Review
Played on: Xbox One X
Released: 2019
Played on: Xbox One X
Released: 2019
Released: 2019
Introduction
I really enjoyed my stay in New York with the first Tom Clancy's The Division, review here. Completing all the missions, including replaying a few of them on hard difficulty, all in coop with a friend back in 2016.
Earlier this year I warmed up for the sequel by replaying the first game again, this time in 4K on my Xbox One X! I still really enjoyed it and loved the setting. It's a beautiful game to look at and a warmly recommended coop experience.
The Division 2 is familiar ground and brought a smile to my face from the get go. It's close to the first title in gameplay and structure, but adds a lot of clever new ideas and elements to keep fans happy. If you didn't like the first, with it's RPG take on shooters, then this sequel doesn't change that in any way.
Earlier this year I warmed up for the sequel by replaying the first game again, this time in 4K on my Xbox One X! I still really enjoyed it and loved the setting. It's a beautiful game to look at and a warmly recommended coop experience.
The Division 2 is familiar ground and brought a smile to my face from the get go. It's close to the first title in gameplay and structure, but adds a lot of clever new ideas and elements to keep fans happy. If you didn't like the first, with it's RPG take on shooters, then this sequel doesn't change that in any way.
So, read on if you thoroughly enjoyed the first game and want more!
Plot and setting
The Division 2 is set seven months after the first, locating itself in D.C. Washington. Here, the pandemic has lasted longer and the city is more worn down and even grown over by plants and trees. Just like the first game, the main story relies on a thin premise. The reasoning for the agenda of violent and armed gangs taking over various areas in the city, seem eye-rolling stupid. The story foundation may be thin, but the story presentation is top quality and the smaller sub-plots keep you interested throughout.
The enemies in the game appear more diverse from faction to faction this time around. Each having their own attack patterns and A.I. behaviour. Some factions will straight out, suicidal, storm at you with melee weapons. While others rely on tactics with small remotely controlled cars or drones, wrecking havoc with your abilities. It helps bring you out of your comfort zone as you're forced to apply different tactics for each faction.
As usual, there's top quality cutscenes and voice acting from Ubisoft, with more dramatic scenes happening as you're playing. For instance, the game starts off early by making your way to the White House. On your way you see fire, explosions and smoke happening into the distance as you approach the building. It helps make a dramatic, cinematic, sensation as you're playing.
The enemies in the game appear more diverse from faction to faction this time around. Each having their own attack patterns and A.I. behaviour. Some factions will straight out, suicidal, storm at you with melee weapons. While others rely on tactics with small remotely controlled cars or drones, wrecking havoc with your abilities. It helps bring you out of your comfort zone as you're forced to apply different tactics for each faction.
As usual, there's top quality cutscenes and voice acting from Ubisoft, with more dramatic scenes happening as you're playing. For instance, the game starts off early by making your way to the White House. On your way you see fire, explosions and smoke happening into the distance as you approach the building. It helps make a dramatic, cinematic, sensation as you're playing.
Gameplay and features
There's a deeper leveling system and character structure this time around. Even when you reach the level cap of 30, it continues by adding specialisation classes and a whole bunch of additional missions. Merely finishing the main story missions, is far from the whole experience.
The assist items are cooler too, with lots of different ones to choose. Drones, R.C. cars, chemical launchers and turrets are at your disposal to deploy during combat. They are vital to surviving, especially if you're on your own.
There's a neat structure to the city, with the White House working as main base in the middle of the map. However, you can help outward bases across the city too. Doing varied side missions and specific tasks to help. Each main mission is far better presented than the first game too and are much more varied in their scenarios and tasks. Keeping me interested all through the main story.
I ended up playing Division 2 on my own and enjoyed it just as much as a singleplayer game. Even the dark zone has received an overhaul: there's three of them and they all require you to complete a series of tasks within them to "activate" them as multiplayer zones. I found this helped towards connecting the single and multiplayer aspect better together than the first game.
When it comes to the actual gameplay, Divsion 2 has reduced the bullet sponge sensation the first game suffered from, making it feel more like a ordinary shooter than a level based one. Although it's still hitpoint and level based, the enemies seem to take amount of bullets to go down, provided you're close to their level. There are still big grunts that take tons of damage, but they aren't overpowered and sudden difficulty spikes like the first game suffered from.
There's a neat structure to the city, with the White House working as main base in the middle of the map. However, you can help outward bases across the city too. Doing varied side missions and specific tasks to help. Each main mission is far better presented than the first game too and are much more varied in their scenarios and tasks. Keeping me interested all through the main story.
I ended up playing Division 2 on my own and enjoyed it just as much as a singleplayer game. Even the dark zone has received an overhaul: there's three of them and they all require you to complete a series of tasks within them to "activate" them as multiplayer zones. I found this helped towards connecting the single and multiplayer aspect better together than the first game.
When it comes to the actual gameplay, Divsion 2 has reduced the bullet sponge sensation the first game suffered from, making it feel more like a ordinary shooter than a level based one. Although it's still hitpoint and level based, the enemies seem to take amount of bullets to go down, provided you're close to their level. There are still big grunts that take tons of damage, but they aren't overpowered and sudden difficulty spikes like the first game suffered from.
Video
Much like how Division 1 was patched to run native 4K on the Xbox One X, Division 2 does so out of the box. It's a stunningly detailed cityscape, with amazingly detailed interiors of buildings you enter. There's tons of small details like rubbish scattered, cars burnt out in the streets and the indoor locations a literally littered with furniture and items.
The most noticeable change is the change from a winter to summer setting, with pronounced changing weather, like rain and fog. Massive use of foliage is another major change. The first game had hardly any, here we have lush gardens, trees and thick bushes. It helps the city look more organic and summer like. It's a lovely touch which helps set it apart from it's predecessor visually.
The most noticeable change is the change from a winter to summer setting, with pronounced changing weather, like rain and fog. Massive use of foliage is another major change. The first game had hardly any, here we have lush gardens, trees and thick bushes. It helps the city look more organic and summer like. It's a lovely touch which helps set it apart from it's predecessor visually.
Although, in some heavily vegetated areas, the engine shows it isn't up to the task of rendering nature as well as Ghost Recon Wildlands. Cleary the Division engine is best suited for angular buildings and interior detail rather than looking organic.
I didn't find the HDR implementation anything special to be honest, switching between playing on a monitor with it and a TV without it, didn't really show much difference. Game runs locked to 30fps on console and holds it solid as far as I experienced. While it's not visually such a huge step up from the already beautiful first title, it's really nice to look at.
I didn't find the HDR implementation anything special to be honest, switching between playing on a monitor with it and a TV without it, didn't really show much difference. Game runs locked to 30fps on console and holds it solid as far as I experienced. While it's not visually such a huge step up from the already beautiful first title, it's really nice to look at.
There's more variation this time around, a contrast to the endless snowy streets of New York. Ranging from dense, high rise, cityscapes, through to crooked hills with streets of, brick clad, small houses. All the way to gardens within huge parks areas. I especially enjoyed places like a crashed airplane site and a dive into an underground train station for variety.
Update: The Division 2 received a Xbox Series X/S patch in 2021 and can now be played at 60fps, making it feel precise and smooth. An earlier patch added field of view slider too, so you get an even better experience in hindsight.
Audio
Once again, we're treated to a superb soundtrack made by Swedish in-house Ubisoft composer Ola Strandh. Blending synth electronica and immersive movie music together in a fantastic fashion. Just like the first game, I've enjoyed a lot of the music here and it really has become a trademark sound of the series. Both games soundtracks are on Spotify, so be sure to give them a listen if you enjoy them while playing!
On the Xbox One family of consoles we are treated to Dolby Atmos audio support too, making the immersion with 3D sounds incredible if you own the Atmos app on your console. Heavy sounds from guns, and great spatial effects to determine where the enemies are attacking from.
Overall, the audio is remarkably well done in this game, standing tall alongside other titles with similar high quality.
On the Xbox One family of consoles we are treated to Dolby Atmos audio support too, making the immersion with 3D sounds incredible if you own the Atmos app on your console. Heavy sounds from guns, and great spatial effects to determine where the enemies are attacking from.
Overall, the audio is remarkably well done in this game, standing tall alongside other titles with similar high quality.
Summary
I've enjoyed my stay with Division 2. It feels even closer to a traditional shooter now and should satisfy all fans of the first game. Although the changes might be more evolutionary steps rather than huge changes, I find them all to help towards a more varied and entertaining playthrough.
The story is still thin in premise, but the presentation, graphics, audio and gameplay make it all worth while. I love the more memorable main missions and the smaller but welcome tweaks and improvements to character depth and game structure.
The story is still thin in premise, but the presentation, graphics, audio and gameplay make it all worth while. I love the more memorable main missions and the smaller but welcome tweaks and improvements to character depth and game structure.
Recommended for fans of the first and newcomers alike, there aren't really that many games like The Division 1&2 out there!
