In the online shooter The Division, there will be neither Brooklyn nor Queens – at least not in the base game. However, DLCs are announced. Fans sense a connection.
For the New York neighborhood of Brooklyn, there has been speculation among hardcore fans of The Division in recent months. In early versions of the game and on screenshots, buildings were seen, streets identified that were located not in Manhattan, but in the New York neighborhood of Brooklyn. However, the developers at Massive had not said anything about Brooklyn for a while.
Then a post appeared on Ubisoft’s French blog, announcing “Brooklyn and Manhattan” as areas of The Division. Later, they simply removed “Brooklyn” from the text. However, parts of Brooklyn could still be seen in the latest trailers of the Division. It was suspected: Well, maybe it is a tutorial area or there are only very limited missions taking place there, and they do not want to emphasize it too much to avoid giving a false impression.
Ubisoft clarifies: No Brooklyn
Now the developers made a clear statement in an interview: “We are only making Manhattan. That is where the pandemic broke out.” There is essentially “no music” playing there, as the resources have been taken from the neighborhood. Cars have no gas, and the players are on their own.
This is where they want to set The Division. Since they remain so detail-oriented, going into buildings, also moving on rooftops, and being on foot, The Division will still be a “very large open world,” even without other areas. At least that was the impression journalists took from the presentations.
Fans speculate: Brooklyn will come later
On the other hand, the developers know that “An online game is not finished on release day.” They plan free updates, new game content, and fresh features – just like “regular DLCs,” meaning paid ones.
For some fans, the two news items are directly related. They believe that “Brooklyn” already exists in some form – otherwise, it wouldn’t be in the screenshots. But it will not be in the base game but will come in a DLC. A similar situation occurred with Destiny. Fans had also discovered objects and scenes in early trailers that only appeared in the game months or even years after the release.
For some doubters in Destiny, this is a clear sign: They had it all finished, just cut it out to sell it later at a high price. Even though the developers say something completely different.
It could be possible with The Division that Brooklyn will be a place for the “endgame” and that they will bring it in a “later phase” to give the game a longer lifespan after the launch. This could then come in the form of a free patch. Ubisoft does not reveal anything about the DLC and endgame plans yet – except for one detail.
