Ubisoft Tom Clancy's: The Division Game for PS4

Why we start game without instruction?Game is nice for graphics but story start without onstructions to how to play. Destroyes cities and some times start tough. Not recommended to nowbies.

After some of Ubisoft's previous releases, people would've been a tad skeptical about whether or not this game would be as good as in previous and demos.Visuals: 9/10The visuals in The Division are quite nice; what you'd expect on a next gen console, not mind blowing but certainly nice. Set in post pandemic NY during winter, you'll traverse a snow logged city, rife with blockades, abandoned cars, trash piles, quarantined zones etc. The environment and detail does a good job of immersing the player and creating atmosphere. Running about at night time in the dark whilst it snows is cool.Sound FX: 9/10There aren't amazing musical scores, but a decent job no less. The guns sound nice, beefy and diverse, rather than all the same like GTA 5. The dialog is decent enough and BGM is in the form usually of tense themes, (think series like 24, NCIS etc) The city itself, car alarms, distant noises, smashing, dogs barking all created a good atmosphere. Sadly for a game rated 18 and set in a snowy post pandemic city, there's no blood really when you shoot enemies.Gameplay: 9/10Here is where it gets interesting, The Division's main mechanic is a third person cover fire system like Rainbow Six Vegas, minus third person, but is also heavy on the UI (user interface) and how it works. The UI is implemented like a futuristic hologram supposedly displayed by your watch, this goes for way points, your map, even your HUD is in the same theme showing behind your characters backpack or next to them. There are markers that can be switched on and off showing where you can climb up, where you can take cover, or if in cover; a next piece of cover you can dart and slide to by holding x. Also enemy damage numbers. This UI heavy element and the RPG-esque menu and character/weapon customization menu may be a bit much for some people to understand or get along with, but it does give the game a slightly unique and tactical feel.The cover and fire system is as you'd expect, you can blind fire, move to other cover, aim over or around it, it is fluid and easy enough to use. You can sprint by holding L3, change shoulder aim camera from left to right with L3 whilst aiming, though this resets each time annoyingly. Vault immediately over obstacles or up onto a ladder by running towards and holding o. Or climb down safely by approaching a ledge and pressing o.AI, they are bullet sponges, head shots aren't instant kills, high ranking enemies with purple or especially golden health bars take an armoury to drop, do a mission on hard or above your Lv and the game gets brutal as you and 3 team mates are relentlessly forced to retreat as numbers of enemies advance and flank you. This can be both a blessing and pain. A blessing because the game has a tactical D&D style damage system or vibe to it, and results with the cover fire mechanics in a game that is more tactical than most, where's players literally must help each other to survive missions. But a pain because you're shooting humans, not Terminators. The AI are relatively smart, they'll take cover, react to noises or sight, throw grenades, and push forward or flank you, actually making it pretty tough by yourself at times. Play main missions with 1 or more teammates who are also online and the game becomes really fun and tense, players can revive others when they're downed, players seem to be matched by level brackets. Missions on hard difficulty offer higher rewards.There is a fairly big PVP area called the infamous Dark Zone, it too has level brackets for various sections, going higher and more dangerous the more north into the map you go. There is also great loot in the Dark Zone, but it's eerie and tense, with very though AI or other players hiding about waiting to shoot you.The map is quite generously sized, you can't walk into most buildings, but there are a number you can, whether safe houses, explorable apartments or shops for loot.Loot can be found and scavenged from containers, or dropped by enemies, otherwise bought from various vendors (weapon, gear, mods) Certain loot such as weapon parts and fabric can be used at a crafting station to make specialist or good equipment.You can fully customize weapons (muzzle, magazine, under barrel, scope, paint job etc) you can also customize your agents armour (vest, knee pads, gloves, holster, back pack etc) which play importantly into your characters build and stats. Whether they'll have high DPS (Damage per second?) High armour rating, or high tech skill (Damage/effectiveness of tech equipment) plus there are perks to unlock and other character abilities.The game revolves around a central hub, the "Base of operations" which has 3 wings, medical, tech and security you must upgrade (taking them from trashed quarantine shelters to a highly capable command post), this is achieved by completing 3 different mission types that will respectively reward you with medical, tech or security supplies.You can create your character at the start but only from a small selection of pre created faces and minimal hair styles. You can in game find and select different clothing items.There are rival factions in the game, sadly they're not highly distinctive, only two groups really do so far, the cleaners are notable with their hazmat suits and flamethrowers, or rikers with orange prison looking trousers and masks.The storyline is told through some cinematic events between main missions and radio dialogue from your commander (a female agent who's name I can't remember) or holographic shots of events and audio/CCTV that can be discovered. But the main crack is a small pox epidemic from bank notes, you're trying to restore order.All in all The Division is an absorbing and fun game, some of the missions may become a touch repetitive, but it's a very decent title from Ubisoft after prior mishaps. And during a mission set to hard difficulty with 3 other teammates, you won't find a more challenging, intense and tactical experience to date.

Very good game - possibly only 4 star but there are so many dumb 1 star reviews I gave it an extra star - it is and always has been an online game - it says so pretty clearly on the front of the box and in the many reviews - if you bought it without knowing this then it is not the games fault it is yours - don't give 1 star. If amazon delivered a day late - it is amazons fault not the games - don't give 1 star - this is a game review you're writing not an Amazon service review!!Anyway rant over.I see a lot of people compare this to Destiny and there are similarities in terms of weapon and gear purchase, upgrade modification etc. It is all very well handled in this game - slightly confusing at 1st but like any game the more you play the more you understand. The one thing I noticed is there is no clear and obvious upgrade pattern, some items improve certain attributes whilst reducing others - more so than destiny.In terms of game play you have various guns, grenades and special abilities and need to kill various types and strengths of bad guys and bosses to complete main missions, side mission and encounters. All of which progress the game along by giving you access to new parts of New York (you can access various parts of New York from the start but just won't be at a suitable level), access to better equipment and improve your base of operations. It reminds of InFamous in many ways - without the super powers.This is very much a duck and cover game, keep your distance, stay out of trouble and shoot whilst you can.All of the above is pretty standard stuff for online shooter/RPG style games but The Division does do it very well.Where I think it stands out it the sheer size of the map, the graphical style of New York (graphics are pretty good not worth moaning about), the feel of despair across the city and some of the little details such as dogs having a go at you if you disturb them. All very good.The multiplayer aspect is also very good - 4 player teams are almost essential on some missions - the matchmaking works very well most of the time and if not playing with friends it seems to pick other players of an equal level. Everyone I've played with so far has co-operated very well alsoThe dark zone is also very interesting - to rogue or not to rogue - I'm still getting to grips with this section.There are a few problems however.Glitches - it's a brand new game so some are expected - the most annoying is assembling a fire team for a mission only to find you are locked out / can't even start the mission. People joining you on a mission but being locked on the outside. I've also been trapped in a bush with no escape other than log out. I've also been in a safe house where everything lost colour. Doors I've unlocked becoming locked again.Encounters - quickly become very repetitive and somewhat boring but needed for XP and the odd piece of equipmentSide Missions - not as boring and repetitive as encounters but some are pretty identical just with different scenery - these are more essential to progressing the game however.And this one may just be me but it seems to take forever to load - I'm okay to read the epilepsy warning once but every flipping time - come on guys!!

The Division is that rare breed of game whereby all the individual components - the shooting, the cover system, the RPG elements, the missions, the menus, the world, the story - if taken by themselves are only OK (in some cases, poor). When brought together, however, they make something that is greater than the sum of its parts.The glue that brings these parts together and makes it all work is, of course, the multiplayer system. It's really important to stress for any reviewer of this game that you will not enjoy this game without the multiplayer. Not that this means you have to have other friends who own the game - far from it. The matchmaking system allows for you to team up with any group of players for missions, side-quests and even just roaming around the streets of New York. That being said, being able to speak other people (to be fair there are some people who talk, but a lot of people who don't) makes the game that much more enjoyable.This is the crucial point. As I've previously stated, the individual parts of The Division are far from outstanding. Because of the RPG emphasis, those people used to shooting games which treat shots to the head 'realistically' (i.e. enemies die) will be thrown. You can empty 4 or 5 clips into some enemies without making a dent in their health-bar, let alone killing them. On the flip-side, the character building system is relatively restricted. Most players will end up with quite similar builds, as there are only 3 classes (medical, security, tech) to choose from and only 2 'ability slots' to fill until you are a relatively high level (and even then it's only 3). This means that those coming from an RPG background might be disappointed with the limited scope for individualising their character. In this sense The Division is a kind of 'jack of all trades, master of none'. However, when played as part of a team, with an emphasis on ensuring the team gets through the mission, it offers a sense of achievement and accomplishment that I've only experienced bettered in Dark Souls. When you devise a strategy for taking down an enemy (or a group of enemies) with your team-mates and everyone fulfills their role as part of the team and you're successful, it's an extremely satisfying feeling. While there are legitimate criticisms of the variety in enemies (basically, there are 3 variants with a couple of sub-classes within each) The Division succeeds in taking you to enough different locations, and with ensuring the enemy AI is relatively refined to ensure that no fight ever goes by easily. Whereas in other games you might be able to find spots on the map where you can 'cheese' enemies (i.e. spots where the enemy will not go so you can pick them off at a distance, or glitches whereby an enemy will get stuck in parts of the map), the enemies in The Division employ a variety of tactics to ensure that you must engage with them directly. This also means that if one player doesn't do their job then the chances of you succeeding drastically reduce. Similarly, if everyone decides to group together in one spot, chances are you will attract the attention of all incoming enemies as well as a barrage of projectiles (grenades etc) which will mean your team won't last long.The much-heralded Dark Zone is the epitome - high level enemies employing a variety of tactics while you and your team-mates defend your potential extracted loot until its choppered away is a nerve-jangling, intense experience. The added mystery of the potential rogue agent deciding to take you out just before the chopper reaches you adds another layer of tension and exhilaration when you're finally successful (I've not been brave enough to go rogue myself yet!)All-in-all, The Division is one of the most interesting gaming experiences of the current generation. Like I say, it's by no means perfect. The story is for the most part instantly forgettable, as are the characters (even your own avatar doesn't speak so has no redeeming characteristics). The city of New York is OK - but given that it is covered in snow and for the most part abandoned, it tends to take on a very 'samey' feel after a few hours (unlike, say, Los Santos in GTA). Some of the games underlying systems are poorly explained - for instance the 'buffs' that are available to players (energy bars to remove status effects (like fire) and water to add additional damage to top-level enemies) are introduced in a short menu pop-up which given their importance is a bit of an oversight. Players who are unfamiliar with RPGs might not even know to look for such an item, let alone that they should use them. And most importantly of all, players who prefer an individual experience would be well-advised to look elsewhere. Most missions you simply cannot do on your own (even though it gives you the option to) and traversing New York doing the same side-missions again and again will get boring very quickly. However, once you have found a team of players willing to engage with the experience it's a real tour-de-force.

The division is exciting and thrilling. You are part of an organisation called the division, you are in 3rd person and stuck in Newyork trying to defeat the rebels scattered around the city that stand in your way, also saving the rest of the civilians. But in the middle of the massive map there is a region called the dark zone. This is where you can find the biggest and best loot, but it is hard to get as it is player vs player and when you die you leave your loot you found behind. The division is has many great things about it.ProsThis game is very strategic making you feel fully tense and in the game, with the addition of playing with your friend/friends makes it even more thrilling.There is also an amazing amount of cover as most of the characters actions are taking cover. This makes it easier to sneak up on the rebels and give you time to use abilities and skills.The division offers a lot of customisation as you can change your clothes to suit what you like the most also you can get free clothes and costumes off the ubisoft club, such as the ghost recon outfit. Also you can choose between hundreds of weapons and customise the to fit your needs, you can change the DPS, rate of fire magazine sized also the appearance of the weapon.ConsThere are a few bad things about this game. If you don't have an online account or have bad Internet I would not recommend you getting this game as it is an online only game. There many things to do in the dark zone other than steal loot and kill other players.it would be good if there were some main missions in the dark zone, overall the dark zone can very boring.Overall I would definitely recommend buying the division if you want a few days of fun and if you have good Internet.Thanks, Peter

I think it's now in top 10 MMO RPGs, it's overtaken a lot of things and now sits close to 5th. Updates and tweaks have made this game a brilliant RPG and it's end game is where I've put about 190hrs into and I'm still playing it into 240hrs and definitely is due to go beyond until Division 2 comes. Proper number crunching and decision making involved, the game is all gear optimisation and strategy based - you cannot play this game like an FPS, need to properly move use technique on Heroics/Legendary runs and synergise with other playstyles. Variety and freedom of how you can build a character is limitless, DPS, Healer, and Tank are a thing, the game is about health bar depletion on bosses and harder enemies. Status effects such as increased/decreased threat. After all the updates in 2017/2018 (which I started this year) really really good if you like realism in terms of all your guns, military stuff and your RPG games. The graphics - seriously the best 3rd person game engine I have ever known, really satisfying movements and cover-to-cover animations. If IGN were to re-review this game it would do really well in terms of rating right now. Puts Destiny to shame with its content, replayability, everything. Still has its little novelties which a lot of other games didn't have likes of your weapon skins, gear etc which takes genuine effort to obtain. Matchmaking just works and that's that, co-op is amazing.There are one or two exploits with PVP gameplay which is very well known to the community and devs, and is due to be totally gone in Division 2. The biggest problem I feel is the quality of players - too many people play this like an FPS and don't realise that its not just an upfront shooter, and you get absolutely terrible groups at endgame content (especially in Raids named 'Incursions') are actually almost impossible to complete. However, The Division 2 is likely to stop this completely being a more hardcore genre, and by having a Clan system in place. Occasionally audio failures, but they are fairly rare, mostly come across them when I've had some absolutely ridiculous teammate who detonates about 40 grenades at once or something which you'd kinda expect anyway from a server at times.