9 Reasons The Division Is Ubisoft’s Best Video Game In Years

6. Great-Feeling Controls & Animation

The reason Destiny managed to cling onto its fanbase for so long, was the inimitable feel of firing weapons in that game. There was something about the kickback of a pistol, the clattering of an heavy machine gun or the deployment of a special ability that just felt incredibly satisfying every time. For The Division, Ubisoft's Massive studio may not be Bungie, but they've created some of the most satisfying third-person shooting since the early noughties' and the likes of Gears of War or Resident Evil 4. Emptying a clip into a guy is a mix of numbered damage stats popping off in all directions, meaty sound effects bouncing off the walls around you, a veritable fireworks display of gunpowder and the gut-punch of bullets meeting flesh on the other end. Shotguns kick like Liu Kang, machine guns have frenetic recoils you can tame to deliver the most damage, and rifles have headshot bonuses that encourage tactical, duck n' cover play. Scraping through a firefight by snacking on energy bars that grant timed bonuses and patching up wounds by rolling out the way of a flamethrower's jetstream is one hell of a rush - especially when you pop back up and nail a last-minute headshot in retaliation. Thanks to ensuring each gun feels satisfying to look at, wield, rank up and deploy, The Division easily quashes any notion of 'just basic guns' weren't going to get the job done.