Dec 8, 2017

Tom Clancy’s The Division™ - UbiAmper

Agents, incoming State of the Game transmission:

During the last State of the Game,Community Developer Yannick Banchereau discussed Rogue 2.0 statistics with Creative Director Terry Spier and Lead Designer Keith Evans from Red Storm Entertainment in preparation for Update 1.8.

Yannick is back this week with Community Developer Petter Mårtensson to discuss how 1.8 is progressing alongside details about the upcoming Global Event—Strike.

If you missed the stream, you can check out the VoD.If you’re currently on the move, we have you covered with our Podcast Recap.

Update 1.8 launched on Tuesday, December 5! We want to take this opportunity to thank everyone for all the patience and support, as well as everyone who came by for the 24-hour stream! The first Twitch Drops Campaign for The Division was a success, and we are planning more for the future. As a reminder, if you have not received your free weapon skins from the stream, we are investigating and skins will be delivered.

As with any large game update, there are a few hiccups we are aware of:

Server crashes (resolved in today’s maintenance)
Agents spawning into World Tier 4

As always, please report any issues on the official forums.

During the first 24-hours of Update 1.8 being live, a grand total of 769,358 exotic caches were opened across all three platforms. Out of the players who opened exotic caches on 1.8’s launch, 75% of these players opened less than 15 caches. Our top contender opened a grand total of 267 exotic caches.

There is a Free Weekend Event alongside free DLC active until December 10. If you have not had an opportunity to play the game and expansions, now is your chance!

Global Event strike launches next Tuesday, December 12. Agents have an opportunity to gather Classified Nomad, D3-FNC, Predator’s, and Banshee during the event. We are introducing a round of new vanity masks that are tied Global Event Commendations, and a new vanity set/skin rewards are tied to leaderboards.

Strike modifiers:

Strike—Always active. Enemies explode when killed.
Pre-emptive Strike—Strike behavior, plus sustained incoming damage triggers a small explosion on Agents.
Tactical Strike—Pre-emptive Strike behavior, plus enemies are marked using Strike explosions. When killed, they damage remaining enemies. Ally-to-Ally explosion damage is increased.

We will have news on a potential State of the Game for next week as soon as possible. Thanks again, Agents!

As always, be sure to join us over on the Official Forumsor on the community Reddit if you’re looking for a place to discuss all things related to The Division.

Until next time!

The Division Dev Team

Dec 8, 2017

STATE OF THE GAME: DECEMBER 7TH, 2017

Tom Clancy’s The Division™ - UbiAmper

Server crashes (resolved in today’s maintenance)
Agents spawning into World Tier 4

Strike—Always active. Enemies explode when killed.
Pre-emptive Strike—Strike behavior, plus sustained incoming damage triggers a small explosion on Agents.
Tactical Strike—Pre-emptive Strike behavior, plus enemies are marked using Strike explosions. When killed, they damage remaining enemies. Ally-to-Ally explosion damage is increased.

Dec 7, 2017

UPDATE 1.8 IS AVAILABLE NOW!

Tom Clancy’s The Division™ - UbiAmper

Update 1.8 is now live across PC, Xbox One, and PS4. Update your client and join us in the many new activities and features added to The Division, for free:

Resistance

Enemy factions have combined forces, and they are coming for Division Agents in Resistance. As a new PVE mode, waves of factions are working together to cut down SHD once and for all. Players can build fortifications, unlock sealed doorways, and open Classified crates in any of our three explorable arenas.

Skirmish

Skirmish is the new 4v4 TDM PVP mode. Designed with a less running/more gunning mindset, players will find shorter games, smaller maps, and closer engagements in one package. Playing Skirmish will also level up Last Stand Ranking, now renamed PVP Ranking for 1.8.

West Side Pier

West Side Pier acts as a map expansion, pushing players into the left-hand side of Manhattan. Players can farm Division Tech here, as well as accept Alerts/Assignment missions. A new social hub—Camp Clinton—will provide Agents everything they need to stock up in the new zone.

Revamped Underground

1.8’s Underground is better than ever before. Players will find new Directives that add a sense of risk vs. reward to missions. Checkpoints have also been introduced, and players are definitely going to need them. For the first time in The Division, Hunters will appear as a random encounter in the Underground and have a chance to drop Classified Gear.

Gear Optimization

Players have the opportunity to maximize the rolls on their weapons and gear using Division Tech at the Optimization Station. This new system, combined with a new ‘power’ level assigned to gear, will allow players to push farther into PVE content.

Rogue 2.0

Introduced in 1.8 is a voluntary Rogue Toggle that will change the pace of the Dark Zone. In order to go Rogue, Agents will have to hold down a key/button to flag themselves, and then proceed with their PVP business. Rewards on both sides of PVP Manhunts have also been increased.

Exotic Weapons

Four new exotic weapons are available in 1.8. The first is the ‘Big Alejandro’—a powerful LMG capable of mowing down targets with a high RPM when firing from cover. ‘The House’ SMG keeps Agents on their toes as one fluctuating half of its magazine grants bonus damage. The ‘Devil’ and ‘Heel’ marksman rifles are deigned to be used as a pair. When both are equipped, Agents get the benefits of both simultaneously.

There is even more available in our largest free update to The Division. For more information, please visit the Update 1.8 home page.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GJCJme9ILPs

Dec 7, 2017

UPDATE 1.8 IS AVAILABLE NOW!

Tom Clancy’s The Division™ - UbiAmper

Nov 30, 2017

STATE OF THE GAME: NOVEMBER 30TH, 2017

Tom Clancy’s The Division™ - UbiAmper

Agents, incoming State of the Game transmission:

During the last State of the Game,Community Developers Petter Mårtensson and Yannick Banchereau sat down to announce an Update 1.8 release window and discuss the future of State of the Game as a segment.

Yannick is back again this week to confirm Update 1.8’s arrival next week. Creative Director Terry Spier and Lead Designer Keith Evans from Red Storm Entertainment joined in to discuss more design decisions around Rogue 2.0 and Update 1.8 as a whole.

If you missed the stream, you can check out the VoD.If you’re currently on the move, we have you covered with our Podcast Recap.

With no State of the Game last week, we are back this week with news for everyone! To start, Update 1.8 is releasing next week and we will announce the official release date on Monday, December 4. We will also be hosting a 24-hour stream to celebrate the launch of our biggest free update to date, and we hope everyone joins us for the event! Global Event Strike is coming the following week, so mark your calendars Agents!

With all that being said, a huge shout-out goes out to our community members. We have noticed a flux of new players to the game, and Update 1.8 would not be possible without everyone, both old and new.

With our newer players in mind, here is a general recap for all things coming with 1.8:

Resistance—a new PVE horde mode activity in which Agents use SHD-Tech to build fortifications against allied enemy factions.
Skirmish—a new 4v4 PVP mode that emphasizes close-quarters combat and gunplay.
Revamped Underground—the same Underground Agents know and love, but with new Directives, Checkpoints, chances for Classified Gear, and Hunters.
Rogue 2.0—a voluntary rogue toggle for PVP flagging that we hope will rebalance the Dark Zone.
Gear Optimization—a new system that allows players to spend D-Tech to upgrade weapon/gear statistics to maximum.
West Side Pier—a map expansion on the left-hand portion of Manhattan.
New Exotic Weapons—the new ‘Big Alejandro’ exotic LMG, the new ‘Devil’ and ‘Heel’ exotic MMR pair, and of course the new ‘House’ SMG.

We recognize there is plenty of passion around the Dark Zone, but we also want to remind everyone that The Division is a live game. As such, we are always evolving to best suit the overall balance of the game. Our intention was to create a zone that was an equal 50/50 percentage split between PVE and PVP activity. When it comes to Rogues in the DZ in 1.7, our data reveals that the balance is entirely off. 75% of player deaths in the DZ are exclusively PVP, and that is something we want to change. Of course, there is always the challenge of community feedback not matching our analytics on the back-end, but we really want to assure our players that we are confident in the changes that will occur with 1.8.

We want to remind everyone that player motivation on the PTS differs from the live game. When it comes to the PTS, Agents are consolidated to discuss builds and play with the new systems. On the live servers, players are more spread out, actually executing their farming routes. As a live game, the system can evolve if Rogue 2.0 does not play out as intended.

As a reminder, movement changes are going live with Update 1.8 as well. While it may not be the same as the pre-1.7.1 turn speed, the changes have improved over the PTS to give more deliberate control over individual characters.

We have heard the call for improved Classified drop rates and confirmed that these rates will increase once all sets are released into the general loot pool. As a reminder, all named bosses across all areas of the game—the Underground, the Dark Zone, Resistance, etc.—have a chance to drop Classified loot. We have also implemented crates in Resistance that have a chance for Classified Gear, opened with SHD-Tech. In addition, Classified caches will be awarded in intervals when raising PVP rank in Last Stand/Skirmish.

In terms of exotic weapons, our design intentions for 1.8 are to increase their viability across all areas of play. As a result, a number of weapons have seen a damage increase with the Pakhan as an exception. When assigning a consistent damage increase to each exotic when compared its respective base weapon, the Pakhan sat slightly above that bar. As a result, we reduced its damage and are excited to see players experience the changes.

Update 1.8 is confirmed for release next week, with patch notes and an official release date scheduled for Monday, December 4. Do not forget that Global Event Strike arrives the following week and contains Classified Nomad, D3-FNC, Predator’s, and Banshee.

The Xbox One X patch is coming but not with the launch of Update 1.8. As soon as we have more information on the patch, we will share it with the community.

Lastly, players can expect a State of the Game next week! We want to discuss the launch week of 1.8 alongside player feedback/suggestions.

As always, be sure to join us over on the Official Forumsor on the community Reddit if you’re looking for a place to discuss all things related to The Division.

Until next time!

The Division Dev Team

Nov 30, 2017

STATE OF THE GAME: NOVEMBER 30TH, 2017

Tom Clancy’s The Division™ - UbiAmper

Resistance—a new PVE horde mode activity in which Agents use SHD-Tech to build fortifications against allied enemy factions.
Skirmish—a new 4v4 PVP mode that emphasizes close-quarters combat and gunplay.
Revamped Underground—the same Underground Agents know and love, but with new Directives, Checkpoints, chances for Classified Gear, and Hunters.
Rogue 2.0—a voluntary rogue toggle for PVP flagging that we hope will rebalance the Dark Zone.
Gear Optimization—a new system that allows players to spend D-Tech to upgrade weapon/gear statistics to maximum.
West Side Pier—a map expansion on the left-hand portion of Manhattan.
New Exotic Weapons—the new ‘Big Alejandro’ exotic LMG, the new ‘Devil’ and ‘Heel’ exotic MMR pair, and of course the new ‘House’ SMG.