Ubisoft has finally revealed the details behind it’s first major content addition to The Division 2, and it’s arriving on all platforms very soon.
Titled Episode 1 – D.C. Outskirts: Expeditions, the upcoming expansion will have players exploring a variety of new environments outside of the city, tackling new missions and digging deeper into the game’s story. Included in the expansion are two main missions, both of which take place in environments very different than what we’ve seen before.
The first mission will take players to Camp White Oak in search of President Andrew Ellis. Breaking into the presidential compound, Division Agents will seek to capture Ellis and bring him to justice. The second has agents infiltrating the Manning National Zoo, where the leader of the Outcasts, Emeline Shaw, is currently hiding. Players will fight through the zoo, eliminating Outcasts and trying to put an end to Shaw’s leadership.
One of the most interesting additions is the new experience called Expeditions. The expedition takes players to Kenly College in search of a military convoy that disappeared. The college will be split up into three wings, with each being a unique experience with its own “specific theme and tone.” Each wing of the college will be released on a week-by-week basis. Players who manage to complete all three sections will be treated to a treasure room “full of rewards.”
Along with the new environments and missions, the expansion will feature a host of changes and fixes. These include weapon balancing, bug fixes, and crafting improvements. The new crafting allows players to craft gear up until level 500, and crafted gear can now be recalibrated.
One of the most notable changes, however, is the new Discovery Difficulty setting for the Operation Dark Hours raid. The new difficulty is to allow “more players to experience The Division 2 in its entirety.”
When the game’s first raid was released, it gained a lot of attention for being notoriously difficult on consoles. While PC players managed to beat the raid in a fairly short amount of time, it took console players several days to complete it. Many called for fix to make it easier, but the team at Ubisoft made it very clear that they wouldn’t nerf it. They seem to have changed their mind, but with a major caveat: though the easier Discovery difficulty will have rewards, the raid’s exotic loot is still locked behind the normal mode.
Episode 1 is part of Ubisoft’s plan to provide free content for The Division 2 during its first year. The expansions will release on July 23rd for those who have purchased the Year 1 pass, and on July 30th for everyone else.
