Many people have enjoyed their time with The Division Closed Beta thus far. I am one of them. It’s a great game. That being said, there are always improvements that can be made.
Keep in mind that the following critiques are made of the beta, not the complete game. Many of these issues may have already been fixed in the soon-to-be-released retail version of the game, or may be in the process of being addressed.
More Loot
Yes, more loot. I can never have enough. While playing through the beta, I was able to obtain a wide variety of loot for my character. However, most of it was the same base item with different attributes (for example, I found several M1As and 870 Express guns). This is fine, because it always keeps you on the lookout for something better, but it would be nice to see a bigger variety of those base items. It’s more than likely that what we saw in the Beta is only a part of what will be available in the full release of the game, but gamers love content and the ability to personalize their character.
Better Matchmaking
There were a couple occasions during the Beta that I was unable to join a friend. Sometimes I was unable to because of their level, and sometimes I was just booted to the main menu. I’m not sure what caused latter issue, but it was more frequent than it should have been. As for not being able to join a friend in the Dark Zone because of their level, I understand it’s to keep the experience balanced, but I want to help a friend progress or quickly level up a character, I should be able to. I will say Ubisoft did a stellar job with the party system in The Division Beta – it’s very easy to use – so now it just needs to work all the time.
Traveling
The Division‘s in-game map is somewhat confusing and hard to navigate. It’s also a pain to get from one place to another easily. Ubisoft does have a fast travel mechanic that allows you to travel quickly to “The Hub,” other base locations, and to friends. However, this only works outside the Dark Zone, and I was not able to fast travel to the Dark Zone entrances. It’s annoying and it takes forever. You have to walk from The Hub, to the Dark Zone entrance, and then to wherever your friend is in the Dark Zone. During this arduous journey in the Dark Zone, you’re liable to wind up being killed by another player or NPCs, and when it asks you where to respawn, you have no clue which respawn location is closer to your friend (meaning you could wind up further away than you were initially). I understand not being able to fast travel to locations in the Dark Zone – it’d be too easy to get to extraction points or safehouses to lose your Rogue status – but it would be nice to be able to fast travel to your friends.
Rogue Exploits
I have every indication that this condition will not exist in the final game. During the beta, players were able to exploit the boundaries of the beta to lose their Rogue status. For example, if you went Rogue at the edge of the map, and maxed your Rogue level (resulting in a manhunt), you could simply run past the boundary of the map, and within ten seconds, you would be fast-traveled to a safehouse. At that point, all you had to do was wait a couple minutes for it to wear off, and you were rewarded with over 1,000 Dark Zone currency. It was frustrating for many players. Those boundaries shouldn’t be present in the final game (unless it’s by an area soon to be unlocked as DLC?), so it should get rid of that exploit entirely.
Other Exploits
Reddit and The Division’s forums have lit up with reports of exploits and cheaters in the Beta – mostly on PC. Players are reporting infinite ammo glitches, unlimited med-kits, super speed, etc. This is reportedly due to the way Ubisoft handles character data in The Division. Data is stored on the player (client) side, instead of the server side (which allows the modification of important files that govern the issues listed above). Apparently servers are not checking this data, though it’s not clear if this is only the case for the Beta. Hopefully, Ubisoft will have server checks and some kind of anti-cheat software active at launch. The developer is assuring players they are aware of the issues and they will be addressed by the game’s release on March 8, 2016.
Gear Trading
Associate creative director for The Division, Julian Gerighty, told gamesradar+ there will be no way to trade gear at the game’s launch. Honestly, I find that pretty sad. I should be able to share the spoils of war with a friend, who may be struggling to obtain good gear, or is just new to the game. If it’s any consolation, however, Gerighty said “it’ll maybe make an appearance in the future.” Maybe? It better.
The Division‘s Closed Beta has been extended to Tuesday, February 2nd, 12pm CET | 6 am EST | 3 am PST. If you don’t have a code, or haven’t had time to play, don’t worry – Unconfirmed reports from the Official Xbox Italy Facebook page indicate there will be an open beta for The Division February 16th through the 21st. Once it’s been confirmed by Ubisoft, you’ll find all the details here on EXL.
What would you like to see changed from the Beta? What are your impressions? Let us know in the comments.
