The Division: 10 Crucial Questions Ubisoft Must Answer

By Scott Tailford / January 19, 2016

In terms of games that could absolutely dominate 2016 if done right, Ubisoft have it sewn up with The Division. An open-world RPG meets third-person base-builder (try saying that five times fast), they're attempting to do for survival-based action what Destiny did for first-person shooters. However, within that comparison comes a massive issue; pre-release hype and coverage around Bungie's latest was routed in a deep story with incredibly varied weapons and gameplay tactics, too. We were expecting to go on a massive planet-hopping adventure, snapping up all sorts of fancy gizmos and firearms along the way. Then it released and... there were four small levels masquerading as 'worlds', one mission type and a random loot generator that better resembled a Las Vegas slot machine. People were suitably p*ssed beyond belief, and Destiny became the first multi-million dollar game to release as a shell of its former potential, resorting to selling fans chunks of DLC and content for the following months. Back to The Division... and it could be more of the same. From the raids you and a buddy can hop into, to the fortifiable HQ you'll be building over the course of the story, Ubi's latest could be one of the most interesting, addictive and genre-bending games of all time - or it could be another flop of Watch Dogs' proportions.

10. Will It Have Microtransactions?

You can smell the inclusion of them a mile off. There's something of a quagmire going on within the games industry and its fans, as many developers and consumers have given into the idea of having the procedural parts of their games being up for optional payment - whereas the rest of us are left screaming, Two-Face-style, "You can't give in!" It's a sad day when the games you're already paying top dollar for elect to put optional buffs inside, meaning the guy next to you may get better equipment or abilities simply because they've coughed up another handful of coins. The Division's main progression is custom-built to allow for this sort of thing, despite Ubisoft producer Magnus Jansen stating that "there microtransactions, as I define them", whatever that means. You're meant to be wrangling up doctors, police officers and all sorts of other NPCs to help rebuild your personal base of operations, and that's exactly the sort of resource-intensive thing mobile titles like Clash of Clans or Game of War have literally made millions off the back of. Random loot/item discoveries are perfect for the 'pay now and see what you get' crowd, and sadly those consumers number in the tens of thousands.