Tom Clancy's The Division 2 review

White House Down

It has been about seven months since a deadly virus hit New York and much of the "civilized" world. The choice to exploit banknotes as a means of spreading the pandemic has had the double effect of accelerating the phenomenon and paralyzing the entire global economy, giving rise to a no man's land in which the law of the strongest (and cruelest) prevails over everything.

As members of the elite unit known as the Division, you were tasked with ensuring continuity of government and managing the crisis by gathering and analyzing data, organizing a sound strategy of action, and of course, maintaining the rule of law by coordinating tactical teams composed of independent sleeper cells.

The intervention in New York has undoubtedly put a stop to the escalation of violence and terror perpetrated by groups of not too prepared criminals, but in the meantime in the most protected city on planet Earth - Washington DC - someone is organizing to collapse the entire nation through a coup d'état in the Capital. As an effective member of the Division you will therefore have the task of contributing to the defense of the city, in order to prevent the capital and the rest of the United States from sinking definitively into chaos.

Don't compare it to Destiny

Fans of the first The Division will not have major problems in orienting themselves among the folds of the new scenario designed by the Massive team. Taking for granted the obvious differences determined primarily by the abandonment of the gray New York in favor of a much more colorful and varied Washington DC, the game put into play by the same creators of the series slavishly follows the stylistic features of its predecessor, without giving up some changes capable of enhancing some aspects and above all of smoothing out some of the critical issues that have emerged over the course of these three years.

For those who are new to the series, it is important to point out that The Division 2 is to all intents and purposes a third-person tactical shooter (or cover shooter as repeatedly reiterated by the guys at Massive) playable both single-player and cooperatively, strongly characterised in terms of the plot and in which the development and adaptation of the character - and his abilities - to the distinctive characteristics of the player (or the group he belongs to) takes precedence over everything else, including the level cap.

In The Division and even more so in this second chapter, there is no right or wrong choice in terms of equipment (although some builds are more adaptable than others), since the character evolution system will allow you to create the agent best suited to your way of approaching the urban warfare to which the SHD agents will be constantly subjected.

Obviously, since it is a shooter in all respects, it will still be necessary to assimilate the key concepts underlying gunplay, which, just like in the first chapter, is and remains linked to the reasoned use of both cover and, above all, the assault (and defense) strategies most suited to the chosen equipment.

Carbon copy? No, thanks

If you were wondering what The Division 2 can offer compared to its predecessor, the answer is "much more". Leaving aside the aspects related to the plot and its evolution, what Massive has tried to do is, in fact, to put on the field a much more structured title than its predecessor, capable of going even beyond the concept of endgame.

The revision process to which the game structure has been subjected, first of all allows us to access a much more stratified activity tree, in which not only the main missions and the secondary ones marked mostly by script needs appear, but also a new series of "on the road" operations that go beyond the "trivial" encounter-clash with the organized crime that is besieging Washington DC.

The settlements are the most striking example of what has just been described. Autonomous sections of the operational base inhabited by civilians and military forces, these detachments effectively live a life of their own, requiring however the sporadic but fundamental intervention of the Division's agents. Unlike the classic shelter, each settlement needs, in fact, to be appropriately strengthened by developing new characteristics and functionality, but above all protected both by clearing the surrounding areas (read also eliminating all intruders from enemy factions) and by recruiting new figures (controlled by the CPU) capable of ensuring the protection of the perimeter even in the absence of specialized units. Obviously, the evolution of each settlement is closely tied to the completion of rather specific tasks, which will range from the "trivial" operation against enemy forces to the donation of resources and part of one's own equipment.

Along with the settlements, a second group of activities also appears, more specifically linked to the concept of “zones of interest”. In this case, these are mostly stand-alone, fairly impromptu assignments, most often linked to the verification (and eventual remediation) of certain sectors of the city appropriately marked on the map.

The introduction of the Checkpoints , specific sensitive areas of the city controlled by much more organised criminal gangs, which will have to be reconquered in order to guarantee their safety through constant surveillance by allied forces.

Let us point out that, as important as they are, the three "factors" just mentioned represent only the tip of the iceberg called The Division 2 , given that between SHADE crates to recover, civilians to save from public execution, propaganda loudspeakers to silence and supplies to reconquer, there will certainly be no shortage of extra activities capable of giving that extra pinch of variety to the game, which was objectively needed.

The evolution of the species

The revision process to which the game has been subjected has allowed us to introduce some interesting innovations also in terms of customization and management of your character. While maintaining the presence of all the aesthetic and non-aesthetic elements (including the perk tree) known in the first chapter of the series, The Division 2 First of all, it offers the opportunity to access a new series of skills (there will be eight in total, each divided into three further variants), capable of carrying out both attack and defense and rescue tasks.

The most substantial innovation, however, is represented by the reconfiguration of the main attributes of each individual agent, "simplified" to only the parameters linked to armor , power ability And health , and flanked for the occasion by a second resistance bar dedicated to the ability of your build to absorb enemy hits.

The presence of the armor bar represents one of the main "tactical" variants offered by The Division 2 , since the replacement of plates during a firefight (through the use of a medical kit), will necessarily have to go through a replacement operation that requires three seconds of total immobility to be completed successfully.

Compared to the first chapter of the series, there is also room for some interesting variations to the theme, even in terms of the infamous Weapon mods , no longer obtainable as loot but unlockable as perks via the weapon station Quartermaster (using the SHADE points in your possession), or createable through the inevitable DIY station, provided of course that you have obtained the necessary schematics for their creation.

It should be noted that unlike in the past, all acquired weapon mods will remain in your inventory without taking up space and can also be used simultaneously on multiple weapons as long as, of course, they are compatible with the chosen weapon.

Password Endgame

We wanted to dedicate a separate paragraph to the infamous endgame, the real sword of Damocles of the first The Division, since Massive have shown that they have learned the lesson well. In this case, the development team has in fact tried to follow the community's requests, putting into play a varied series of activities that can be used exclusively at the end of the main campaign. We are not only referring to the possibility of unlocking three Specializations upon reaching the level cap (Survivalist, Demolitionist and Sharpshooter) capable of enabling both a third specific weapon (crossbow, grenade launcher, sniper rifle) and new perks capable of significantly modifying the behavior of some skills, but above all of the revolution that the entire game world will be subject to, with the invasion of the fourth hostile faction known as Black Tusk . These are essentially highly militarized enemy forces commanded by a former JTF member, possessing technology and weaponry even superior to the Division's, capable of laying siege to most of the facilities "liberated" during the campaign.

It goes without saying that once the campaign is over, the player will be asked to intervene for a second time in most of the areas reclaimed over time, knowing full well that this time the Division's agents will no longer be met by inexperienced people but by organized military forces, superior in number and equipment.

Gameplay and technique

From a gameplay perspective, The Division 2 relies on the same strong points of the previous chapter, making full use of the characteristics of a decidedly balanced gunplay, accessible to everyone but no less deep or obvious. We are talking about a game strongly devoted to "reasoned" combat, based more on the intelligent use of cover and cooperation with other agents than on the real open combat.

In this sense, the choice to give the game an even slower pace than in the previous chapter of the series also has the merit of placing even more emphasis on the strategic use of cover and on the sense of position with respect to the nerve center of the action, a factor that will necessarily have to be taken into account also in consideration of the renewed artificial intelligence of the enemies controlled by the CPU, now capable of moving in a much more coordinated manner in the attempt to surround or take from behind the unfortunate (or unfortunates) of the moment. The only shame is the mediocre characterization of the medium-low level enemies, frankly too anonymous and predictable to represent an acceptable level of challenge even during the very first stages of the game.

Appreciable, however, is the choice to differentiate the three areas of the Dark Zone, accessible only by unlocking the staff member Senait Ezera through the completion of the main mission. Museum of American History. In this case we are faced with rather heterogeneous combat areas, characterized by specific structural features capable of modifying the approach to actual combat. If it is true, as it is true, that the large open spaces of the Black Zone East will prefer a much more attentive setup to the defensive aspect of their character, it is equally true that the narrow passages and tunnels of the Dark Zone South will offer the player the opportunity to unbalance their set towards attack, since the very conformation of the battle terrain will offer a natural defense tool that will still have to be taken into account.

Technically The Division 2 It comes with lots of lights and some shadows. While it is true that the Massive team has managed to recreate an environment with an absolutely convincing visual impact, it is also true that some rendering issues do not allow you to fully enjoy the splendid views of Washington DC, with textures often delayed and rather evident quality oscillations.

It's a shame because, as mentioned, the visual impact offered by the game remains without a shadow of a doubt convincing, with environments (open and closed) excellently characterized (but not very interactive), rich in details and particularly convincing and well-placed light and particle effects. In a more general sense, the engine of The Division 2 It still proves to be up to the task, so much so that it runs without any particular worries even with an unlocked framerate (at least on Xbox One X) beyond the usual 30FPS threshold.

Multiplayer

After about a week of playing, we can certify that even on the multiplayer front The Division 2 does not disappoint expectations, confirming itself at the height of its predecessor, while not giving up some interesting novelties. As mentioned, in general the development team has tried not to distort the game, offering the opportunity to agents scattered around the map to cooperate through the usual (slightly revised) drop in drop out system (already known in the previous chapter) even during the main campaign, leaving the Dark Zone -revisited- the task of "managing" a multiplayer that is and remains halfway between a PVP and a PVE, given the presence of a notable number of "artificial" NPCs that will always need to be taken into account. For lovers of Pure PVP, Massive has nevertheless seen fit to introduce the new mode conflict , which will allow you to face each other in arenas without the "annoyance" of CPU-controlled enemies in two different activities. In addition to the classic Team Deathmatch reinterpreted in The Division style ( Skirmish ), there is also space Domination , a sort of objective mode in which it will be necessary to conquer and control different places on the map. For both activities, it will still be possible to select the battlefield between the three arenas currently available ( Capitol Ruins, Stadium, Georgetown ), but above all to compete against another team always composed of four elements.