Tom Clancy’s The Division
will evoke a wide spectrum of emotions from its players. There’s Ubisoft Massive’s awe-inspiring interpretation of post-epidemic Manhattan which will see their jaws drop. Then there are the minutiae of the Snowdrop graphics engine in all its glory: lighting variations, draw distance, reflections, particle effects, muzzle flashes and mission locations designed with the goal to show it all off as you and a buddy shoot your way through one of New York’s subway stations. At the other end, there’s the frustration from repetitive encounters, technical problems and a confusing desire to accumulate marginally better loot. [caption id=“attachment_305758” align=“aligncenter” width=“640”]
Encounters can get repetitive[/caption] In The Division’s Manhattan, a genetically modified smallpox virus has wiped out most of the populace, resulting in the formation of various factions. There are the Saviours of Humanity, The Strategic Homeland Division, CERA (The Division’s FEMA) and JTF, who are all the good guys. On the other side of the moral spectrum, we have the hood-wearing Rioters, Flamethrower-wielding Cleaners, convicts from Rikers Island prison, and The Last Man Battalion, a collection of ex-soldiers from a private military company. All of these factions have their own agenda, and it’s not for the player to judge, but instead to simply play the role of executioner. [caption id=“attachment_305759” align=“aligncenter” width=“640”]
Get yourself a post-epidemic latte[/caption] As players shoot their way through the initial stages of the game, they will find themselves appreciating the loot they’re able to pick up from fallen foes; with the promise of 50 more damage-per-second or 10 more armour over their previous choices of weapons and gear. Options might seem limited with the constraints of a real world setting, but there is surprising appeal in finding and crafting something new using blueprints and materials scavenged in its huge open world. [caption id=“attachment_305760” align=“aligncenter” width=“640”]
Matchmaking can be an uncomplicated process[/caption] The Division is pretty good when played co-operatively. It’s definitely playable solo, but there’s no doubt that it’s more fun with friends. Tactics such as flanking, using complementary abilities and providing overwatch with a sniper rifle as another player rushes in with an SMG come into play. When played in four-player co-op however, baddies seem to have a million hit-points each and will not go down to anything less than a dozen sniper rifle headshots (this gets even more bizarre in high level areas). [caption id=“attachment_305761” align=“aligncenter” width=“640”]
The Division is a looker on PC[/caption] Bullet sponges are generally acceptable in a shooter/RPG hybrid, but some hoodlum wearing a sweatshirt tanking magazine after magazine can really get annoying after a while. On the flipside, this demands teamwork, and it can be satisfying to defeat a seemingly unreasonably difficult enemy as a unit. Overall, the gunplay is mostly good, with weapons feeling distinct despite the real-world setting, while the RPG angle plays well into combat. [caption id=“attachment_305762” align=“aligncenter” width=“640”]
The Division’s Manhattan is full of possibilities[/caption] You will see damage and XP numbers fly as enemies are defeated, as well as find yourself number crunching constantly with the voluminous information presented to you in the game’s menus upon gathering new loot. Spending time in your inventory screen is an integral part of any RPG, and The Division delivers from a UI standpoint. [caption id=“attachment_305763” align=“aligncenter” width=“640”]
The Division’s UI makes managing your gear a breeze[/caption] Then there’s the early game character progression. It’s wonderfully paced, with the levelling system ensuring that players not only play through the main story, but get to experience a fair share of the game’s not-too-shabby side missions as well. While some of these are carbon copies of each other, there is some world building happening here. [caption id=“attachment_305764” align=“aligncenter” width=“640”]
The ECHOs are an unobtrusive way to explore the story[/caption] Experience stories of citizens via 3D recreations of events via ECHO devices (short for Evidence Correlation Holographic Overlay) and perform investigations which ultimately lead to finding a missing person, or a skirmish followed by the revelation of their deaths. This is an unobtrusive, optional way to experience the game’s story without it being completely hidden away or shoved down your throat. Alternatively, fight off hordes of enemies trying to destroy a supply drop (rather than repurpose it for themselves for whatever reason), or in a dramatic twist of events, fight off hordes of enemies as you turn some valves or carry objects. [caption id=“attachment_305765” align=“aligncenter” width=“640”]
The gunplay is good but the problems lie elsewhere[/caption] What passes off for innovation in The Division is questionable. While the world itself is beautiful, the enemies inhabiting it are anything but woefully similar. The developers have attempted to make each of the factions distinct, giving each one a different set of weapons, appearance and tactics, but after a few hours it just feels like you’re fighting the same ones over and over again. Yes, story missions have some context, but every encounter seems to challenge you with very little variation in enemy composition, ending with a yellow-bar “Elite”, an above-average-height, heavily armoured enemy walking around with a big flamethrower or a light machine gun. This problem persists even in the Darkzone, the much-hyped endgame content in The Division. The Darkzone is ambitious in concept, yet very much a work in progress in terms of execution. It can be fun, particularly if you’re prancing around with three other buddies looking for the best loot in the game, battling overwhelming odds in a high level area, or playing a game of Manhattan Standoff
at the extraction zone. The big issue is that the encounters in the DZ are merely more difficult versions of all the encounters in the game. The lack of any sort of fight mechanics, different bosses, or objectives is concerning. Compare this to Destiny’s Vault of Glass Raid and the difference is stark. Another problem is that the abilities and weapons, which seem to be reasonably balanced in solo or co-op play fall apart in a PvP environment. The rogue system is not well implemented either. In The Division, when you shoot someone intentionally or accidentally, your party goes “rogue” with targets now painted on your heads. Every other player in your DZ instance is notified of your treachery and will come for you. There is a timer associated with going rogue, and laying low while it runs down is the only viable strategy. Shooting other players while rogue (in other words, defending yourself) increases the duration of this timer. The overall experience of going rogue is also soured by the extreme penalties imposed on those dying while being rogue agents and by players exploiting the system with ease. For instance, someone will simply dive in front of your gunfire if you’re at low health, turning you rogue, land the killing blow and steal all your loot. Level balancing appears to play a role in PvP situations as well—players with high level armour and weapons will wipe the floor with players with low level gear. Granted, this gives players good incentive to hunt for better gear, but why are both sets of players in the same instance of the Darzkone to begin with? Shouldn’t there be some system of separating players based on their gear, if not on skill? It’s not often you come across a game which is an odd, mixed bag of technical issues. The Division is a social game, and its matchmaking system is great—I personally had no issues finding groups to play missions in various difficulties, free roam or venture deep into the Dark Zone. A few hours later, I’m not able to log in. I also ran into issues where there would be no mission trigger after the four players in my group fought off wave after wave of enemies for half an hour. I also experience lag during solo play, believe it or not—my guns wouldn’t fire, enemies wouldn’t take damage and sometimes nothing would happen. The Division ultimately feels like an experiment with no ultimate objective. I’m hoping to be proved wrong, with the upcoming DLC and hope that it will deliver engaging endgame content. But as it stands, the Dark Zone and daily missions offer an insubstantial payoff for players looking for a reason to keep playing. Granted the loot is appealing, but loot in itself cannot be the endgame. There’s no doubt however that The Division’s Manhattan is worth exploring with a few friends—for a while at least.
Rating: 6.5
What’s good Loot Good gunplay and co-op Character progression is well paced Looks amazing on PC What’s bad Lacks variety/too repetitive Endgame is still a work in progress Buggy