Hold on to your controllers, Agents; Tom Clancy's The Division game is set to release the massive Update 1.6 together with new expansion, "Last Stand." The update contains many features that will make surviving in the game's post-apocalyptic New York City even more challenging.
The 1.6 patch will be free-to-play on all platforms: Xbox One, PlayStation 4, and PC. According to game developer Ubisoft, Update 1.6 will be "available on the Public Test Server that's coming soon". The company wants the gamers' feedback, so it encourages them to "join on the upcoming PTS forums to discuss the update".
Bigger Map, Badder Meanies
The biggest feature of Update 1.6 is the game world's literal expansion: the northern gates in the Dark Zone will finally open! Dubbed as Dark Zones 7, 8, and 9, these areas will double the playable size of the current Dark Zone.
Like Dark Zones 1-6, DZ 7-9 will be filled with roaming NPCs and Landmarks. The Landmarks will pose more challenge as waves of baddies will spawn after killing the initial enemy NPCs. The risks will be worth the rewards as loots will be put directly in your inventory.
Higher Contamination
To amp the challenge, special events called Contamination will be added. According to Ubisoft's blog, "contaminated body bags have been piled up in parts of the subways below the Dark Zone".
New enemies called Cleaners will sweep these locations every hour and burn these bags - your goal is to stop them. Sounds easy, but the virus contamination in these places have reached "unprecedented levels", so strategies beyond the usual run-and-gun will be needed.
New Leaderboards Plus Legendary Difficulties
Mastering these new wastelands will feel more rewarding if you know how well you compare to other players. So the game will add Dark Zone Leaderboards. This will allow you to track your weekly and monthly progress across a variety of activities, such as PvP (Rogues killed, Manhunts) and PvE (NPCs killed, chest loots, etc).
For hardcore Agents, a Legendary difficulty come to three missions: Times Square, Warrengate Power Plant and Napalm Production Site. Set to be even tougher than Heroic Incursions, this difficulty will test your individual skills and group tactics and teamwork.
Exotic Items And Gear Sets
For gearheads and collectors, there will be named weapons called Exotics. These color-coded items will have their own flavor text. But the changes will not only be cosmetic, as each Exotic weapon will have its own talent.
Changes and balances will be also introduced to Gear Sets such as Frontline Set, Reclaimer and Tactician's Authority. A new set called SEEKR will also be added.
For more detailed changes about the 1.6 Update and upcoming news, check out Ubisoft's official blog.
Tom Clancy's The Division was released on 2016 to positive reviews. It is an open-world survival third-person shooter set in post-apocalyptic New York. A movie adaptation is in the works starring Jake Gyllenhaal and Jessica Chastain.
