When Massive Entertainment released its latest addition to the prolific Tom Clancy series of video game titles in 2016,Tom Clancy’s The Divisionwas met with a mostly favorable response from both critics and gamers. Praising its cohesive open-world setting, tactical combat, and impressive multiplayer,Tom Clancy’s The Divisionwas soon followed by a sequel in 2019. However, with a newer game featuring more expansion packs and post-release support, some gamers may be wondering if playing the original game is still worth it in 2021.
As players have seen with many online games likeWorld of WarcraftandEVE Online, games can have a long life after launch thanks to dedicated fans. Online multiplayer games are still immensely popular, and when a large portion of gameplay is reliant on an active community, this often breathes life into titles. Whether or notTom Clancy’s The Divisionhas retained this loyal playerbase over five years since it was launched is up for debate.
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The World Of The Division
Tom Clancy’s The Divisionis an online-only third-person shooter set in a near-future New York City after it has been effected by a widespread viral pandemic. The city has fallen into chaos, with criminal activity running rampant through the near-abandoned streets, and the player’sSpecial Agent of the Strategic Homeland Divisionis tasked with restoring order and investigating how this all could have started. The game combines RPG elements with online co-operative multiplayer and an intense PvP mode called the Dark Zone, separate from the main campaign.
The game serves as a commentary of capitalism and commercial greed, as the virus is initially released through infected dollar bills that advance its spread exponentially during Black Friday sales in the city in 2015. The subsequent breakdown of order and pitting of rival factions against each other in the chaotic city, as they each fight for control and seek to capitalize on the anarchy, makes for an action-packed and suitably tense environment.The Dark Zone, a PvP free-for-allwhere top-level weapons can be found, is the nexus for a lot of the more challenging combat inTom Clancy’s The Division, as allies can turn against allies, and players mete it out for the best loot.
The Benefits Of Revisiting Older Online Games
Despite its initial flush of popularity and a surge of new gamers during its first few months,The Divisiondid encounter some setbacks. As players made their way through the game, Massive Entertainment failed to fix certain key issues despite numerous updates and the release of its first major expansion. Many players abandoned the game as they flocked back to other online shooters that had received better post-launch support. However, the developer did come through eventually, andafterThe Division’s update 1.4, things would start to turn around. The patch managed to entice back a large number of players, andThe Divisionwas once again popular.
It may have had a rocky start, and there may be a newer, fresher version for players to experience with its sequelThe Division 2, but the originalDivisonis still worth a look in 2021. If players haven’t owned the game before, they can now pick it up for next to nothing — includingall ofThe Division’s DLC. This is all without dealing with the game’s earlier content problems as well. After completing the main story and reaching level 30, there is plenty for gamers to occupy themselves with thanks to all the endgame content.
However, if players have already played through the majority ofThe Division, there’s still plenty of endgame content to log back into. The Dark Zone, the area with the most dangerous NPCs and cutthroat players, is still very active. Gamers looking for a solid PvP mode to pit themselves against each other could bootThe Divisionback up for this element alone.
Ifthe format ofThe Division 2is something that gamers like, it’s also fun to jump back into the old game and use some of the weapon types that have since been nerfed in the latest title, just to provide something a little different. If players choose to play through the campaign again and delve into the whole host of post-game content, they could easily have several hours of gameplay on their hands.
Tom Clancy’s The Divisionis available now for PC, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One.
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