Particularly in the Dark Zone-the most heavily quarantined area of the game that also serves as its PvP area. Of particular interest is just how alive the game feels. They certainly fit with what you’d expect in a disaster: city sanitation workers and vigilantes looking to incinerate anything that is or could be infected, escaped prisoners from Rikers Island, and a paramilitary force abandoned by the corporation that contracted them. As are the three enemy factions in the game-the Cleaners, the Rikers, and the Last Man Brigade. The main story surrounding your mission to discover the fate of the the First Wave Division agents is fairly straightforward, but serviceable nonetheless. There’s a real weight to it all, and they really sell the experience.
Many of the recordings are the sort of thing I’d imagine myself calling about in that situation: telling my family I loved them downplaying the scope of things just wanting to hear someone’s voice. For example, a recorded call from a young woman trapped in the city to her mother as she fears her impending demise at the hands of a doomsday virus where she comes out as gay was particularly powerful.
Some of it is a bit over-the-top, but most of it feels very genuine and human. Not only that, but the way that most of the game’s history and the unfolding of its events prior to your activation in the Second Wave of Division agents is told through collectibles like recorded cell phone conversations and disaster reports is awesome. Paired with the stellar ambient music, it all comes together to create a hauntingly immersive experience. Everything you encounter, regardless of scale, tells part of a story, and I’ve caught myself wandering around for hours staring at bits of posters, billboards, or graffiti on multiple occasions. They come off as real and genuine, without straying into parody the way they do in GTA or Saints Row. As is the overwhelming wealth of faux products and ads that were created for the game. Everything is hand-placed and meticulously detailed, right down to the graffiti, which is downright incredible. It truly does feel like a city, forsaken by its country, left to tear itself apart in the wake of a biological terror attack.
I’ve never experienced anything like the world design and immersion that The Division presents. Whoever is on the team that worked on the level design for the game’s version of Manhattan is not making enough money. But for those times-however infrequent-when everything is working the way it should, it’s magical.Īnd it truly is magical. And sure, there are probably more reliable things to spend your time with. The balance issues, gameplay bugs, and general nuisances can really spoil immersion in the experience, but I think of it a bit like owning a classic car.
Here’s the thing: much of The Division is broken. …Okay, I’m super salty about Ubisoft’s disgraceful support, but that’s nothing new. God speed.Īnd you know what? Even with all those issues, I’m not even bothered. Hell, if it weren’t for user DonCamillo.at #Teamsearch on the Steam forums offering up a magical workaround, I’d still be locked out. And that’s not even touching on the literal days I spent in the uPlay forums and support queues to even get the game active on my account after it failed to authenticate when I installed it. Yup, Tom Clancy’s The Division is a mess. From the sticky cover occasionally taking on a mind of its own, characters getting locked into running in one direction or the other, getting stuck in or falling through terrain, all the way up to major, game-breaking stuff like totally bugged talents and abilities and downright atrocious server stability with all the dropped packets, ping spikes, and delayed hit-reg you can handle. Enough that I could fill my word count just listing them off in shorthand. I’m going to get it out of the way up top that The Division is a mess of bugs.