The Division had a major endgame issue at release two years ago. Ubisoft promises not to repeat this mistake in the second part. But what could a better endgame for The Division 2 look like?
At an investors’ conference, the release window for The Division 2 was narrowed down. The sequel is set to be released in the first quarter of 2019, by March 31. Additionally, Ubisoft promised to have learned from the first game and to provide sufficient endgame content at launch to keep players engaged for years.
Because at release two years ago, The Division had a significant issue with a lack of variety in the endgame. After just a few days, players had achieved nearly everything that was possible at that time.
Ubisoft claims to have sufficient feedback and data to avoid a situation like the one at the beginning of The Division. We take a look at how the endgame of The Division has evolved and what the “better” endgame of The Division 2 could look like.
The evolution of the endgame in The Division
What was the endgame like at the beginning in The Division? While the path to level 30 was filled with varied story missions and more or less good side missions, there were not many options at the launch of The Division. One could either
- repeat the story missions on Challenging,
- improve the gear score
- look for collectibles,
- or venture into the Dark Zone
After a short time, boredom set in for some players, and demands for more content grew louder. Massive had announced a roadmap for Year 1 and adhered to it, but there was still considerable criticism. After all, an endgame was barely present at the start.
Map expansions, new modes, and better gear in The Division 1
What has changed to this day? Massive took the criticism to heart and regularly delivered content over the past few years, both in paid DLC form and for free. The entire Year 2 offered free content updates with new features. One of these was Patch 1.8, which is now considered one of the most important updates.
This update brought the West Side Piers as the first map expansion since release, the Endless mode “Resistance”, the Team Deathmatch mode “Battle”, secret gear sets, and more.
The Division now offers a wide range of PvP and PvE activities:
- Open-world bosses
- High-value targets
- The Underground
- The Survival mode
- The incursions Falcon Lost, Clear Sky, Dragon’s Nest, and Lost Signal
- The legendary difficulty for certain story missions
- Last Stand and Battle as PvP modes
- New Dark Zone areas
- The Horde mode Resistance
- A plethora of accolades with which points, cipher keys, and patches can be earned
- Gear sets, exotics, and secret gear sets
Additionally, the loot system has been massively overhauled since release and world tiers have been integrated into the game.
What could the endgame look like at launch in The Division 2?
This is what Ubisoft says: Yves Guillemot, CEO and President of Ubisoft, has announced that they have learned from the mistakes of the past years and want to provide sufficient content. They also want to deliver faster.
Alain Martínez, CFO (Chief Financial Officer), admitted that they were surprised by how quickly players exhausted the endgame content in the first game.
Now they have enough feedback and the right tools to improve this in The Division 2.
What can we expect? Since there are no concrete details about the sequel yet, we can do nothing but speculate. However, it is likely that some features will at least be partially carried over from The Division 1, as these can be implemented without problems in almost any setting.
We firmly expect that the Dark Zone will be back. As the flagship of The Division and an exciting mix of PvP and PvE, it remains one of the most varied offerings in the endgame. Massive should address the balance issues and the rogue system.
Also, the PvP modes, incursions, and the Horde mode Resistance could be present at the launch of TD2. However, Massive should polish this up. With The Underground, we will have to wait and see if this will even be meaningful in the future setting.
The Division 2 should consistently evolve the map and story
New content is essential: If Ubisoft really wants to improve The Division 2, they should urgently change their update policy. In The Division 1, agents missed new zones and story progression for a long time. Updates that only brought new modes and deviated from the main path, like for a long time in The Division 1, were not the right approach. More relevant content should be provided.
Is a Battle Royale mode conceivable? With Survival, something similar already exists in The Division, but players have in the past demanded an expansion of Battle Royale elements. Unfortunately, Survival has been poorly managed by Massive since its launch. Only bugs have been fixed. This mode could have been made significantly more motivating with a few tweaks.
If the rumors are true, Massive is already working on a title similar to Fortnite and PUBG. Thus, it may be that they do not want to compete with themselves and will forgo a mode for The Division.
What the Mein-MMO readers think
About Ubisoft’s statements: After the various issues from the last two years, agents are skeptical of promises. Many are also optimistic and look forward to The Division 2.
- Jadda thinks: “I still don’t understand what should be better and different in TD2 that a general patch or a DLC could not bring?”
- Joey hopes “for a slightly larger RPG element. I would love a larger skill tree.”
- DanteDeReaper is still “ambivalent about The Division 2.” The beta of The Division 1 “we thought was really great. Then came the main game, and it did not keep us hooked for as long as we had hoped.” Important are a “good continuation of the story, new weapons, many skills, exciting PvE modes, and PvP modes that I don’t have to play to get good things.”
- cyber is cautious: “It can be assumed that Massive has many things under control right from the start. Unfortunately, that is not guaranteed. The fact that sequels do not always have to be successful in the long term was impressively demonstrated by Bungie with Destiny 2.”
- Blackiceroosta is optimistic: “To be honest, The Division was a hit plagued by unfortunate mistakes. It was always a lot of fun in a team, but the lack of content, specifically variety in the world or new missions, made it boring for me after a certain time. I’m looking forward to Division 2. Will definitely buy it.”
Everything on the topic and more comments from the Mein-MMO readers:
- The Division 2: These E3 shows you should not miss for new info!
- The Division 2 will be available early 2019, aiming to provide more content at launch
- Agents are waiting for Shields, the transition to The Division 2
- Big opportunity or fail? This is how the community reacts to The Division 2
- The Division 2: Our 7 biggest wishes for the future
What do you wish for endgame content? Do you have ideas for new features?
