The Division 2 Review

Tom Clancy’s The Division 2 is Massive Entertainment’s highly anticipated sequel to their take on the looter shooter genre. The game is set in a near-future Washington, D.C. after the events of the first game where a pandemic took over. As a division agent, it is your duty to take back the city from different enemy factions and attempt to rebuild it.

By just playing the game for a few minutes, it is evident that a lot has changed since the first game. Combat is more fluid, movement is more refined, and the time to kill enemies has had a significant decrease. Even the sounds and environments have went through great improvements. At first, you will be greeted by a narrative that doesn’t really stand out that much and feels very similar to what we’ve already seen many times already. On the bright side, the story does not take itself too seriously and mainly aims to introduce you to the mechanics of the game and lets you set up settlements and safe houses across the map. The missions are quite fun and varied, even if they involve doing more of the same each time. The large quantity of these missions available will definitely ensure players will get more than enough time to explore all aspects of the game and experience everything offered before the endgame. The game is also rather challenging and is not afraid of punishing if you make mistakes.

The Division 2 uses an almost one-to-one model of D.C. and the amount of detail put in to it is unreal. About every alleyway and building in The Division 2 exists in real life and looks just like the real thing. It was also great to see some famous and historical landmarks recreated in an accurate yet unique way. It is safe to say that all the hard work that went into modeling the city was worth it in the end. If any of you haven’t been to D.C…. you’ve been there now.

When it comes to loot, the game constantly rewards you with plenty without making it feel like a long and tiresome grind. In this aspect, one can say that the game is very generous, and maybe at times too generous. Despite there being a micro-transactions system and a form of loot boxes, these only help in getting cosmetic items which can be earned in the game anyways.

The endgame is quite plentiful when it comes to content as well. The Dark Zone is a dangerous region where enemies are stronger, gear is better, and other players can attack you and go rogue. The zone is split into 3 parts and is a great way to earn the best loot, however you run the risk of getting killed and loosing your loot. After reaching level 30, it is time to face a new faction called The Black Tusks. From this point on they take over Control Points, the Dark Zone and the Main Missions and you basically have to push them back. Also, once players complete the campaign, they are free to pick a specialization from three options — sharpshooter, demolitionist, or survivalist. Progressing with the specialization will unlock access to a new set of skill and weapons. Finally, you’ll be able to join up with another squad for eight-player raids, designed to be incredibly tough missions for which a good team is essential.

The Division 2 gets so many things right from the sounds and atmosphere, to the progression and most importantly, its sustainability to have to you keep coming back for more content. In addition, the much improved mission structures and general dynamic content really ensure that this is vastly superior to the previous game and other looter shooters in almost every way possible. There’s so much to do in the early game and the end game is very promising. Also, the game performs great at day one and contains close to no bugs or issues which is always a great sight to see.

GameRev was provided with a digital download code for the purpose of this review.