Developer: Ubisoft , Massive Entertainment
Publisher: Ubisoft
Platforms: PC, PS4, Xbox One
Tested on: PC
The Division 2 Warlords of New York Expansion DLC – Review
The Division has always been that game for Ubisoft that combined futuristic gadgets with RPG shooter elements. While this combination had some difficulties in the past, receiving mixed reviews for the first game, Ubisoft has learned from it to adjust the second Division accordingly. The Division 2 is built on the great foundation of the first to become a highly appreciated title. Now Ubisoft has released the Warlords of New York, which will take you back to the scenery of the first game. On the one hand a great homage, on the other hand, it feels like a cheap re-use of assets.
The story picks up after the events of The Division 2, for those who haven’t completed the base game, we must warn for spoilers. After securing all the strongholds in D.C., a military contractor named ‘Black Tusk’ decides to throw a spanner in the works and retake the whole capitol. This strong faction brings new technology to the table and mainly uses drones and robots. When finally pushing back these contractors as well, you get a message that you are needed in New York. If you have not completed the main story, you can get your character boosted to the needed levels. As you need to be LVL 30 (the max level in the main game) and world tier 5, the boost will give you some great starting gear to survive in the harsh wasteland of New York.
Once you have arrived in New York, you and agent Kelso are instructed to clear out the old safehouse. This has been attacked by the cleaners (an old enemy) and those who have played the first Division will have some nostalgic moments. As it turns out, there are some Division agents that have gone rogue, their leader is Aaron Keener and he is assisted by four lieutenants that lead each former faction and have turned their backs on the division. This deadly combination makes that New York is not inhabitable and the remaining survivors struggle to get a foothold in the destroyed capital.
When you reclaim your old base, you and your team will have to start investigating the whereabouts of the rogue agents. This is done in the same way as in the other Ubisoft title, Wildlands (for those who have played it). By completing missions you will gain pieces of Intel to slowly piece together where you must go looking for the lieutenants. This can be a bit ‘rinse and repeat’ as you do these things over and over again, but you get some nice rewards in the process. Each lieutenant has a special ability, and you can gain this as a gadget to use against your enemies.
This expansion will lock you in New York, so finish your business first in D.C. before heading over. The DLC will raise the level cap to 40 and brings a bunch of new exotic items to the table. The core gameplay remains the same and you can still do projects, craft stuff and buy and sell items to safe zones in New York. While it seems like a short extra story, it will take you some time to go through the warzone and clear out the rogue operators.
Some enthusiasts will love the fact that you make your return to New York, others will think that this is a cheap re-use of assets. Those who have put a lot of time in the first Division and are a bit fed up with its scenery might want to steer clear of this DLC. While now you are fighting in a slightly different part of Manhattan, you will still go against the same exact enemies that you encountered in the first game. There have been a few alterations that come from the new title but nothing too big.
Conclusion
If you enjoyed the base game and you wanted some extra content on top of the already long game, you will enjoy the Warlords of New York. The nostalgic trip to the first game and their unique factions have all returned to the scene to take revenge on the Division and the inhabitants. If you played the first game then you know the spots and the weaknesses of all the factions so it will be easy pickings, yet they have grown stronger and don’t let them catch you off guard. On the one hand, this nostalgic trip seems very nice, on the other hand, some nitpickers could say that it is cheap recycling of old assets to create a DLC.
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Good thing they fixed the ‘invisible gun’ bugs.
Indeed, they did fix a lot of bugs and errors.