The Division 2 launches with 3 important features that agents had to wait ages for in The Division 1.
The Division 1 lacked several features at launch: Many agents will remember the release phase of Massive’s shared-world shooter poorly. Bugs, glitches, and balance issues heavily tarnished the gaming experience.
But important features that many players expected from The Division were also missing at launch. Many had to wait a long time for these features – as some were only delivered more than a year later.
You won’t have to wait ages for the following 3 features in The Division 2. They are available right at launch.
Loadouts – This feature was demanded by agents for months
What are Loadouts? Loadouts are a feature that allows you to save builds and quickly switch between them. In other words, when you equip a character with different weapons, armor pieces, and skills, you can save this selection and retrieve it at any time.
Loadouts in The Division 1: For a long time, there was no sign of loadouts, even though agents had been asking for them since launch. After all, many were playing in the Dark Zone with different builds than in regular PvE, which meant they had to swap every weapon and armor piece individually. This took a lot of time – and was just annoying.
On May 23, 2017, loadouts were finally introduced with the Update 1.6.1. It took more than 14 months for Massive to implement this community wish.
Loadouts in The Division 2: The feature will almost certainly be available right at the launch of part 2. Loadouts were already hidden in the Beta of The Division 2.
In the character overview, there was a menu option called “Equipments” – which is nothing other than loadouts. Once you have unlocked all the corresponding character perks, you can save a total of six loadouts simultaneously (at least in the beta build).
This affects your gameplay
This means for you: You can create builds at the start of The Division 2 to your heart’s content, save them as “Equipments,” and access them anytime.
Create your own builds for the Dark Zone, PvE content, and PvP modes and switch quickly between them without needing to swap each item individually.
Standalone PvP was not guaranteed in The Division 1
“Real PvP” in The Division: Those who wanted to shoot other agents at the start of their agent career had no choice but to march into the Dark Zone. However, this PvE-PvP area only offered optional PvP, which could not satisfy the PvP cravings of many players.
A pure PvP mode was long awaited in The Division 1. The paid mode “Last Stand” started in spring 2017, but it was also a mix of fighting NPCs and battling other agents.
Only in autumn 2017 did Update 1.8 introduce a mode that was purely about PvP: “Skirmish”. It was a 4v4 team deathmatch where finally no PvE enemies were roaming around to deal with. PvP enthusiasts had to wait a year and a half for this.
PvP in The Division 2: The Division 2, on the other hand, launches with two standalone PvP modes: Skirmish and Domination, which are summarized under “Conflict”.
- Skirmish is a classic team deathmatch mode
- In Domination, two teams fight for 3 zones that must be captured
You can read all previous information about PvP in The Division 2 here.
This affects your gameplay
This means for you: Anyone who enjoys hunting other agents will have fun in The Division 2 from the start.
And this on specially designed maps. Unlike its predecessor, the PvP maps are not just sections of the open world, but handcrafted areas intended solely for PvP matches.
According to Massive, more maps and modes for PvP will be added in the future. Therefore, PvP fans should get their money’s worth.
From Named Highends to Exotics to Unique Weapons
Special Weapons in The Division 1: At launch in March 2016, “Highend” was the highest quality level of weapons. Well, not entirely. There were also “Named Highends” – particularly rare weapons that were supposed to be especially strong.
But: The Named Highends were merely highend weapons with names that were limited to fixed talents. They did not represent anything special. In fact, the standard highend weapons were better because they could come with powerful perk combinations. Therefore, the hunt for these rare weapons was not worth it at all.
With Update 1.6 at the end of February 2017, Massive completely revamped these miserable weapons. They gained unique talents, were marked with a reddish color in the inventory, and renamed “Exotics.” Some of them even became quite useful and enabled exciting playstyles.
Special Weapons in The Division 2: Exotic weapons return in The Division 2. The developers have already confirmed this several times. However, they are still holding back details for now.
All we know is that The Division 2 takes a cue from Destiny regarding Exotics, as you can only carry one exotic weapon at a time.
No old Exotics from the predecessor are supposed to return. The new unique weapons are meant to feel powerful and special, but not overly strong. Additionally, they should visually stand out from standard weapons.
Each weapon will have its own background story to underscore all of this.
This affects your gameplay
This means for you: Exotic weapons are likely to be not only challenging to acquire but also truly powerful in The Division 2. Unlike the early months of The Division 1, the hunt for them should be worthwhile.
Don’t want to miss any news? On our Facebook page for The Division 2, you will definitely stay updated on everything regarding Massive’s upcoming shared-world shooter.
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