Ubisoft gave a heads-up today on what to expect from launch day reviews for The Division. The number one thing is not to expect them.
A post on the official Ubi blog explains, ”Since it’s impossible for us to populate the servers in a way that would adequately replicate playing The Division on launch day, reviewers will start playing the game along with everyone else when it’s released on March 8 – after the servers go live officially at 00:01AM Australian Eastern Daylight Time (AEDT). We anticipate there may be some impressions posted online within the first few days of launch that were based on experiences with The Division Beta, and we look forward to seeing streams, videos, and opinions that provide accounts of final, in-game conditions.”
I’m of two minds on this. On one hand, yes, it’s impossible to adequately review an online-focused game when the online features aren’t running. (Quick spoiler: It’s an online game. The servers probably won’t work for most of week one.) But that also calls into serious question the depth and breadth of The Division’s single-player and cooperative content, which was the greatest failing of Destiny, the game’s closest predecessor.
Given the way Internet traffic works, the lack of embargoes is also going to put outlets in a mad dash to get their reviews up first, which doesn’t exactly lead to the most accurate or insightful criticism. But hey, maybe I’m just being cynical, The Division will be a great, fully-featured game, and this is all on the up and up. Just maybe wait for some impressions to get out there before you drop your money on it.
