Rare is it that a sequel takes on a life of its own upon launch. The Division 2 from Ubisoft has done exactly that, won. This third-person shooter is full of personalization, co-op play, and steady progression going through the game. But can it live up to the original?
Washinton DC is in shambles. An outbreak of smallpox has decimated the nation’s capital and allowed for three enemy groups to take control of the city. The Division will have to deal with an alliance of street gangs, fanatical survivors and traitors. The Division will have to retake territory, save civilians and try to discover who is still alive and who is worth saving.
Beyond the atmosphere being breathtaking, The Division 2 gives players the ability to develop abilities, skills, and loadouts that work with their particular playstyle. While going to what seems to end up as your home base, The White House, the objectives here are more than just “gather loot” and follow task lists. Content is overflowing so there is easily over 50 hours of gameplay to go through. The progression through the game will keep you going but also make you feel rewarded in a balanced way.
Although some of the items seem silly, like crazy and funny apparel, there are also some new additions to typical weapons. Depending on your own personal style of play and how you play with others, the eight skills will have three options to unlock per skill. So instead of weapons, these are more like extra gadgets to use in order to make yourself unique in battle while you are working your way through Control Points and taking them back. For example, the rolling seeker mine will unleash havoc on your enemies, but at least you can control it and the turret can be used in three different ways depending on the are you’re in and what your strategy is.
The Division 2 seems to be very geared toward personal play style. In teams or duos, the way you blend your skills with others will be very important and weapons will need to be ready to be switched out on the fly. The more you can gel with the team the better everything will work but you must think quickly and adapt. Combat and action are paced very well throughout so you don’t get bored or find any lag in the gameplay. When it comes to plot, however, the different atmospheres are fascinating and historical which make battle different and exciting, but the plot could be just slightly stronger. For example, a mission to save the Declaration of Independence is epic, but not completely in line with the story, and that’s fine, just different.
This game has so much to offer it truly is hard to lay it all out. Suggested, however, is the PvP Dark Zone that must be explored. The challenge is difficult but upon entering, all stats get normalized thankfully. The AI isn’t too difficult but your peers might be. Of course, there is loot to be found as well, and good loot at that.
So, yes, the sequel can and does live up to the original, even surpassed it. This open world game focuses mostly on personalized play style in the end and the objective is, at the core, a shoot and loot game, but it’s everything else that makes The Division 2 worth playing. The atmosphere is great to look at, the weapons and customization are fantastic and the balance of the game doesn’t drag you down. There is no real reason not to play this game.
8.5/10
Available on: PS4, Xbox One, PC
