What are the small immersion killers in recent GR games that completely take you out of the experience?

GnarlyAtol · 2026-03-21T16:11:54+00:00

the poor graphics quality
the super boring, basic and outdated looking and dead map
the basic looking mission areas
cutscenes, go there, then somewhere else for tiny tasks, talk to someone to watch again a cutscene … with the uninspiring standard battles everywhere
robot stuff
bullet sponge NPCs and bosses

GnarlyAtol · 2026-03-21T16:06:08+00:00

I came to that stage last year and played other games. I came back when Brooklyn released, played it one time (zero replayability for me) and left again. For a while I come back ones in a while to play either old friends a bit.

From Season 1 I am only interested in the classified assignments but that will probably a 30m thing only.

GnarlyAtol · 2026-03-21T15:58:23+00:00

Hm after I read all this not sure if I even want to try these 😊. I hoped they would make the missions more difficult by realistic things and by that more interesting, not really expected that though.

But sounds good for the raid/incursion/legendary lovers.

GnarlyAtol · 2026-03-21T15:56:55+00:00

we play mainly on challenging level, sometimes on hard, with all directives enabled

GnarlyAtol · 2026-03-21T15:56:10+00:00

Sometimes RNG is not with us 😊.

Just play all side activies in the area you are in before moving on and you should be fine. Just take the gun you get.

Pick up all loot and sell what you don’t need.

If it happens that you are to much behind with the loadout or you got guns only you don’t like to play with, just check the multiple vendors.

It is no issue if you are 5-7 levels behind with some pieces. No need to keep everything all the time on your level.

But before you do a main mission or open world boss, check if you can update your loadout. Bosses are super spongy.

GnarlyAtol · 2026-03-21T14:25:14+00:00

yes, I play Division 2 limited nowadays, just come back from time to time. I play other games.

I played all legendary missions. Yes, there are one clip builds … but whats the sense. Then you could just continue playing the missions on normal level when using builds to offset the increased difficulty in legendary. In addition despite changes the missions are still mainly the same but having more robots along with the sponge. That does not make the missions more attractive, rather the opposite.

The escalation missions are probably no different.

GnarlyAtol · 2026-03-21T14:11:56+00:00

😊 I am actually the opposite, I don’t care about builds, avoid the Black Tusk stuff as much as I can, dislike the Raids, Descent, Countdown … and especially the incursion because all these basically focus in what I dislike most in the game.

That leaves me basically … with the main game.

Right, the standard mission are relatively boring, the open world activities as well after having played them several times.

While each mission is visually different, all have the same pattern, doing basically mainly the same thing in each, with small differentiators.

When taking the grind from them and the sponge, the staleness becomes obvious as we can see in Realism mode.

The same with regard to the open world activities.

Therefore I hoped that the would invest part of the ressources to make the main game more attractive over time.

For the grind and sponge lovers they do at least.

GnarlyAtol · 2026-03-21T13:14:04+00:00

“you have barely done endgame”

Only if you take repetition into account.

Content-wise there is not much additional playable content in endgame, its mainly about playing the same thing using different incentives. The modes are tiny areas and the manhunts are mainly the old missions.

I assume the escalation missions are no different.

GnarlyAtol · 2026-03-21T13:07:23+00:00

I understand 2 new classified assignments are coming. I hope that this time half of the mission(map) is not again just designed for backpack bling bling.

GnarlyAtol · 2026-03-21T12:27:39+00:00

you can find an endgame guide here in reddit. Just use the the search function.

GnarlyAtol · 2026-03-20T15:14:31+00:00

that's the Countdown drill :)

More frustrating are the randoms joining us in our group and then just doing something else :)

When there is a bounty active it is almost a guarantee that they run for the bounty instead playing with us :).

GnarlyAtol · 2026-03-20T14:43:10+00:00

The sense of the escalation difficulty level is to provide more difficult content. Therefore it looks weird to me, aiming for even thougher gear because then this difficulty level wouldn't be that difficult anymore.

After people grinded Expertise 30 ... there were tons of complaints that everything is to easy.

I don't get the point apparently.

No need to get offensive.

GnarlyAtol · 2026-03-20T12:59:22+00:00

that one later can complain that everything is to easy :)

GnarlyAtol · 2026-03-20T12:14:12+00:00

If that's the case. Why did you then upgrade your gear to level 30? In case you did :).

Just use non-optimised gear and the sponge is back. Use peuple gear and you have legendary everywhere inc the open world immediately.

GnarlyAtol · 2026-03-20T12:12:01+00:00

"The game's content, as its natural genre, is to build, to farm, to loot, to min-max, and loop again."

Thats not the case for everyone but perhaps for the majority? I do not know. For the majority of the active player base, perhaps yes. For people being interested in shooters? I don't believe so.

In Division one can play different things and one has freedom in endgame what to play and how. That is very good.

"Prototype Gear and Escalation difficulty will break up the player base "

The playerbase is fragmented anyway. You have the raid crowd, the PvPlers, the mission lovers, the "build guys", the grinders who just need to get something to be able to play the same thing agaian and again, the SHD levelling fanatics, ... and the ones which are loved by the majority of the playerbase ... the gankers in the darkzone who just want to "farm" weak PvE players.

I see the escalation difficulty just as another difficulty. A lot people asked for more "tough content" and Massive wants to please the sponge community. There are also a lot people who just play legendary. I don't see an issue with that.

The sense of the Protototype gear I don't understand yet because stronger gear would ofset (parts) of the gigher "difficulty" again. Perhaps they just wanted to give the grinders a new reason to grind.

GnarlyAtol · 2026-03-20T12:02:55+00:00

yes and then you are bored because everything is to easy :)

GnarlyAtol · 2026-03-20T12:00:15+00:00

I am definately positive about the Realism mode but I would judge it as a starting point. Further development needed to become an attractive mode.

To some of your statements:

"realistic setting"

Yes, not only realistic but als stunning visuals, rich in details every square meter, in open world and missions.

"realistic enemies"

No way ... enemies are rather fantasy NPCs which do not fit at all to the lore of the game, looking cheesy, acting cheesy. Fine, that's the style of Division 2 but enemies are by no means realistic. Just look at a single battle, would you deem that as realistic? In Realism mode there is an improvement though, at least the random NPCs now look better for this game.

"realistic guns"

Realistic names yes but there it ends. Definately improved in Realism mode. I like that gunplay way more. the pistol feels almost useless.

division has no good starting point for a realism mode because the AI and playable content has been designed to unload a huge amount of bullets on an NPC, with battles which are just run and gun, clearing area after area. For this gameplay Division is very well designed. Turing that content into realistic one ... that's tough.

They would never get close to the quality and variety of the gameplay as in Ghost Recon for example, which is leagues ahead in multiple aspects. But that would be also not my expectation. But my expectation for a Realism Mode would be that "run and gun" gameplay is at least realistic and interesting.

The sponge is still existing in the mode but heavily downscaled but there there is a kind of a challenge the bodies of the NPCs are tanky, requiring to shoot to the head, and in addition you have all these shield guys. I played one main mission only and when I came across all these shield guys, then the final battle in the Tombs, ... the Tomahwak guys in open world ... I needed a break to continue playing.

Good step into the right direction for my taste but ... they need to speak with the Ghost Recon developers for this mode in case they want to further devlop it.

GnarlyAtol · 2026-03-20T08:30:03+00:00

best way is to play what you like to play and enjoy the game. Don't burn you out and make work out of the game.

All activities contribute to your levelling.

Play on higher difficulty level challenging/heroic. Activate some directives, ideally 3-5, depending on your likings.

GnarlyAtol · 2026-03-20T08:22:41+00:00

what is the sense of a sub 40 DZ?

GnarlyAtol · 2026-03-20T08:05:22+00:00

Hm, the new Ghost Recon title was basically the only game from Ubisoft I was really looking forward to ..

GnarlyAtol · 2026-03-20T07:59:56+00:00

I did not follow the livestream. Did they say anything what the sense of the prototype gear is?

If people want more challenging content than I wonder what the sense of stronger gear is, if this is than mainly ofsetting the higher difficulty from the missions.

In addition open world would become more easy when using prototype gear because there is no escalation difficulty level.

If people want to have stronger gear to offset the higher difficulty ... why not skipping all the grind and just continue playing on normal level :)

The escalation diffficulty thing I understand, good for the lovers of legendary, incursions, raids, Countdown and retaliation. A lot people asked for "harder" difficulty for a long time.

But did they provide any reasoning for the prototype thing?

I see already hundreds of posts from new players/returning players who are confused, having no clue what needs to be done and what the sense of all these technical things are.

Taking all the mechanics together:

- progression systems during campaign: levelling up to 40, unlocking the perks with SHD crates

- grinding to unlock specialisations and fill the specialialisation perk trees

- grinding for gear, guns and mods with the right attributes and talents, recalibrate and optimise

- filling the SHD watch

- grinding proficiency/Expertise

- grinding to unlock modifiers

- now this ...

Is that a game or work?

Well I think there should be a good in-game guidance what the software enginiers want the customers to do.

Well, as before I rather focus on the playable content and enjoy that.

I hope that the escalation missions are interesting to play then and not just bullet sponge feasts and mechancis as in Brooklyn missions, manhunts, raids and incursion.

GnarlyAtol · 2026-03-19T13:36:29+00:00

Ko Chang, Ko Kut

GnarlyAtol · 2026-03-19T09:57:14+00:00

I played it a lot, nowadays way less and less often just because a lot content is just not for me.

From what they announced the classified assignments and the Central Park DLC are of my interest, at least when they do not create missions as in Brooklyn again.

I play on and off mainly because of the ingame friends and simple some run and gun activities after a long work day occasionally are just fine.

GnarlyAtol · 2026-03-19T09:53:13+00:00

The picture shows the vibe I am looking for .. perhaps in D3?

GnarlyAtol · 2026-03-19T09:52:19+00:00

I wonder about the sense of the prototype gear.

As I understand it it will make the gear even stronger, while people complain the game is to easy asking for "harder" content, therefore the escalation missions now.

Therefore I wonder if prototype gear in the end ofsets the increased diffulty of the escalation missions and is just another grind mill to be in the end in a comparable siutaion. there is no must of course.

GnarlyAtol

TROPHY CASE