The Division 2: Recreating Washington D.C. – What’s Good Games
In this special episode* of What’s Good Games, Andrea and Britt sit down with members of Ubisoft’s Massive Entertainment to discuss the world building of Tom Clancy’s The Division 2. They traveled to Washington D.C. to visit real-world locations like the U.S. Capitol Building, The National Archives, and the Lincoln Memorial to see the inspiration for the new setting of the upcoming sequel. They spoke with IP Researcher Cloé Hammoud, Creative Director Julian Gerighty, and a Lead Environmental Artist Chad Chatterton. They discussed how the team researched Washington D.C. and translated it into what you’ll experience in the game. The Division 2 releases on March 15th for PS4, Xbox One, and PC.
*Ubisoft provided travel and accommodations for the recording of this episode.
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0:46 Welcome
1:00 Interview with Cloé Hammoud – IP Researcher, Massive Entertainment
1:16 – What does an IP Researcher do?
2:15 – How do you blend Tom Clancy’s IP with creative input from Massive?
5:20 – Learning about the fragility of Washington D.C.
7:50 – Recreating real-world locations in The Division 2
9:00 – Why the commitment to realism?
11:11 – Interview with Julian Gerighty – Creative Director, Massive Entertainment
12:20 – Recreating and destroying D.C.
14:00 – The challenge of “looter shooter” narratives
14:50 – Drawing the line between realism and fantasy
17:55 – The feeling of power in Washington
20:35 – What does “hundreds of content” mean for The Division 2?
22:12 – Games as a service: what have you learned from other developers?
27:50 – Interview with Chad Chatterton – Lead Environmental Artist, Massive Entertainment
28:30 – What role do environmental artist play in coordination with other developers?
30:00 – Juggling art and environment in a game engine
31:40 – How do you pick which details are important in an environment and which aren’t?
33:35 – What creative challenges did you run into trying to recreate D.C.?
36:00 – Using research to build a believable world
38:20 – Which area are you excited for players to see?
