The Division is having a free weekend
Free death in the snow
Happy news for fans of bullets and snow. Shooty third-person not-quite-MMO The Division [official site] is free this weekend, which is probably enough time to murder everyone in New York. As usual with these things, progress will carry over if you choose to buy it afterwards. But you can always just take in the atmosphere for the weekend and never return. It’s quite to nice plod around Hell’s Kitchen in the fog, watching dogs poop (see above) and listening to angry people shout at you from the windows.
There already is a free trial thingy for The Division, but that normally only lets you play until you hit level 8 or until you’ve shot at angry bikers and union men for a total of 6 hours. This free trial will be “on hiatus” during the free weekend, says Ubisoft.
If you are freeloading in earnest over the weekend, you’ll also have to level up a bit to get to the best part of the multiplayer, the Dark Zone. That’s where you can die to a group of ambushing fellow players who want all your things. Excellent.
We quite liked the Division, even though it’s total junk food of a game, and it has seen a lot added since release. The Underground expansion added a randomised “dungeon” generator set in the subways and tunnels beneath the city. And the Survival expansion added a great new mode that is tough as hell but hugely satisfying. So far Ubi are planning two updates in “the coming months” as part of the game’s second year of shtuff.
Anyway, you can get the free weekend on Uplay. It starts tomorrow from 5pm UTC and lasts until Sunday at 8pm UTC. The game is still normally about £40, so it’s a good chance to take a pop.