Tom Clancy’s The Division 2 is an online co-op loot-based shooter. There have been many games emerging in this genre, but they all seem to fall short in various departments. If you have been burnt on some of them, your scepticism in The Division 2 is justified. But this is the only game in the market right now that satisfies all of the key pillars of a loot-based shooter.
If you have played The Division, the overall structure and design of the game, in addition to the battle system, is the same. It is still a lot of fun to play. Combat generally involves all members entering a room with tons of cover and multiple levels. Enemies will attack you from all sides, and will relentlessly charge at you.
Things become extremely challenging when elites are thrown into the mix as they can shred through your armor in seconds. Players can equip two abilities to the shoulder buttons, and can mod them to suit their needs. This ranges from aggressive, such as turrets and seeking mines, to support abilities that heal teammates. I always preferred to carry at least one support skill as the abilities that damage enemies, while fun to use, were not nearly as useful.
I do have one major complaint with the encounter design, as enemies will constantly drop/come out of unexpected areas. It does make things more challenging, but it is not fun to deal with enemies spawning behind you as you are fighting two elites at the same time.
Loot is generous in the game, and new equipment is available at various vendors at all times. More importantly, the map is littered with missions and activities. The loop of completing missions and being rewarded for your efforts is the best in its class. Your equipment can be modified but also come with special abilities called talents. Add crafting into the mix and the end result is a game that is constantly engaging.
If your friends are not playing it, getting into a game with random players online is extremely simple. In the matchmaking menu, you can choose what type of content you want to matchmake for, ranging from a random main mission to open world exploration. You can even party up for a specific mission from the map. Joining and leaving parties, and the whole process of playing online co-op is remarkably easy and user friendly.
Completing the main missions and strongholds lets you advance the world tier. This, along with other activities, constitutes the The Division 2’s end game. You will be completing missions to get loot of a higher gear score but they don’t differ that much from a mechanical perspective.
The Division 2 is the most well-rounded game one can find in this genre. The shooting mechanics are not as good as Destiny, but it gets most of the other important aspects right. It has the best loop among its peers, that is constantly challenging and rewarding. While I wish some elements, such as story, were more developed; one cannot deny how much better the user experience is when playing Tom Clancy’s The Division 2.
OVERALL: 8.5
