the downed Air Force One. This world
feels alive, and we make a mental
note not to be distracted.Zone runner
We move deeper into the Dark Zone
with our team. The gameplay loop is a
simple one, move to a ‘monument’ and
clear out the encamped big bads of
this sequel. Called True Sons, they’re
a private army of ex-soldiers taking
advantage of the lack of law and order
across the country.
Moving from cover to cover is as
good as it was in the first game, the
contextual controls and ability to lean
from cover or clamber over cars feels
great, and when the shooting begins
it just gets better. The rattle of gunfire
feels solid; watching your bullets
smash windows and spark off scenery
never fails to raise a smile.
Different enemies need to be
tackled using a variety of tactics, the
general fodder are easy while the
tank-like armoured soldiers need to be
taken down with teamwork. We choose
to sit back and snipe from afar as our
friendlies rush the embedded True
Sons head-on.
The real challenge of the Dark
Zone begins once we’ve cleared out
the enemy, grabbed our loot and are
waiting for our helicopter support
to hook up that hard-earned gear.
It’s at this time that other players
in the Dark Zone can choose to turn
the tables, go ‘Rogue’ and steal your
stash. The sequel has broadened the
scope for Rogue status. Kill enough
friendlies and you’ll still go Golden
Skull and kickstart Manhunt level, but
now simply stealing gear from downed
agents or refusing to share a supply
drop will earn a Grey status, you won’t
be hunted but other players will know
not to trust you.
As we wait, it’s clear the other
players just want to go Rogue.
Mounting an attack on our position,
they circle round as we take cover
in a water fountain. The normalised
Dark Zone helps maintain balance,
and the skirmish feels challenging
without unfairly favouring either side.
Eventually we survive, eradicate our
would-be thieves and take a moment
to bask in the glory of victory – then
a sniper shot ends our game. It turns
out there was a another squad waiting
to pick off the survivors. Brutal. QIt’s all about the endgame these days,
and few games did it quite as well
as the original Division. We would
spend hours charging our way through
the Manhattan Dark Zone, stealing
gear and tricking other players into
attacking one another; you know,
generally causing havoc.
As we sit down to play The Division 2
it’s little wonder Ubisoft Massive
is starting us at the end, in one of
Washington DC’s Dark Zones. Note
we said ‘one of’, as this sequel will
feature three, two of which have been
nerfed for newcomers – friendly fire
turned off, gear and weapons are
‘normalised’ so everyone is on equal
footing. But one, called the Occupied
Dark Zone, is the real deal and only the
best (worst?) players will survive. The
maps switch on cadence, meaning
each time you log in a new one will
have been allocated as Occupied.
The first thing we notice is how
beautiful The Division 2’s recreation
of Washington DC is; the snow of
New York City has been replaced
by streets bleached in sun and
overgrown greenery. It’s been seven
months since terrorists released the
smallpox virus and the US has gone to
the dogs. Speaking of which, we spot
one run across our path, and a deer
peers at us from a distance, behind it
we can see the charred wreckage ofAll future DLC will be free. There will also be three expansions post-launch to build on the campaign
The Division 2
We take a trip inside
Washington DC’s Dark Zones
Dean Williams
PUBLISHER UBISOFT DEVELOPER UBISOFT MASSIVE
ETA 15 MARCHENDGAME
RULES
Unlike the original
Division you won’t
need to plough
through the story to
get to The Division 2’s
endgame, as Ubisoft
has revealed there
will be some
campaign missions
that enter the Dark
Zones and pick up the
areas’ rules. As with
the original, The
Division 2’s campaign
will blend together
RPG elements to
enable you to play
how you wish, and
upgrade your skills
and gear to suit.
Interestingly, there’ll
now be multiplayer
from the outset and
this mode will feature
its own branch of
unlockables, levelling
and upgrades.
“This world feels alive, and
we make a mental note not
to be distracted”
026 THE OFFICIAL XBOX MAGAZINE
PREVIEW