child permit form, required to reproduce, also has a parallel in Starship Troopers.


 * The Helldivers resemble the Orbital Drop Shock Troopers (ODSTs) from Bungie's FPS Halo 3: ODST.


 * The Bugs are similar to the Arachnids from Starship Troopers, the Tyranids from the Warhammer 40,000 tabletop wargame and its spinoffs (which also influenced the Zerg from the StarCraft real-time strategy video games).


 * The Illuminate are very similar to the Eldar ("space elves") faction from Warhammer 40,000 and the psychic Protoss, a faction from StarCraft.
 * One variation of the Illuminate Great Eye's name is "Cthugha", a fictional deity from August Derleth's contribution to H.P. Lovecraft's Cthulhu mythos.


 * The game mentions the SECC (Super Earth Construction Company), a government contractor that profits from (re)building planets after its previous occupants have been wiped out by the military. This is a practice also seen in the aftermath of the most recent Gulf invasion.


 * The C.O. mentions that he is unable to join you on your missions as he has an archery-related knee injury. This is a nod to a famously memed line from Bethesda's 2011 computer role-playing game Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim.
 * The C.O.'s English voice actor is Indy Neidell, who presents the daily Youtube short-form documentary series The Great War (which covers the first World War, one day at a time).
 * The C.O. mentions having been born in the "former American peninsula", now known as Metropolis 3. In the dystopian 2000AD comics (mainly known for the character Judge Dredd), Texas City used to be known as Mega City 3. This also fits with Indy Neidell's place of birth: Texas.


 * The Privates on the bridge will sometimes bring up the Helldiver Corps's use of a skull as their symbol when talked to, questioning its "friendliness". This remark references the famous "Are we the baddies?" sketch by Britisch comedic duo David Mitchell and Robert Webb.


 * The Doctor on the bridge occasionally mentions the existence of fields of a spice-like substance which exists on desert planets, said to prolong life at the cost of violent mutations. This is a reference to the spice melange which plays a pivotal role in Frank Herbert's Dune novel series.
 * The 'surveillance patriots' that are mentioned by the C.O. to be constantly monitoring Super Earth's interstellar and other communications for signs of hidden alien sympathizers are very likely a nod to the infamous Patriot Act, as well as agencies such as the United States' National Security Agency, along with the Department of Homeland Security.


 * The Truth Transmitter mission objective emits actual Morse code when activated: ... ..- .--. . .-. -....- . .- .-. - .... -... . .- -.-. --- -. .- -.-. - .. ...- . .-.-.- which translates to: "SUPER-EARTHBEACONACTIVE."


 * "Don't drink and drive" is a common sentence in every Arrowhead game at loading screen tips.


 * The line, "How about a nice cup of Liber-tea?" was said by the only British developer at the office in casual conversation.


 * During early development, Arrowhead referred to the Stalker as a Stalker-Hunter-Lurker. That is why the signs say HLS when you are on the city planet.

Achievements

 * The Achievement/Trophy Next time we meet, I'll probably have to salute you is a line from Paul Verhoeven's film adaptation of Robert Heinlein's Starship Troopers.


 * The Achievement/Trophy You're it until you're dead, or I find someone better is also from the Starship Troopers film.


 * The Achievement/Trophy Resisting democracy is futile! is a play on the Borg's mantra "Resistance is futile" from Star Trek.


 * The Achievement/Trophy They call me Mr. Danmaku references the shoot-em-up subgenre known as "bullet hell" shmups. The Japanese term "Danmaku" literally means "bullet curtain" or "curtain fire".


 * The Achievement/Trophy Make Frank kill a tank is an homage to a Penny Arcade webcomic on the daily reality of Extraction Shuttle maintenance.

Sidearms

 * The P-2 Peacemaker appears to be loosely based on the Beretta 93R "Auto 9" from Robocop, the main differences being the drastically smaller magazine and an accessory rail under the barrel for attaching a laser aiming module.


 * The P-6 Gunslinger is not based on a single firearm, but a mix of several revolvers with the most prominent influences being the overall form factors of the Taurus Raging Bull .44 and the S&W Model 500.

Primary Weapons

 * The AR-19 Liberator is based on the L85A2 variant of the British SA80, a family of bullpup assault rifles chambered in 5.56x45mm NATO. The Liberator curiously appears to lack any form of flip-up iron sights or attachment points for them; the real-life L85A2 is almost always issued with a 4x SUSAT scope with backup iron sights on top, however this is not the case with the Liberator's scope, leading one to assume the Liberator's scope is likely a variable zoom scope for use at multiple ranges.
 * Humorously, the game describes the Liberator as "reliable and effective", in contrast to the decades-long scandal that unfolded around the qualitatively inferior first generation of L85 assault rifles.


 * The AR-22C Patriot is based on the L22A2 variant of the British SA80, a family of bullpup assault rifles chambered in 5.56x45mm NATO. The main difference between the two rifles is the L22A2 lacks a proper handguard over the barrel and instead has a rail with a detachable vertical foregrip, while the Patriot has a shortened but otherwise complete version of the Liberator's handguard. Like the Liberator, the Patriot seems to lack any form of flip-up iron sights or attachment points for them, however it likely uses a variable zoom scope for use at multiple ranges.


 * The AR-20L Justice is based on the L86A1 LSW variant of the British SA80, a family of bullpup assault rifles chambered in 5.56x45mm NATO. The main differences between the two rifles is the L86A1 is chambered in the same ammo as its non-DMR counterpart and features a built-in bipod and a handle rearward of the magazine for use while lying prone, while the Justice chambers a larger and more powerful round than the Liberator and does not feature any additional attachments. Like the Liberator, the Justice seems to lack any form of flip-up iron sights or attachment points for them, however it likely features a variable zoom scope for use at multiple ranges.


 * The AR-14D Paragon appears to be based on the Springfield M1A rifle with an aftermarket "Archangel" stock. Both weapons are large caliber mid-to-long range marksman rifles with 20-round magazines, however the M1A does not come with a burst fire trigger group or selector.
 * The Paragon features an uncomfortably short stock and a small magazine on its armory icon, despite the weapon description stating that it uses the same cartridge as the AR-20L 'Justice'. The icon appears to be horizontally compressed to fit into the same space as the other rifles as in-game the magazines used are the same size as the other ARs' and the rifle model is longer than its icon would imply.


 * The MG-105 Stalwart is based on the L85A2 and L86A1 LSW variants of the British SA80, a family of bullpup rifles chambered in 5.56x45 NATO. It has the overall size and shape of the L85A2 while having most of the features of its LMG variant.


 * The LHO-63 Camper's codename is possibly a reference to Lee Harvey Oswald and the year he died, 1963.


 * The M2016 Constitution is based upon the A1 variant of the M1903 Springfield, an American bolt action rifle chambered for the .30-03 cartridge. Its official designation in-game is a nod to the year the weapon was released during the Liberty Day update on the 26th of October, 2016.


 * The SMG-45 Defender and MP-98 Knight SMG's description of the Mini-Stun upgrade (as well as the Stun Rounds upgrade description for the RX-1 Rail Gun) is potentially a nod to the Leyden Ball, a fictional bullet that is described in Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea. It is described as a bead of glass with a steel jacket and lead bead inside that acts as a miniature but complete Leyden Jar (a type of primitive battery). Upon impact it would shatter, discharging its high-voltage payload and incapacitating or killing the target, not unlike the effect of Mini-Stun bullets.


 * The CR-9 Suppressor is possibly based on a full-auto assault rifle version of a Gyrojet weapon prototype from the 1960s. However, unlike these weapons, the Suppressor makes a loud cracking noise when the projectile leaves the barrel, possibly due to the rocket creating a sonic boom as its thrusters ignite, breaching the sound barrier.


 * The design of the PLAS-1 Scorcher plasma rifle and its PLAS-3 Singe pistol counterpart bears a strong resemblance to that of the plasma guns and pistols in Games Workshop's tabletop game Warhammer 40,000 and its spin-offs.
 * The Armory Description of the SG-225 Breaker shotgun includes the words "handy for close encounters", which is a subtle reference to the classic 1986 Sci-Fi movie Aliens.

Secondary Weapons

 * The FLAM-40 Incinerator is likely named after the M240 Incinerator Unit used by the United States Colonial Marines in the 1986 James Cameron film Aliens.


 * The TOX-13 Avenger's name is an Easter Egg referring to Toxie, the Toxic Avenger, the iconic character from Troma Studios.


 * The MLS-4X Commando is a nod to the similarly boxy missile launcher used by Arnold Schwarzenegger's character in the 1985 action film Commando.


 * During beta testing for the new update, the MGX-42 Machine Gun was codenamed the "Storm". This is likely a reference to the US military's "Metal Storm" weapon.

Other Stratagems

 * The MC-109 Hammer Motorcycle's name is a pun on 90s hip hop legend MC Hammer (of U Can't Touch This fame). Calling in this Stratagem might also be referred to as "dropping the hammer".


 * The Distractor Beacon concept bears a striking resemblance to the "Thumper" devices used to attract native sandworms in Frank Herbert's science fiction series Dune.


 * The Shredder Missile Strike Stratagem is also known as the TMNT (or Tactical Micro-Nuclear Tracking) Missile. This is a reference to the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles villain, Shredder.

Perks

 * The Displacement Field perk is yet another callout to the Warhammer 40K universe. In this case, Displacer fields.