Upon release, executed to phenomenal results with Rainbow Six Siege) has not been kind to the Tom Clancy-branded property. So when Ubisoft invited Screen Rant to fly out to San Francisco to witness the next steps for The Division 2, I was skeptical, to say the least.
After a brief PowerPoint presentation, Ubisoft announced that the DLC would return players to the Big Apple to scattered applause. As a fan of the first Division game, a return to New York (via an expansion dubbed Warlords of New York) was immediately an enticing prospect. Still, there was residual doubt that this homecoming could be spoiled by any genuine alterations to the experience. While much of what makes The Division 2 a shoot-and-loot experience remains intact for better or worse, the new expansion is exactly the nostalgic shot in the arm that could bring lapsed fans back into the fold.
Booting up the play session for The Division 2: Warlords of New York, I was treated to a new environment within a familiar setting. The expansion may be a return to Ground Zero of the canonical viral outbreak that rocked society to its core, but Warlords of New York takes place in lower Manhattan – a new area that the original game largely ignored. The factions that fans came to loathe in the first title also make their return in this add-on, bringing a further sense of familiarity to the action. Finally, a handful of gadgets make their The Division 2 debut, including the beloved Sticky Bomb that appeared in the initial instalment (now with a firebomb variant).
During my hands-on time with the content, I was tasked with taking down one of the righthand men of Aaron Keener – a name that The Division players will immediately recognize. While the build to that encounter felt like a tried and true grind (a mechanic the series is well known for), there are various elements that Ubisoft and Massive have improved upon to make the experience a smoother one. For example, players won't need to level in the core game before venturing into New York. Instead, they can simply create a level 30 character and begin wandering around their old stomping grounds.
While that addition expedited my own romp into Warlords of New York, it also reduces the barrier of entry for players of the first game by granting them immediate access to a familiar setting. For veterans of Division 2, however, the benefits of this upgrade move well beyond nostalgia. The level cap has now shifted to 40, giving players another tier to grind towards, while the infinite progression system ensures that players will keep growing and improving their characters. Add in new gear and four brand-new skills to acquire (one of which is a hologram that I absolutely adored during crowded firefights) and there's a lot to get excited about here.
This may be an odd analogy but bear with me: The Division 2: Warlords of New York is reminiscent of a Flintstone's Vitamin. It's familiar and nostalgic, yet absolutely packed to the brim with nutrients that improve the host. Warlords of New York delivers much-needed, quality-of-life enhancements to The Division 2 under the guise of a throwback. Honestly, sometimes it's worth going backward in order to proceed forward and Ubisoft/Massive have a real shot at realizing the full potential of this open-world, online-centric shooter through this expansion.
With a number of these mechanical changes and additions being influenced by the community, it's likely that a number of sleeper agents will get the call to re the fight in The Division 2. It's safe to say that I'll be one of them.
The Division 2: Warlords of New York arrives for PC, PlayStation 4, Xbox One versions of the game on March 3, 2020.
