Tom Clancy's The Division 2 Reviews
Post-apocalyptic Washington DC is splendidly imagined but the insipid techno-thriller plot ensures the struggle to save civilisation can't be won
With a stronger endgame and a solid loot treadmill, The Division 2 preaches to the choir, fully uninterested in converting those who find the series unpleasant to play for one reason or another.
Loot shooters are an increasingly crowded space, and The Division 2 is fighting a losing battle for my attention
Shooting the bad men and tinkering with your loot in The Division 2 is good enough to keep you coming back to something that's regularly monotonous and lacks any real message.
In true Ubisoft fashion, Tom Clancy's The Division 2 has all the pleasing elements for an endless adventure, but it’s far from cashing in on it at launch. Maybe after reworking a ton of inexplicable design choices, it will get there in a year or so.
The Division 2 feels like a full package. It isn't always as polished as we've come to expect from a AAA experience, but then it does have the expected Ubisoftisms about it. It's buggy, but never intrusive. It has some questionable microtransactions, but they don't ever really affect you. It's repetitive and utterly meaningless, but it can be an incredibly satisfying experience.
There’s a lot of good to be said about the world of The Division 2. The world feels very real, characters feel absolutely believable, and the game was crafted with obvious love. For some, especially fans of looter games, they will find a satisfying loop of running, gunning, grenades and gear to please the palate. For others, myself included, the core gameplay loop never becomes anything deeper than exactly what it appears, and the seemingly endless cycle of upgrading gear just to get more will wear itself thin before you reach the highest tiers of power.
The Division 2 may be making a mess on Tom Clancy's grave by betraying his highly conservative values, but what is here is a very competent and polished third-person open-world action game with a big emphasis on co-op. The value in this package is seemingly nigh on endless with the amount of things to do and see. Even the core gameplay loop, though simplistic, is satisfying enough to keep things stimulating, even when they feel monotonous at times. Just when things feel the most tedious, the end game content really mixes things up in a big way to reinvigorate the formula.
The game doesn't rely on narrative reasons to entice the player, leaning instead on endorphin-releasing gameplay hooks.
Right now, The Division 2 stands strong as an addictive, well designed, and complete looter shooter. For how dynamic and intricate it is, its open world sets the bar for the genre, and its tense, tactical combat is, for the most part, a real joy.
If the first Division never did it for you then the sequel is unlikely to win you over. This is a sequel with a small 's', refined rather than revolutionary, squarely aimed at fans of the first game who are eager for more.
An ambitious but competent sequel that already has some of the best endgame content of any similar game… if you can stomach the offensively apolitical, and thoroughly boring, storytelling.
The Division 2 is a lot of fun to play, with loads of content to tackle both solo or in co-op. The game's end game is massive with plenty of variety and new enemies. Although, overall, the game does not truly innovate, but more builds upon the original game.
Review in Dutch | Read full review
In light of a half-hearted predecessor and a lot of skepticism going in, The Division 2 delivers in what it sets out to do. It's an exciting third-person co-op experience with the run and gun of the original capitalized on in the best way possible for the current generation.
With a decent end-game experience, The Division 2 becomes much better than its prequel, and I believe it's even better than Destiny 2 and much superior to Anthem. However, the PS4 version has been suffered a serious Bug which repeatedly crashes the game since its initial release day.
Review in Chinese | Read full review
At the end of the day, The Division 2 is a fun well-polished third-person shooter that really improves on the original concept. The game looks beautiful and plays smoothly, albeit with a few graphical errors at the start of your login. The gameplay can be repetitive and tedious as the game goes on. With that said, it still may not be enough for players who disliked the first game to give the sequel a second chance.
The Division 2 is a game that hit the ground running. Its story isn't the best and can be quite divisive, due to it not committing to the bit. However, the content necessary to make it a success is there.
Finally, The Division 2 is more than satisfying. It works as an example for sequels with almost all of the weaknesses from the first game having been improved in this one.
Review in Greek | Read full review
The Division 2 is a thoroughly enjoyable and challenging shooter. It improves on almost every aspect of the first game with a whole wealth of content and options on offer. Despite a few convoluted screens, the menus are better designed this time around and the loot progression fine-tuned to perfection. Given the scepticism I had going into this one, Ubisoft have delivered one of the best games of 2019 so far and a very enjoyable third person shooter in its own right.