Last night I finished the campaign of The Division 2, and right up until the final cutscene, I’d been having a stellar time.
MASSIVE SPOILERS FOR THE DIVISION 2’S ENDGAME
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At the conclusion of the final cutscene, I was treated to a view of the map where everything formerly green (save two locations) was, once again, red; a massive part of the endgame appears to be redoing literally almost everything you’d done prior.
I immediately asked myself: what was the point of doing any of it? Why should I have done it when I only have to turn around and do it again? All my safe houses, all my control points, basically all my fast travel locations, are gone. The game is telling me I can’t do much of anything until I’m gear score 275 and I’m currently around 250; how do I get a higher gear score when the activities to get that gear are gated off from me?
I’d probably know the answer to that if I hadn’t wandered around in frustration, then shut the game off to get away from it for the evening. I felt giving myself a night to think about what I’d like to do was in order.
My immediate response to seeing all that reset progress? To put the game down for good. With so many amazing games to play out there, why redo what I’d just done? That’s the same basic reason I finally put down Destiny 2: busy work. I LOATHE busy work. I don’t feel like game devs owe more than they promise, but I do feel they should respect a player’s time.
I mean, this is Ubisoft, after all; the master of bloated content. That’s not to say all their games suffer from bloated content, but they often favor excessive amounts of repetitive side content.
URGH! Every time I think about that universally red map I get frustrated all over again. If I’d known I’d have to do everything again, I wouldn’t have bothered to spend so much time clearing those things in the first place.
Maybe I just need a breather to calm and regroup. I’ll give myself a day or so to see how I feel about it.
It just bums me the f*ck out because I’d been having so much fun with the game right up until the end of that cutscene.
JURASSIC BLORF.
I think I’m going to finally start in on Tales From the Borderlands today. I’d always meant to play it and, with the inclusion of the main character in the upcoming Borderlands, I think it’s time.
I don’t often get super salty about games, but I got so peeved last night. The idea that any dev thinks wiping your progress (let alone expecting you to just do it all over again) is a good plan blows my freaking mind.
The good news: there is no shortage of amazing games to play. Not to mention the Borderlands remaster releases today.
Yup. No matter which way I land on The Division 2, I’m good on games to play.
How do you feel about games resetting your progress? If that has happened in any games you’ve played, did you redo the content? Or did you put the game aside in favor of fresh and new experiences?
Categories: games
Rebekah Lang 
I’m down to play it more if you are for sure. If not, I completely understand, there’s plenty to play!
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I definitely want to play more.
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I’ve never liked a game resetting progress either, it’s just a lazy and frustrating way to make a game longer. Even if it’s just a place holder until they have an event of a “new enemy invade” or something to fill it back up and make sense in lore, doesn’t feel like an accomplishment when it’s the same in the end.
I’m going to have to use “JURASSIC BLORF” myself. That’s fun to say.
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I agree; it felt VERY lazy and frustrating to me.
Aww, thank you! I definitely have fun saying it. :)
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As someone who has literally put in *checks playtime in Ubisoft App* 81 hours I know what you mean. I was frustrated at that bit too. At the same time, the game completely changed. All the missions you ran previously have more challenging enemies that put up more of a fight than the factions that you had been fighting previously (Black Tusk).
That being said, allow me to upset you further. If you had taken the time to take over those control points AGAIN, you would look up sometime later and it would be RED YET AGAIN! I had to have capped Red Dragon at least 6-7x post game wondering what the hell had happened and it just kept getting taken over again buy rival factions. I think that they were going for an active warzone kind of feel with that one but I understand the frustration.
I am gear level 456 and am eagerly awaiting raids and Tidal Basin as well as ANY PvE focused content. Outside of that im mostly done with Sekiro and am pushing through that. I will come back for PvE content ONLY and to play those things with friends (I joined a clan with some twitch streamers).
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I do like seeing missions tweaked with different challenges, but hoo boy, I was so frustrated. And goodness! 81 hours is no small chunk of time!!
OH. MAN. No way. I’m honestly so glad you told me that because if that had happened organically to me AGAIN I think I would have been like OH HELL NO.
Holy crap! You are super leveled! And you finished Sekiro?! Damn! Nice job!
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Sorry you had to deal with that. My difficulty in finding satisfying end game content is the main reason why I have a hard time with the current crop of looter shooters.
However, I am pumped to hear your playing TFTB. It’s my favorite Telltale game and the humor is on point. The opening to chapter 4 is one of my favorite bits in gaming. The two main characters dynamic is also some of the best in gaming.
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Honestly, I don’t blame you on that front. Endgame content can be so hard to do right.
I’m so excited to start it, too! And you’ve just made me even more excited, so thank you!
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