Ubisoft delays the next two Division expansions to focus on fixing the game

Ubisoft has decided to delay the next two expansions to The Division so that it can instead “focus entirely on bug fixing, game balancing and other improvements” to the core game. That means the Survival expansion that was supposed to be released alongside the 1.4 update will instead come out later this year, while Last Stand, which was originally slated for a late 2016 launch, won't be out until early next year.

The focus for the 1.4 update “and beyond” will be on fixing bugs, “making loot drops more relevant to the player,” adjusting enemy difficulty and kill times, balancing gear, weapons, the Dark Zone, and PvP, improving the “solo player experience,” and making “quality of life additions” based on player feedback, like setting weapon skins to no longer take up inventory space.

“This new schedule will not only enable us to strengthen the core experience before adding new content, but also continuously improve it by allowing for more production time to ensure the quality of future updates as well,” Ubisoft wrote. “This ongoing effort will begin with Update 1.4 where we will address some of the most pressing issues, such as bugs, loot and time to kill and set the foundations for future improvements such as PvP and Dark Zone. We will make sure to keep you informed of our progress in our weekly State of the Game, and share the complete overview of the changes to come in Update 1.4 in a Special Report livestream on September 13th.”

The Division's previous expansion, Underground, went live in June side-by-side with the 1.3 update, and the process did not go especially smoothly. In light of that, and the “lingering issues” that Ubisoft acknowledged have been piling up since release, putting off the expansions to work exclusively on patches is probably a smart move. The Division 1.4 update is expected to be ready for release sometime in October.

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Andy has been gaming on PCs from the very beginning, starting as a youngster with text adventures and primitive action games on a cassette-based TRS80. From there he graduated to the glory days of Sierra Online adventures and Microprose sims, ran a local BBS, learned how to build PCs, and developed a longstanding love of RPGs, immersive sims, and shooters. He began writing videogame news in 2007 for The Escapist and somehow managed to avoid getting fired until 2014, when he joined the storied ranks of PC Gamer. He covers all aspects of the industry, from new game announcements and patch notes to legal disputes, Twitch beefs, esports, and Henry Cavill. Lots of Henry Cavill.