After a man-made virus has crippled society, it’s up to you and an elite squadron of special ops agents to identify, contain and eliminate those responsible. Using an array of futuristic gadgets, weaponry and on-the-fly tactical maneuvers, you infiltrate and take down the enemy, giving civilization a fighting chance to forge ahead.
Game: Tom Clancy’s The Division
Consoles: Xbox One (reviewed), PS4, PC
Publisher: Ubisoft
Developers: Ubisoft Massive
Release Date: March 8
In the last couple of generations, Ubisoft’s many Tom Clancy franchises were among the most popular shooters around. Several Ghost Recon, Rainbow Six and Splinter Cell were the go-tos for tactical shooter fans. The Xbox One/PS4 era has been slow to start for Clancy games, and December’s sputtering, multiplayer-only Rainbow Six Siege didn’t help things much. The Division, on the other hand, boasts a full-figured single-player campaign while also shoring up a solid multiplayer infrastructure.
Smooth controls and easily navigable menus meld with a well-written story to deliver the sort of tension and action that Clancy fans crave. RPG-like elements let you upgrade skills and special abilities along the way, opening up a different spectrum of gameplay possibilities than the genre is known for. The slate of multiplayer maps is on the slim side, but weekly missions look to freshen things up along the way. The developers are promising a MMORPG-like stream of regular updates that will react to player demand and keep the game balanced and vital.
The game is off to a solid start, and looks to improve as it goes. A free update coming in April will introduce Incursion, a multiplayer modes that pits squads against each other as they seek and block the opponent from tracking down superpowered assets and weaponry.
Another free update, this one coming in May, will deliver Conflict, a collection of new missions. Paid expansions are along the way later on, but what comes in the initial game is more than enough to keep hardcore players busy for a while. Mounted up and ready to roll, the Clancy franchise is looking to reclaim its spot at the top of the hill.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uElsBflqgYw
ORDER: Tom Clancy’s The Division here
Tom Clancy’s The Division Reviews Around The Web:
“There’s awesome physicality to each weapon and the visual and audio effects as you let loose a volley are pretty spectacular.” –Stuff
“It’s a handsome depiction of a hellish situation.” –Rock Paper Shotgun
“Felt very familiar as a fan of the Splinter Cell series and as someone who enjoyed the basic cover mechanics of Watch Dogs.” –Polygon
Tom Clancy’s The Division Screenshots
The publisher provided a review copy.
