It’s that time of the week again, dear readers. On the heels of Sony listing the latest offers cramming up PlayStation Store this week, our new episode of PSN Store Weekly Deals Top Picks selects two from the bunch.
A Ubisoft franchise sale places Assassin’s Creed in the limelight on this occasion, though there’s also a handful of discounts available to those who pre-order certain games. Alienation, for instance, gets our tip of the hat.
For a title-by-title breakdown, you can head on over to PlayStation Store. Keep in mind, though, all of these promotions will be valid up until Tuesday, March 15 at approximately 10am PT/1pm ET.
If you have any questions or queries about our sale highlight, or indeed if you have any suggestions for the show, drop us a line: [email protected].
PlayStation LifeStyle’s YouTube channel is your hub for all things PlayStation, featuring the latest game trailers and more original content than you can shake a DualShock 4 at. We’ll be back same time next week for another Sale Highlight!
Essential Reading:
- Top 5 Hitman Assassinations
- No Man’s Sky Hands-On and Talk With Sean Murray
- Assault Android Cactus Review – Not a Spiny Desert Plant (PS4)
The Division Everything You Need to Know
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The Division - Everything You Need to Know
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Year One DLC Plans and Loot Trading
Offering further details on their post-launch plans for The Division, Ubisoft announced that free updates in April and May will add new incursions, new features to the Dark Zone, loot trading, and more:
Incursions (April 2016)
- The first free update will introduce the first incursion, a new challenging end-game activity developed specifically for squad play. Teams will be able to test their skills as they face seemingly unstoppable enemies to gain high-level weapons and equipment. This update will also add one of the community’s most-wanted feature, loot trading; allowing players in the same group to trade loot collected during a co-op game session.
Conflict (May 2016)
- The second free update will add new features to the Dark Zone and add a new incursion in the iconic Columbus Circle.
More details about the expansion pack can be seen here.
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We Played It at E3 and Here's What We Thought Then
Did the game improve compared to last year's E3 build? Check out our hands-on preview to find out.
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Here's What to Expect in the Dark Zone and Going
If you weren't able to partake in the beta, The Division will have a "Dark Zone" in the game where players can be bullies or help out others. Exec Producer Fred Rundqvist explains it as:
You can play on your own, absolutely, or as part of a team. If you want to play alongside others, you can hook up with people inside the game world and form a group, or go through matchmaking and start as part of a team. If you’re playing solo you won’t get totally overwhelmed — enemies scale to give a challenge to just one person or to a larger team.
Check out his full explanation of the Dark Zone here.
In related news, Senior Game Designer Matthieu Delisle explains going "rogue" status in the Dark Zone and PvP:
When you turn Rogue, you get a bounty on your head and all the players can see it. The more you kill, the bigger the bounty. You climb the levels of Rogue by killing other players. If you are a level one Rogue, you’re Rogue for two minutes. But if you kill more players, you’re Rogue for a longer period of time. Every time you kill a player you refresh that counter and it increases up to five minutes. If you manage to survive your Rogue status – which is pretty difficult because all the players want to kill you and can see you on the map – then you receive your own bounty. So you can progress in the Dark Zone by being a Rogue, but it’s pretty risky and difficult.
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You'll Be Able to Create Four Characters
Ubisoft has revealed that players will be able to have up to four characters on a single account in Tom Clancy’s The Division. All we have to do is pick who we want from the Start menu. As to why you should consider that and the other advantages to having multiplayer characters, Associate Lead UI Artist Lars Vincent explains it in this video.
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Player to Player Trading Won't Be Available on Day One
Player-to-player trading won't be possible once The Division launches, but it's been confirmed to be available very, very soon after launch.
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Don't Expect Day One Reviews and Here's Why
While PlayStation LifeStyle will do its best to have a review up of The Division on the site as soon as possible, don't expect it on day one. Reason being is that Ubisoft is giving out review code on the day the game is out, so reviewers will be able to play the same game the gaming public plays.
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Check Out This
Want to know how fast civilization can crumble when faced with an apocalyptic epidemic? Check out how fast your city will deteriorate with Ubisoft's "Collapse" simulator.
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Ubisoft Says the Game Won't Have Micro-Transactions
No micro-transactions and no to p2w. But why are players still nervous? Read on to find out.
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Don't Expect Split-Screen Multiplayer
Nope. The Division won't be like yesteryear's games where you can co-op with buddy on the couch.
Check out what Creative Director Magnus Jansén had to say and why they omitted it.
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Expect DLC to Be Exclusive to Xbox for a Month
Unfortunately, The Division is one of those games with timed exclusivity agreements in place when it comes to post-release content. So expect DLC for The Division to appear on PS4 after 30 days from its Xbox One availability.
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Ubisoft Released a Bunch of The Division
Learn the ropes by watching Ubisoft's video guides on UI customization, map matchmaking, the consumable wheel, and Dark Zone currency. 1
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Season Pass Content Includes Three Major Expansions
The three expansions will arrive over the course of the year and add new content, gear, and gameplay.
Expansion I will be called "Underground," expansion 2 named "Survival, and expansion 3 is to be titled "Last Stand." More details can be found here.
There's also free content launching in Year One, including the ability for players to trade loot with party members.
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Details on Level Cap, Micro-Transactions, Skills, Customization and More
Answering the most popular questions on the official Ubisoft blog, new details on loot, experience, skills, talents, and customization were given.
The skill system is what defines an agent's role. Here's a load of info on character progression, the experience system, and skills.
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Lag sucks, So The Division Will Prioritize Ping and Connection
Creative Director Magnus Jansen wants players to "notice matchmaking as little as possible." Therefore, Ubisoft Massive has dropped demographic matchmaking for a smoother experience.
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Customize, Upgrade, and Specialize Your Agent With the Skill Tree
Ubisoft put together a thorough video walkthrough of the skill tree system implemented in The Division. Included is an example of how skills can be combined, so be sure to give it a watch.
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Find Out Why the Game is Set in a Mid-Crisis Manhattan
Ubisoft claims that in-game Manhattan will be "a 1 to 1 scale recreation," and "more than enough to sink your teeth into."
For those wanting to take a closer look at the The Division's render of Midtown Manhattan, check out this interactive map.
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It's Making the Most Out of Each Gaming Platform
Rather than aiming for parity across all systems that The Division is releasing on, Ubisoft Massive is instead trying to get the most out of each platform, with some versions possessing features that the others do not.
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The Beta Was a Massive Success
With 6.4 million people taking part in The Division open beta on PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and PC, a new record was set.
A list of other stats from the beta were also provided by (an ecstatic) Ubisoft Massive.
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Read Our Impressions of the Beta
"The Division is coming along at a time when it feels like it will steal many of what used to be Destiny’s audience. It has the same kind of appeal, taking a typical console game genre and building it into an MMORPG..."
Read our full preview here.
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Top 5 Tweaks We Want to See Based on the Beta
After a busy weekend playing as much of the beta as possible, we put together a Top 5 video listing the changes we wanted to see implemented before launch.
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Ubisoft Massive Q&A Provided Info on Changes Since Beta and Missing Features
Game Director Petter Mannerfelt opened up an IGN Q&A saying, “Player feedback is important to us. Based on the closed and open beta feedback, we did, for example, make some adjustments in the Dark Zone.”
He then went on to give details on the bigger changes made since the open beta, and features that are missing.
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It Debuted Our Trailer Parody Series
Sometimes we do silly things, and this trailer parody is one of them. Click to watch us light-heartedly poke fun at The Division and the controversies that have surrounded it since its reveal.
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There's a 10-Minute Live-Action Short Film
Ubisoft partnered up with Amazon and YouTubers to put together a pretty damn epic live-action short film entitled "Agent Origins: Escape." Watch it!
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It Inspired Our Top 5 Post-Apocalyptic Games Video
Get in the mood for mass death and destruction as we count down the Top 5 Post-Apocalyptic Games.
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Ubisoft Prepares You for Launch
Over on the official The Division site, Ubisoft has rounded up some of the launch info that people might want to know.
We've plucked the info on what we think are the most important stuff which you can below.
Client Size: From 26.9GB to 34.4GB depending on your platform and region.
When the Servers Go Live:
Retail:
- Xbox One and PlayStation®4 will be available as soon as the servers open on Tuesday, March 8, 00:01AM Australian Eastern Daylight Time (AEDT) (March 7 at 2 pm CET/8 am EST/5 am PST)
- PC will be available worldwide on March 8 at 6 am CET/12 am EST/March 7, 9 pm PST
Digital:
- Xbox One will be available on March 8 at 00:01 am in each country's local time (00:01 am EST for USA and Canada).
- PlayStation®4 will be available on March 8 starting from 00:01 am in each country’s local time (00:01 EST for USA and Canada).
- PC will be available worldwide on March 8 at 6 am CET / 12 am EST / March 7, 9 pm PST.
Also of note, Ubisoft will host a live-stream of the game over on the game's official Twitch channel.
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The Collector's Edition Costs $160
Yeah, it's pricey but might be worth it. The Collector’s Edition, that’s priced at $159.99 USD and includes the game, Season Pass, real agent watch, poster, artbook, and armband.
