The Division 2 team is pushing back the release of its 8-player ‘Operation Dark Hours’ raid. The anticipated addition is part of the game’s Title 3 Update, which Ubisoft will delay as it works on balance changes.
Initially slated for April 25, Title 3 will now debut in May, though the team didn’t give a specific date for the release. The decision follows an outpouring of player feedback on Reddit and Twitter, with some highlighting a supposed failure to balance PvP and PvE separately.
“In order to fine-tune the balance of our game and to ensure the best possible player experience for everyone, we have decided to move the release of Title Update 3 – including Operation Dark Hours, our 8-player Raid – from April 25 to May 2019,” says Ubisoft in an official blog post. “The final release date of Title Update 3 will be based on results from further testing and balancing of the game. Operation Dark Hours will be your biggest challenge to date, and we want to make sure that we’ve properly tested the large amount of balance changes that are coming to both PvE and PvP and listen to your feedback about the changes before introducing the raid.”
The team maintains that it plans to adjust the two modes separately, but the main game has seen little indication of this so far. A lot of that is likely due to the significant testing required, which Ubisoft plans to address with its Public Test Server (PTS).
Related: Confused how this fits into the Division 2 roadmap? Check the previous year one plan here
The server will be available to anybody who owns the game, but the plan is for a multi-stage testing process. Every few days, a PTS will focus on a specific aspect of the game, combining with surveys and community discussions to ensure everything is on the right track.
As such, it’s a chance for players to try out features and balance changes early, but it won’t be all fun and games. Operation Dark Hours won’t be in the PTS, for example, with the focus firmly on bugs and underlying mechanics.
The first PTS is live today, April 17, so players can jump in immediately if they wish. So far, Reddit has noted changes to Berserk, Unbreakable, Frenzy, Clutch, Patience, and many other skills. Reportedly, there’s also a higher cap on Attributes on the PTS when recalibrating, and Ubisoft has adjusted Dark Zone Normalisation.
However, it’s worth noting that this phase of the PTS is focused solely on bugs, so don’t get mad just yet.
“During the first phase, we are only focusing on finding bugs and not all balance changes will be present,” says Community Developer Petter Mårtensson on the forums. “As we move closer to the end of the phase, we will patch the build and update you on what we focus on next.”
By all indications, The Division 2 appears to be a strong PC port, with support for supersampling, multiple monitors, and variable refresh rates. The game received favorable comments from us on launch due to its fantastic environments.