Tom Clancy’s The Division is one of the most unique video game franchises to bear the legendary author’s name, putting players in the shoes of highly skilled sleeper agents fighting to restore order in a post-apocalyptic New York and Washington DC. One of the franchise’s greatest strengths, besides its solid take on third-person shooting, is how it faithfully recreates these urban environments, immersing the player in the rich cultures of these famous cities and how they are warped by the juxtaposition of civilian life, post-apocalyptic survival, and organized military action. While The Division focuses pretty exclusively on America following a pandemic released in New York, pandemics rarely respect borders, and there are plenty of cities outside of America that would be amazing for players to explore through The Division’s unique post-apocalyptic lens.
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5. Tokyo
One of the largest and most famous cities on Earth, Japan’s capital of Tokyo has a distinct culture you won’t find anywhere else. This dense urban environment is full of neon lights, cutting-edge technology, and ancient shrines, temples, and castles. This megalopolis, housing about 14 million in the main city alone, would feel shockingly empty in the post-pandemic world of The Division.
The uniquely themed gangs of post-apocalyptic raiders and rebels you find in The Division are without a doubt one of the best parts of the franchise’s worldbuilding, and setting a game in Tokyo would only make these enemies even more flashy and unique. Players could find themselves up against raiders inspired by the Yakuza, the motorcycle-bound Bลsลzoku, or even crazed survivors wearing salvaged mascot costumes straight out of Shibuya. The possibilities in this setting are endless.
4. Prague
Though fans are still waiting on a The Division movie, choosing to set a game in Prague could be just as much of a cinematic experience.
The capital of the Czech Republic, Prague might be smaller than some of the other cities on this list, but it makes up for it with its stunning sights and unique culture. Covered in Gothic architecture, medieval ruins, and Soviet-era buildings, fighting through the historical streets of Prague with modern weaponry would be nothing less than a visual masterpiece, something that Deus Ex: Mankind Divided showed us years ago.
3. Venice
Like Prague, Venice is full of romantic historical architecture that would serve as an absolutely stunning backdrop for an intense firefight. However, rather than medieval castles and gothic churches, Venice is home to beautiful Renaissance stonework and the colors of the Mediterranean that define the Italian coast. More importantly, the city famously rests on a lagoon, supported by a series of wooden pillars that essentially create a city on the water.
In the abandoned world portrayed in The Division, all of that beautiful Venetian architecture would have more than likely begun to sink back into the water below. Players could find themselves engaging in an intense campaign as Marines fighting through the submerged city against the pirates who made it their home. A game set here could even introduce boats and naval combat to the series, allowing players to navigate the canals of Venice in a highly militarized speedboat.
2. Hong Kong
Like Tokyo, Hong Kong would give The Division players the experience of exploring a dense urban city left abandoned and ravaged by the pandemic. Streets once filled with people would be left all but silent, if not for the distant sounds of gunfire.
However, Hong Kong’s unique, incredibly packed urban environment would provide a unique sense of verticality for players to explore. Rather than fighting through streets and alleyways, you could find yourself fighting your way up through skyscrapers and cramped apartment buildings. Tense firefights could take place in stairwells and across rooftops, and the city’s already high-tech feel, further amplified by the near-future setting of The Division, could give everything a tense sci-fi edge.
1. Cairo
Sending The Division to Cairo just makes sense. One of the oldest cities on Earth, this iconic setting, like others on this list, combines a dense urban and modern environment with monuments and ruins from antiquity. Set in the heart of Egypt, Cairo has a distinct culture that can’t be found anywhere else in the world. Many people who haven’t been to the city don’t realize that the legendary pyramids are less than nine miles from Cairo’s downtown area.
In the franchise’s dark future, we could witness a Cairo left forgotten and unmaintained against the ravages of time. Just like how we see New York and DC, overrun with vegetation, the tight alleys of Cairo could be left half-buried by sandstorms or flooded by the Nile. Enemies or allies could take on the aesthetic of Egypt’s old gods and mortuary cults, or use the weapons left behind by real-world conflicts that recently happened in the region. Or both.
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