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‘Tom Clancy’s The Division’ PTS 2: Review Of 1.5 Patch Notes, Via Reddit Update — Survival DLC Disabled, Focusing On Weapons Balance And Armor Damage For PvE/PvP Gameplay

By Tony Smejek
Published on: 14:40 PST, Nov 11, 2016

Tom Clancy’s The Division Survival DLC has been deactivated and the 1.5 update remains as developers went to Reddit to give a “sitrep” regarding where they stand. So far things look promising for the Survival expansion as Massive pursues a satisfactory balance. They cited feedback from The Division community, and have been listening to the needs of the players. Input was varying from too easy to too difficult, but the developers are striving to satiate player needs.

Enemy Armor Damage Considerations

Community members have also given feedback regarding Ubisoft’s The Division 1.5 update. There has been a concern regarding Enemy Armor Damage. Prior tot he update, the game has been riddled with bullet sponge NPCs, but now there’s a focus on stats regarding the methodical weakening of armor via certain weapon attributes and talents.

Also, when it comes to Enemy Armor Damage, the developers are looking for alternatives, as it is currently the key stat that most people focus on for armor mitigation, according to the update on Reddit.

“We are looking at ways to bring more interesting choices and alternatives to Armor as the only stat that matters. We know that this is not a perfect solution, but we would like to get more feedback from you before we decide what to do with it.”

The developers of Tom Clancy’s The Division aim to garner specific weapons that cater to armor damage in either PvE and PvP environments. Apparently, the differing venues aren’t as effective in PvP play. For instance, in the recent State of the Game video, developers mentioned the Stagger ability for shot guns that didn’t entirely work the way they wanted it to in PvP mode, but they intend on working on a “jostling” effect when a live player takes a hit.

Introducing World Tier Five And PTS 2

There’s also the patch 1.4 to 1.5 update differential in The Division when adding World Tier Five. It seems this level brings in a fresh start with a new weapons tier because keeping to World Tier Four items would have players continue to have legacy 229 weapons already in their possession.

So it appears that they are phasing out the old weapons from the “balancing equation” and putting them on a new path. That way everyone will be on equal ground, kind of like the Survival DLC, but not entirely in the same way.

The PTS 2 testing is in place and now the focus on players checking out the new features of the 1.5 update. The balancing adjustments will also be a new experience. The Survival DLC has been deactivated for the purpose of focusing on evaluating the new patch and balances.

The testing conditions involved a level-30 character that comes with basic 229 High-End items. There will also already be 46 sealed caches of the 256 geared items on the agent. The goal is to test the PvP experience and PvE missions. Solo and multiplayer experiences will also be evaluated. Then there’s the new World Tier Five.

This will only go on for a few days, starting from Nov. 11, and then there will be an opportunity for feedback.

“We want to have more feedback on the update, on the difficult and progression in the new World Tier, the change to Enemy Armor Damage and how this changed your approach to character building, its application to PvP as well as the implementation of Stagger as an aim flinching mechanic. Everything relating to balancing in this free update!”

There is also a list of patch notes available on VG 24/7 for bugs in The Division Survival DLC and general overall fixes. There has been a ton of updates in regards to gear, weapons, skills, gameplay, and the Survival mode.

Prepare yourself for the fun updates and adjustments ahead in Tom Clancy’s The Divison because balance appears to be key in the 1.5 update/patch.

[Featured Image by Ubisoft]

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