The Division: This is not your Destiny

[dropcap]D[/dropcap]estiny is not a great game. In fact, when it first came out, it was outright terrible. Yet despite this, the game has managed to amass a significant following. Because of this, the concept of the shooter RPG is becoming increasingly popular, with other publishers looking to emulate the success of Destiny. The newest attempt at this is Ubisoft’s The Division. After years of hype, it finally releases in March, and some are predicting it to be the next Destiny. However, I’m here to put an end to talk like that. The Division is not going to replace Destiny. Hell, it’s not even going to come close.

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This may seem like a ridiculously large assertion to make, but I think it’s fair, thanks to the numerous different elements that are already working against the title. Perhaps most important is the setting. People like Destiny because, despite its lack of a coherent story, it has an interesting setting. The idea of exploring different alien worlds has always been appealing, and this is no different in Destiny. Compare this to The Division, where players can eagerly look forward to exploring that most under-utilised of game settings… New York. The prospect of exploring yet another virtual New York is not at all appealing, and I doubt I’m the only one who feels this way. This is made worse by what was showcased within the recent beta, which was a world that felt boring and sparsely populated. For a game that wants people to devote ridiculous quantities of their time to play, the world is awful and unimaginative – it’s the Hull of video game worlds, and who wants to spend a lot of time in a world that is as fun to explore as Hull? Nobody, that’s who.

Destiny also benefits from incredibly satisfying gunplay, thanks to the experience that Bungie has from their time creating the Halo series. This has always been a key advantage for the game, as, despite its repetitive nature, it’s always fun to play. Shooting an alien in the face never gets old, especially when the guns feel as meaty as they do in Destiny, but The Division falters here as well. In fact, the gunplay is really quite poor. None of the guns feel satisfying to shoot – the whole combat system just feels off. This is thanks to the fact that when you shoot somebody in the head, they don’t die, thanks to its RPG-lite nature. Players are going to need satisfying gunplay to keep them interested in a game which has combat as the core focus, and once again, The Division seems to be failing where Destiny succeeded.

Finally, The Division has one problem that Destiny does not have, and this one might be insurmountable. This is the idea of reputation. Destiny was so popular and over-hyped to begin with because of the good reputation that Bungie had coming into it. This reputation allowed them to bring in a large audience at launch, which in turn allowed for the development of a lasting fan base, while The Division is relying on the reputation of Ubisoft. This is a company who, especially in recent years, have become known for buggy, broken and unsatisfying games. They have become one of the most maligned games companies in the whole industry, and this isn’t exactly a good reputation to be using in an attempt to recreate the following of Destiny. People are going to see the Ubisoft name attached to The Division and become a bit more cautious, and this could severely impact the chance of success for the title.

This is the idea of reputation. Destiny was so popular and over-hyped to begin with because of the good reputation that Bungie had coming into it. This reputation allowed them to bring in a large audience at launch, which in turn allowed for the development of a lasting fan base, while The Division is relying on the reputation of Ubisoft

Destiny has become one of the biggest titles released in recent memory. Despite a rocky start, it has managed to build up a rabid fan base who salivate at the thought of any new Destiny news. It seems unlikely at this stage that The Division will be able to emulate this. It seems to be hindered by a number of creative mistakes that are now so intrinsically linked into the game that they cannot now be changed. This will inevitably mean that the game will never be able to achieve the success that Destiny had. I’m sorry fans of The Division, this game is NOT your Destiny.

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