One of the biggest new features for The Division 2 will be the first 8-player raid. So far, there is little concrete information about this. In a podcast, Massive spoke about the new endgame activity.
For a long time, Division Agents have hoped that The Division 2 would finally make this wish come true: A raid! This is part of the endgame focus that Massive has set for the sequel and is designed for eight players.
There is still not much known about this, in a podcast with gamingbolt Julian Gerighty, Creative Director at Massive, gives us a glimpse of what these raids will actually be like.
What are “raids” generally understood to be?
Exploration and Discovery: Raids are activities that can feature both PvE and PvP elements and are usually designed for eight or more players. Players must work together to tackle a raid, which typically consists of a larger mission with one or more boss fights.
Coordination and good equipment are usually essential to complete a raid. In an interview with Skill Up, Game Director Mathias Karlson hinted that exploration and discovery will be important for progress in the TD2 raid.
First raid to appear shortly after the release of The Division 2
No raid at launch: Gerighty makes it clear that the raid will not be available immediately at launch, but will appear in the weeks shortly after. The reasons for this can only be speculated; Massive may want to use the player data from the first weeks to make some adjustments to the game balance.
Raid as the ultimate challenge: Another reason could be the design of the raid. According to Gerighty, this represents by far the toughest form of endgame content and can only be tackled by well-equipped agents who have reached the highest level. It would, therefore, be of little sense to unlock this directly at release.
Rewards are meant to showcase successful completion of the raid
Raid with big rewards: Massive is still keeping concrete details under wraps, as the release is still a good way off. However, Julian hints that the rewards for completing the raid are expected to be generous.
Players who succeed in this challenge should be able to make this clearly visible to the other agents. Does this mean that in addition to equipment, there will be other rewards waiting for us?
There might be cosmetic items as rewards that showcase the successful completion of the raid. Suitable for this would be
- Outfits
- Weapon and armor skins
- Patches
- and trophies
as rewards. We are excited.
Several raids planned
As Gerighty emphasizes, there will not be just one raid. Definitely more will follow in the first year. How many exactly and how extensive they will be remains to be seen.
However, one can speculate that these will be part of the DLCs planned for the first year. These DLCs are intended to
- be free
- continue the story
- expand the game world
- and deliver additional new features.
New feature for overwhelmed agents – The “Progression Tracker”
One of the interviewers spoke about The Division 1. He returned after a long break with the release of 1.8 and describes his overwhelm. Which activity should he play? The selection of content is vast, and he wished he had been guided by the game.
The “Progression Tracker” is meant to support players: The new tracker will suggest activities that correspond to your current progress and will likely be found in the main menu.
If you are close to a milestone, this tracker will show you what the most effective way is to complete it. This Progression Tracker will not be the only element to support players, but Gerighty does not reveal more.
Here you can listen to the full podcast.
What do you think of the information? How do you envision the raids?
