Ignore my recorded playtime here, I've owned the game from Ubisoft Connect since 2020 with almost 800 hrs logged in game. I'm only making this review to note my relationship with this game despite the poor Steam release it's gotten. It's just nice to see it in my library now.


For context, I picked this game up for 3 dollars right around the time it's Warlords of New York expansion was going to launch, on a complete whim. I had played the first Division game, which I didn't think anything much of. The atmosphere was good, but the UI and gameplay kept me from getting into builds and later endgame. The Division 2 starts very much in a similar way, if not much prettier looking with nice details in the open world of a devastated Washington DC (which I came to know so well, I could pinpoint every location when I visited Washington DC IRL for the first time!)

To get the biggest fault out of the way, the narrative is quite mediocre or poor depending on how much the player wants to care about it. The few cinematics you see are fantastic, and can give some real gravitas to the fallout of a society-ending pandemic, but they leave so much to be desired. The remaining ECHOs and audio logs don't do much to drive any meaningful narrative even by the campaign's end, including the endgame. I want to say the WONY expansion improved things, bringing Aaron Keener back, but it ends so quickly, it's hard to say whether new players will find any substance to it. Even with the narrative continuing in post-launch seasons, it feels like the narrative is just continuing for continuity's sake, not that anyone cares what's next. It's a shame, given how much I love the setting as Tom Clancy military fiction, but I can't look past the weak writing.

Now, where the game really shines is the gameplay, loot, and UI.

Comapared to the first game, the combat is so different, but in my opinion, for all the right reasons. You are much more fragile, dying in only a few hits once your armor breaks, and as a result, you have to adapt to the cover mechanics of the environment around you, and to use your Division tech skills to your advantage. Enemies, based on their faction and type, will try numerous tactics to either expose you or kill you in despite of all of these: rushes, flanks, aerial projectiles, gadgets, and armor-plated tanks. It keeps you on your toes in every fight, and makes what was a boring spongefest before a much more tactical experience (think real-time XCOM almost). There are almost double the amount of skill gadgetry here to unlock and learn, from drones to shields to AOE hives, all very useful for numerous playstyles of all kinds.

Loot is now fully engrained with your character. From ALL your gear and weapons, to separate apparel customization, there's always new stuff to collect and wear. Even post expansion, the new seasons have always added free new gear to the loot pools, that quite frankly, have always provided a new way to play. Some veterans might criticize the "dumbing down" of things from Div 1, but I've found the new gear system to be all the more intuitive for a new player to the looter shooter. The core system (Red (Damage), Yellow (Skill Tiers), Blue (Armor)) makes it easier to know what a certain piece of gear is better suited to in crafting a build, without having to run out-of-game to figure it out or being a complete eyesore of a stats page (Div 1). It's been modernized in all the correct ways, while still giving all the room to create numerous builds for just about any scenario or objective (Speedrun, Healer, Anti-Tech, Tank, Bomber, etc.). Not to mention, the recalibration, optimization, and new expertise systems all allow people to more fine-tune their stats if they so wish, without further complicating the system already in place. It really is great.

Lastly, I wanted to bring up UI, since I think what the Division 2 has is very underrated. Compared to Div 1, which just shoves random numbers for just about EVERYTHING at you, this game tries to smooth out those unintuitive edges by making gear stats show as a bar value (between a min and max value you can clearly see). This means you'll never be too confused to know if you have a maximized stat usually, which I could never tell in the first game. As well as this, having a solid inventory system is necessary in a looter shooter: and this game gets it done as well. Weapon rarity are clear to read, things can marked as favorites or junk instantly, and can be moved / deconstructed en masse with a simple button hold. Loadouts are quick to switch and set, and will warn you stashing anything from a loadout in case you forget. I know this part seems overcomplimentary, but I can't think of many other looter shooters that have made a personal UI that just ... worked so well for its purposes. Don't take it for granted.

The music / sound is a nice reminder of the atmosphere. Peaceful and intensive depending on the situation. It's great to have associated with Tom Clancy, I'll say that much. The environments are just beautiful. Even today, the Snowdrop engine just looks fantastic for almost any map here, so I can't complain much at all.

Lastly, the endgame content, to me, has just been really well done. Raids demand a strong understanding of mechanics, quality loadouts, and team synergy (requiring you to find a team, instead of matchmake for them), and still offer great rewards of both team accomplishment and great gear. It's because of this, that Div 2 was the first game I ever joined an official Discord server to get involved in. Seasons, though very simple, are pretty fun when they do happen: new gear is always fun & free, and progress is never a grind (especially for a game built on leveling up already). You earn free cosmetics as you level up naturally, from cache keys, and though there is a cosmetic store, it's never felt predatory into forcing my hand just to customize my look. Anything else I just wanted to support for loving the game so much. It's so anti-Ubisoft in most places, I often consider whatever Massive Entertainment did to get this game made as separate from Ubi entirely.

Yes, there is also PvP in the infamous Dark Zone and through Conflict as a strict PvP gamemode, and it's just as interesting a concept as it was in Div 1. I can't say I'm the biggest fan since I rarely play it, and tend to hate PvP that could be very unbalanced due to gear stats, but the little time I've spent with it, I didn't hate it. It just was another offering I could enjoy if I wanted to, in light of all the core things I already liked about the game. More bang for my 3 bucks.

Ultimately, this game stands in VERY stark contrast to the usual Ubisoft release. It was amazing to me just how distinct this sequel was in light of the first game, and for the all the right reasons: better gameplay, better loot, and better progression. Yes, it's not the ultimate looter shooter in every aspect, but I never found it a hinderence on what I was enjoying so much. To be frank, it's probably the one Tom Clancy franchise with a military fiction identity still in it at the point of writing this. Massive Entertainment has done quite a lot to improve their game over time, and I sincerely want the best for them, not Ubisoft, when I give praises here. It is a shame that the post-launch state is what it is right now, but I'll always remember what this game taught me.

I'd highly recommend it on a discount.