Tom Clancy’s The Division could start the evolution of next generation MMOs

The gaming industry has evolved, and so has the way we play games. One of those stages in the evolution has arrived from the introduction and advent of online multiplayer gaming, causing a radical amount of change in the recent years. Now with the next generation already upon us, the titles are also changing accordingly, especially MMOs, and one such example is Tom Clancy’s The Division.

The Division, from Ubisoft Massive, made quite a mark for itself at the recent E3. Since then, the game has gone on to garner a number of fans who are waiting to get their hands on the new game. There’s still some time left for the title to arrive, but the expectations for the game are already massive.

The Division starts off with the player as an independent agent of the U.S. Government who only becomes active under severe circumstances. While the game is definitely a work of fiction, it is said that Tom Clancy’s idea of a New York City in the future is not really that fictional, and that he got the idea for this game from a real military operation called Dark Winter.

Operation Dark Water was conducted back in June 2001 to take note of how well the country’s infrastructure could withstand events like widespread biological attacks that would affect most of the nation. The operation meant to find out how quickly it would take things to get out of hand during such a situation, as well as possible remedies.

Dark Water determined that the country was far too dependent on the current infrastructure than we though, and that there is every chance that things might get out of control in such a grave situation. This is exactly where The Division kicks off, with the country falling apart after several man-made biological attacks.

While we are yet to get new information about the game, judging by what we saw at this year’s E3, The Division’s main aim is to keep the audience focused on what’s happening in-game with a clever mix of single player, cooperative, and competitive missions-types. Player flexibility also seemed pretty evident, especially the way the player will work with each other in the world.

Nearly three weeks before the game begins, a number of sleeper cell agents released a weaponized and deadly virus in the United States. While agencies featured in The Division tried to stop the outbreak, they ultimately failure, resulting in what’s known as Black Friday (a bit more hectic than the one we have now, and a lot less shopping). The events of that day nearly wiped the entire population from the face of the planet. In The Division, the goal is to save whatever remains of humanity, and restore society.

The game looks absolutely gorgeous and it seems like Ubisoft has left no stone unturned to develop the in-game textures and characters in accordance with the next generation of gaming. Impressively, the in-game HUD also has quite simplistic approach but also quite helpful at the same time, only popping out when the player needs it.

The developers have also introduced a companion app for the game that will be as important as the game itself, guiding the player through different stages in the game. IGN previously wrote: “Once the app-user joined up with the players on the ground, the tablet displayed an aerial view of the block which they were exploring. The tablet allows a player to become a drone in the environment, and they are privy to a suite of skills each with its own specific cool-downs.”

“Tapping a skill loaded it up, and then tapping somewhere on the screen engaged the ability in that area. Many of these were classic MMO staples, such as an armor buff that boosted the stats of your party, and a healing spell," and also "whatever drones are capable of that revived injured allies.”

The game also has a gifted set of in-game open world PvP features to make the experience even more special. Ubisoft's senior community developer Antoine Emond recently wrote on Ubisoft’s blog that Player vs. Player combat will play a very big role in the game, and that the choices the player makes as a Division agent “can either spur a recovery or plunge the city further into chaos. The people you meet in certain areas of the game can either be your best friends or your worst enemies. So you’ll constantly be making decisions that will impact the world around you.”

whatWith so many features already available for the game, and more yet to come in the following months, the game is set to become one of the most innovative MMORPGs in recent times, with a completely new approach to the way we have played past Tom Clancy titles. 

Tom Clancy's The Division is currently set for a 2014 release for PS4 and Xbox One. Sadly, there’s no news about the game coming any time soon on PC.