A black hole just annihilated a beloved Helldivers 2 planet, and now it's on a direct course for Super Earth

It's a dark day for Super Earth. In a completely unexpected, unpredictable turn of events, the black hole that's occupied Helldivers 2's galaxy for the better part of a year has collided with Angel's Venture, a planet in Terminid territory, tearing the planet apart and claiming the lives of over 480,000 super citizens.

A final transmission sent from Angel's Venture at 5:07 AM PST warned its citizens to evacuate the planet immediately. By 6:39 AM, all signals were lost.

Players who jumped into Helldivers 2 when it launched last February might remember Angel's Venture as one of the very first Terminid planets that divers were ordered to capture. Millions of battles were fought among its amber forests and pink/green foliage. Its lush landscapes made for the perfect first impression of this special game, and now they're gone. A chilling anniversary.

Super Earth high command has declared 24 hours of mourning for those lost:

"This is an incalculable loss. The land cultivated by generations. The lives of the Super Earth citizens whose evacuation could not be prioritized. The proud pines shading the Democratic Youth Scouts campground. All gone forever, ripped to shreds by savage cosmic forces," the in-game dispatch reads. "Finally the Illuminate, hiding behind their mask of intelligence and sophistication, have revealed what they truly want: carnage."

The Helldivers 2 community's long-held suspicion that it's the Illuminate who have seized control of the black hole, officially designated the Meridian Singularity, was on the money. For weeks, the singularity has been cultivating "dark energy" via an in-game tracker. The more energy it absorbs, the faster it moves.

That's an existential problem for us: The galactic map shows the Meridian Singularity on a direct course for Super Earth. Directly in its path are five other planets that could suffer the same fate as Angel's Venture if we can't stop it soon: Moradesh, Ivis, Nublaria I, Pilen V, and New Haven. The future is uncertain, but I have full faith in the government to work out a solution in the eleventh hour.

Though, it's impossible to ignore the irony here. Let us never forget that the Meridian Singularity itself was the result of Super Earth hubris. Last summer, Helldivers were deployed to spread an experimental chemical weapon called 'Termicide' across bug planets. Termicide not only failed to contain the Terminid threat, but triggered reckless mutations that spawned flying Shriekers. Super Earth's solution? Dark matter bombs that eventually swallowed the planet of Meridia whole, creating the Meridian Singularity.

Hmm, maybe we're not in good hands after all. Rest in peace, Angel's Venture.