The Tom Clancy's The Division franchise has surpassed 50 million players across its games. Massive Entertainment announced the milestone as the series celebrates ten years since the release of its first installment.
The original The Division launched in 2016, three years after its impressive reveal at E3 2013. At the time, the game was considered one of the titles showcasing the capabilities of a new console generation. Three years later, The Division 2 followed, although Ubisoft later acknowledged that its sales had fallen short of expectations.
Since then, the franchise has received several spin-off projects and additional expansions. Massive Entertainment also announced new content for The Division 2 at Gamescom earlier this year.
The Echoes of Central Park expansion launches on November 3, introducing a horror-themed flashback campaign, increased storage capacity, the ability to raise character levels and additional content. The update aims to attract both returning players and newcomers to the franchise.
However, Ubisoft and Massive are far from finished with the series. Tom Clancy's The Division 3 is officially in production, with the studio actively working on the next installment.
Development was originally led by executive producer Julian Gerighty, who also worked on The Division 2 and Star Wars Outlaws. However, Gerighty recently left Ubisoft to join DICE, the studio behind the Battlefield franchise.
Shortly before his departure, Gerighty described The Division 3 as an extremely ambitious project. "The Division 3 is in production. It's no secret, it has been announced. It's shaping up to be a monster," he said.
He also explained that the team at Massive is working intensively on the game, which he believes has the potential to make an impact comparable to that of the original The Division.
Following Gerighty's departure, Mathias Karlson, who previously served as game director on The Division 2, took over leadership of the project. Massive subsequently reassured fans that the direction of development remains unchanged.
"Don't worry, Agents. Our teams, who built this world alongside Julian, are still here and moving forward with the same ambitious and unwavering commitment to the future," the studio stated.
A release date for The Division 3 has not yet been announced. However, Ubisoft considers the franchise one of its priorities, with Massive expected to focus on the continued development of The Division series and its proprietary Snowdrop engine.
