Though Tom Clancy's The Division was overall a well-rounded success, the game had/has several issues that ultimately hindered the experience for many gamers. The fact that the game recently gained some big popularity over a year after launch, as well as the fact The Division 2 was recently announced, shows that a bright future for the franchise is entirely possible. However, to achieve that, the sequel will need to make some hefty improvements on the first game.
A stable launch
One of the biggest factors that contributed to The Division's fall in popularity after its launch was that the game was extremely bug-ridden and glitchy at release. Everything from falling through the ground to entire characters being mysteriously deleted was a possibility at this time, and it drove many players away from the game.
While it is true that Ubisoft eventually got everything patched up and working properly, only a fraction of the players that abandoned the game ended up returning to it. The rest of them were skeptical, and weren't willing to risk wasting more of their time. When The Division 2 comes out, Ubisoft needs to prioritize polish and performance, lest it ends up suffering in the same way the original did. It's hard to enjoy what a game has to offer if the game doesn't work.
A dynamic open world
The majority of the story content in the first The Division is about helping survivors of a deathly illness in an open world New York City. This includes securing and guarding supplies, assassinating gang leaders, and patrolling the streets for thugs. But the world itself is very static; none of your actions ever seem to have a lasting effect in the areas you watch over.
In The Division 2, this needs to change. Things as simple as civilians being less afraid to walk around in plain sight or a visibly lower amount of criminals that spawn in the area could show you that you're making a genuine difference in the community, as opposed to the first game where you have to pretend that you are. After all, one of the best things about being a hero is getting to fight for a good reason.
A meaningful faction system
There are several different factions in The Division, but all of them are hostiles. Overall, the term "faction" is just another way to say "different enemy types" in the original game. This always disappointed me, as I wanted to learn about the motivations and reasoning behind each group of enemies in this post-apocalyptic urban setting. There's massive potential there for quality world-building, which is something that an open world title can always use more of.
Hopefully, The Division 2 will flesh out the factions of Manhattan and give us insight into what makes them tick, what their ultimate goals are, and more. Maybe we could even have the option of allying ourselves with one in secret, helping them launch attacks and raids on the opposing factions, just like the modern Fallout games. We could also get some faction-themed cosmetics as well, giving us the ability to showcase who we've sided with to other players.
Your thoughts
What do you think The Division 2 needs to do better than the original game? Let me know down below.
The Division is currently available on both Xbox One and Steam for $49.99.
