What’s happening with The Division 2’s promised new content?
I love The Division 2. It’s been one of my favorite games of the last couple of years, much as I really got into the first one. I play a lot of games, so for anything I touch to see over 300 hours is a good indicator that it’s one I’ve properly enjoyed.
I’m also painfully aware that games always have a shelf life. They’re going to end one day. Outside of MMOs such as World of Warcraft and Final Fantasy 14, games with incredibly long support like Dying Light and Destiny 2 are the exception, not the norm.
So I’ve always been prepared for that day to arrive when The Division 2 would end active support. But we’re not supposed to be there quite yet, and yet, stealthily, it seems like we are. New content was promised based on how supportive the player base had been. And yet it’s still MIA and stirring up community concern. So where is it, Ubisoft?
What should be going on with The Division 2
Source: Ubisoft / Massive Entertainment
Lots of folks still play the existing content regularly. But that’s not what’s grinding my gears.
In 2021, Ubisoft, or rather the developer team at Massive, promised new content for The Division 2, including a brand new, never before seen game mode. Awesome. That content got delayed into 2022, which while disappointing, was totally understandable given the world is still dealing with a pandemic and new ways of working.
But when the delay was announced we were told that a reveal would be happening in January, ahead of a PTS for PC players to try out the new mode and a launch in February. Additionally, there would be monthly community updates, but the last of those was in November.
“Last but not least, the reveal of the new Season and its associated content, including the new game mode, will happen in January 2022. We can’t wait to tell you more about the whole content of this update! To make sure we are building the best experience, we will also organize a dedicated PTS period on PC to collect your feedback and help us put the finishing touches before the release.”
You can probably see where this is heading…
Source: UbisoftEven the next game in The Division series was stealthily delayed without much communication to the players.
While one arm of Ubisoft is off pushing NFTs into its player’s faces, elsewhere they’re being ignored altogether. Which isn’t a good look. After all, the next installment, the free-to-play Heartland, has already been quietly delayed potentially into 2023 without much communication beyond sneaking into an earnings report.
We don’t mind delays, no matter how excited we are for a game. But we do mind when it looks like we’re being ignored.
Mad February is upon us
Source: Techland S.A.
But we’re not exactly going hungry in February, are we?
This month we’ve already got Dying Light 2 to play, Elden Ring is approaching fast as is Destiny 2: The Witch Queen. Lost Ark finally launches in the west, CrossfireX is hitting the Xbox and if you also have a PlayStation, a little title called Horizon Forbidden West is dropping, too.
I’m sad to see that one of my favorite franchises appears to be fading out, and I do hope that someone at Ubisoft is still working hard on The Division universe to give us more to play. Just, please, at least tell us what’s going on.
In the meantime, I’ll be spending at least the next couple of weeks diving into Dying Light 2. What’s on your February hit list?
Microsoft will begin testing experimental Windows 11 features with Insiders
Microsoft has today announced that it’s changing up the way in which it flights preview builds of Windows 11 to Insiders registered in the Dev or Beta Channels. Going forward, both channels are to be considered the “active development branch,” but for different kinds of feature testing.