Agents, incoming State of the Game transmission:
During the last State of the Game,Community Developers Petter Mårtensson and Yannick Banchereau sat down to announce an Update 1.8 release window and discuss the future of State of the Game as a segment.
Yannick is back again this week to confirm Update 1.8’s arrival next week. Creative Director Terry Spier and Lead Designer Keith Evans from Red Storm Entertainment joined in to discuss more design decisions around Rogue 2.0 and Update 1.8 as a whole.
If you missed the stream, you can check out the VoD.If you’re currently on the move, we have you covered with our Podcast Recap.
With no State of the Game last week, we are back this week with news for everyone! To start, Update 1.8 is releasing next week and we will announce the official release date on Monday, December 4. We will also be hosting a 24-hour stream to celebrate the launch of our biggest free update to date, and we hope everyone joins us for the event! Global Event Strike is coming the following week, so mark your calendars Agents!
With all that being said, a huge shout-out goes out to our community members. We have noticed a flux of new players to the game, and Update 1.8 would not be possible without everyone, both old and new.
With our newer players in mind, here is a general recap for all things coming with 1.8:
- Resistance—a new PVE horde mode activity in which Agents use SHD-Tech to build fortifications against allied enemy factions.
- Skirmish—a new 4v4 PVP mode that emphasizes close-quarters combat and gunplay.
- Revamped Underground—the same Underground Agents know and love, but with new Directives, Checkpoints, chances for Classified Gear, and Hunters.
- Rogue 2.0—a voluntary rogue toggle for PVP flagging that we hope will rebalance the Dark Zone.
- Gear Optimization—a new system that allows players to spend D-Tech to upgrade weapon/gear statistics to maximum.
- West Side Pier—a map expansion on the left-hand portion of Manhattan.
- New Exotic Weapons—the new ‘Big Alejandro’ exotic LMG, the new ‘Devil’ and ‘Heel’ exotic MMR pair, and of course the new ‘House’ SMG.
We recognize there is plenty of passion around the Dark Zone, but we also want to remind everyone that The Division is a live game. As such, we are always evolving to best suit the overall balance of the game. Our intention was to create a zone that was an equal 50/50 percentage split between PVE and PVP activity. When it comes to Rogues in the DZ in 1.7, our data reveals that the balance is entirely off. 75% of player deaths in the DZ are exclusively PVP, and that is something we want to change. Of course, there is always the challenge of community feedback not matching our analytics on the back-end, but we really want to assure our players that we are confident in the changes that will occur with 1.8.
We want to remind everyone that player motivation on the PTS differs from the live game. When it comes to the PTS, Agents are consolidated to discuss builds and play with the new systems. On the live servers, players are more spread out, actually executing their farming routes. As a live game, the system can evolve if Rogue 2.0 does not play out as intended.
As a reminder, movement changes are going live with Update 1.8 as well. While it may not be the same as the pre-1.7.1 turn speed, the changes have improved over the PTS to give more deliberate control over individual characters.
We have heard the call for improved Classified drop rates and confirmed that these rates will increase once all sets are released into the general loot pool. As a reminder, all named bosses across all areas of the game—the Underground, the Dark Zone, Resistance, etc.—have a chance to drop Classified loot. We have also implemented crates in Resistance that have a chance for Classified Gear, opened with SHD-Tech. In addition, Classified caches will be awarded in intervals when raising PVP rank in Last Stand/Skirmish.
In terms of exotic weapons, our design intentions for 1.8 are to increase their viability across all areas of play. As a result, a number of weapons have seen a damage increase with the Pakhan as an exception. When assigning a consistent damage increase to each exotic when compared its respective base weapon, the Pakhan sat slightly above that bar. As a result, we reduced its damage and are excited to see players experience the changes.
Update 1.8 is confirmed for release next week, with patch notes and an official release date scheduled for Monday, December 4. Do not forget that Global Event Strike arrives the following week and contains Classified Nomad, D3-FNC, Predator’s, and Banshee.
The Xbox One X patch is coming but not with the launch of Update 1.8. As soon as we have more information on the patch, we will share it with the community.
Lastly, players can expect a State of the Game next week! We want to discuss the launch week of 1.8 alongside player feedback/suggestions.
As always, be sure to join us over on the Official Forumsor on the community Reddit if you’re looking for a place to discuss all things related to The Division.
Until next time!
The Division Dev Team