In The Division, Massive discusses their server structure and the current cheating issues.

Cheats and hacks. Especially the PC version of The Division is plagued by these annoyances. A few days ago, the statement of a network expert caused a stir: He suspected that due to Massive’s server structure, the cheats could never be completely fixed – unless the development team rewrote most of the net codes and game codes entirely.

Now, regarding these speculations about the server infrastructure, Anders Holmquist, the Technical Director of Massive, made a statement in a podcast.

This is what Massive says about the server infrastructure of The Division

In a conversation with the Community Developer Hamish Bode, Holmquist talks about the server infrastructure of the MMO shooter. We summarize the key points:

• The Division has a comprehensive online infrastructure. Massive has dedicated servers distributed around the world, such as in Sydney, Hong Kong, on the west and east coast of the USA, and at several locations in Europe. This helps mitigate lags and poor pings.
• The matchmaking depends on several factors: Where you are, where your friends are, and your ping. It can happen that players from Europe, for example, end up on Chinese servers if the European servers are full. The matchmaking does not strictly follow regional divisions, you can meet agents from all over the world.
• When you log into the game, matchmaking starts right away. Gear score and other factors are considered, which according to Massive will enhance the individual player experience. This all happens during the loading screen when logging in. Another matchmaking occurs when you enter safe houses or are near the Dark Zone.
• The matchmaking for the Dark Zone does not start when you step through the door, but “much earlier”. The roadblocks marking the entrances to the DZ serve merely gameplay purposes. The matchmaking is already complete when you approach them. The shots and explosions you hear outside the Dark Zone occur in real-time in the DZ.

  

• On one hand, the dedicated servers of Massive can guarantee a seamless player experience, and on the other hand, they set the rules for everything that happens in the game. The server controls everything, from the events to the battles to the loot. What the server says goes. However, there are two exceptions:

1. The local movement of the player: When you move, the server does not correct you in any way. However, the server ensures that you do not enter areas that you should not be able to access. It only checks your movements. If this were different, the movements would not feel smooth. It could happen that you suddenly get reset or feel like you are stuck on a rubber band.
2. Also, aiming with weapons is not directly controlled by the server. It checks whether it was a valid shot but does not intervene in your aiming movements.

   

• During the beta phases, there were numerous issues as the server did not properly verify the events. Many of these issues have now been fixed, however, according to Holmquist, there are still bugs that are more difficult to resolve. For these, better cheating detection systems are continuously being added, for instance, to address the fire rate issues on PC.
• When cheaters are reported, the team reviews all the reports. For reported players, Massive can see many details.
• The Division is both an MMO and a shooter, so the servers need to meet multiple demands: While other shooters have, for example, 32 players on a server, The Division has thousands of players plus tens of thousands of NPCs.
• Furthermore, they do not want to kick players with bad pings, as The Division can also be played solo. In other multiplayer shooters, players with a ping over 200ms would not be allowed on servers. The Division has a “hybrid solution.”

  

• In PvP, The Division is currently very tolerant and generous with bad ping values. But this will be further investigated how tolerant they want to be here. In dubious situations, the server has to decide whether in combat with “laggers” some shots should count as hits or not. However, this can lead to agents occasionally taking damage when they “shouldn’t” and vice versa.
• The biggest challenge for the servers is to control not only the agents but also the numerous NPCs (up to 15k on a server) so that all players have the same gaming experience.
• Since most of the action takes place on the servers, many problems can be fixed server-side. Bigger problems arise when a server-side fix causes the client to display something different than it should. Therefore, client-side patches are also necessary.

  

• Basically, the online infrastructure is about who decides the game events. And as players, we want the servers to decide as much as possible. The servers of The Division fundamentally control everything, with a few exceptions: running, aiming, and minor features while shooting. But even here, the server should check everything.
• Massive continues to combat cheating, exploits, and bugs; they will make stabilizations, and the new raid and future content should function as Massive envisions it.
• Massive is aware of all the issues. They will fix them. The quality of the player experience in The Division is to be significantly improved. The developers want to continue working passionately on The Division.

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In The Division, we take a closer look at the Pulse skill.

Many agents use the Pulse in The Division with the “Tactical Scanner” mod to deal more damage to marked enemies. We want to take a detailed look at this skill as it offers advantages that some agents may not have noticed yet. Additionally, we will explore the question: Is the Pulse effect stackable?

This is the Pulse in The Division

The Pulse is a skill from the Medical branch, which is available to agents early in the game. You can send out a pulse that marks enemies and allies through walls and cover. The base effect alone is useful to ensure you don’t suddenly find yourself amidst enemies. Additionally, you gain an increased chance for critical hits on the marked target. The damage from critical hits also increases.

Once you have unlocked the Master Mod, the Pulse gains additional permanent benefits: it gives early warnings when enemies are nearby and determines if the user is detected by an enemy Pulse.

The early warning is indicated by the Pulse icon lighting up red. The faster it flickers, the closer the threat is. In the following image, you can see the icon lighting up:

If you are marked by enemies with a Pulse, you will notice small squares on your agent’s body. If the squares are white, you have been scanned by a neutral agent; if they are red, you are on an enemy’s radar:

If you upgrade the quarantine in the Medical wing of the Base of Operations, three modifications will be available to you:

• Pulse Amplifier: The pulse has a greater range (80m) and can additionally locate nearby loot crates. This mod is likely used by very few agents, but it can be useful when you want to farm materials and don’t have a fixed route for it yet.
• Disruptor: The Pulse protects the user and all allies from enemy Pulses. This benefit can be used both preventively and reactively: even after you have been scanned, you can shake off the marking. This mod is particularly effective in the Dark Zone: if you are marked, you can escape from pursuers more easily. Additionally, it allows you to turn the tables: remove your marking, scan the other player, and gain advantages over them.
• Tactical Scanner: Damage increases when attacking enemy targets identified by the Pulse. This mod is considered the favorite of most agents, as “More damage is always good.” But is this damage bonus stackable if multiple agents in the squad use the Tactical Scanner?

  

The Tactical Scanner’s effect does not stack

The YouTuber Arekkz Gaming sought an answer to this question and came to the disappointing conclusion: No, the damage bonus is not stackable. However, the Pulse works on a principle that may lead some agents to believe otherwise:

• If an agent activates the Tactical Scanner, the damage bonus is increased.
• If another squad member with higher skill strength (making the effect of the Tactical Scanner stronger) then activates the Pulse, the skill of the other agent expires: now the better Tactical Scanner is active.

In other words:

The effect of the Tactical Scanner is not stackable; the better one simply overrides the worse one.

Arekkz Gaming reached this conclusion through a self-experiment with some friends, who examined this effect in various scenarios. You can watch the video below:

Which skills with which mods do you use?

Here you can find an overview of all skill mods in The Division.

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