A tiny Ubisoft team fought to give The Division 2 a second life. Just five employees pushed through obstacles to create something “bigger and longer lasting” – and their effort has breathed new energy into the game.

Fans of The Division 2 have reason to celebrate: Ubisoft has surprised players by announcing several new features, including an extreme survival extraction mode titled The Division 2: Survivors. The community praised the Assassin’s Creed creators for breathing life back into the game, but it turns out all of this was made possible by just a handful of developers.

Indeed, only five people were behind the most recent developments in The Division 2. One of them, artist Palle Hoffstein, revealed on X (via MP1st) how the process unfolded. “When a few of us formed a small team to revive TD2, we had no interest in adding just a year or two before abandoning it again. Our goal was to design something bigger and more durable. It’s been fun to see it come together, but there’s still so much we want to do.”

Their journey wasn’t without its struggles, as the group had to disrupt Ubisoft’s carefully laid plans to make their vision a reality. “I thought the biggest challenge would be putting a team together, and it was. Studios plan teams years ahead to keep everyone busy. We created a problem by being a team that needed positions filled that didn’t exist on anyone’s spreadsheet. We weren’t supposed to exist.”

Fortunately, the project grew and Ubisoft was eventually able to assign more developers to revive The Division 2. Still, everything started thanks to that tiny group of employees: “I’ve been part of two major shifts with Rainbow Six Siege and The Division 2. Both were incredible experiences. But when we rebooted The Division 2, there were only five of us. Five! What were we thinking? Oh well, it was fun.”

What’s Coming Next for The Division 2

Regardless, The Division 2 is about to receive features that will thrill fans. Beyond the new Survivors mode, Ubisoft has also announced a fresh season titled The Pact, launching September 9. This update will bring with it an open-world activity called Retaliation, which expands Control Points, opens new progression avenues, and makes unique loot easier to obtain. Best of all, this activity will remain in the game permanently, rather than being tied to a seasonal cycle.

Source: 3djuegos