Ubisoft’s Tom Clancy’s The Division has broken the record of highest-grossing new video game franchise just five days after its release. With over 1.2 million players and with more than 100 million hours of combined playtime, it comes as no surprise. Raking in a hefty $330 million, the game is Ubisoft’s best-selling title to date, and has the highest player engagement.
What is Tom Clancy’s The Division?
Tom Clancy’s The Division is a multiplayer third-person shooter developed and published by Ubisoft. The setting for the game is mid-crisis in Manhattan, where an outbreak of smallpox occurs — but it’s actually a disease is called “The Green Poison” or “The Dollar Flu,” due to its transmission through banknotes.
This is an open-world game, which allows players to navigate through the city of Manhattan as they wish. They must complete missions, work with, and fight against other players. As they progress through the game, players gain new equipment and weapons to help them survive in more dangerous areas such as The Dark Zone.
Where could this success lead?
The Division is the first new Tom Clancy franchise game since Tom Clancy’s EndWar in 2008. Any Tom Clancy games since then have been an addition to the Ghost Recon, Rainbow Six, or Splinter Cell franchises. The incredible sales show that there is an interest in new ideas in video games, be it an entirely new IP or a new franchise within an existing one.
Between the success of The Division and Destiny (2014), we could start to see developers bringing out new IPs over the coming years. That is not including the likelihood of more multiplayer focused games like The Division.
Ubisoft has in recent years been continuously releasing new titles for existing franchises on a near yearly basis — Assassin’s Creed being a primary example. Perhaps with the success of The Division, Ubisoft will calm down on sequels and begin releasing more new and original titles in the coming years.
What are your thoughts on The Division? Do you think it’s success could lead to new inspiration for developers? Let me know in the comments below.
