It has already been a big week for The Division 2 fans, as The Division 2 Title Update 3 has just brought numerous changes to the game, and the announcement of the raid release date has given players something exciting to look forward to indeed. However, a new detail has recently surfaced about the Operation Dark Hours raid, which has spawned a debate within the community and left some players feeling dissatisfied.
This detail pertains specifically to The Division 2 raid matchmaking, and it is that the game's standard matchmaking system will not be available to those that are looking to complete the Operation Dark Hours raid. This has been confirmed by Ubisoft employee Alexandre Guenounou, who has stated, on Twitter, that players will need to use their clan lists, friends lists, and manual invitation to fill out their squads for the raid.
For the uninitiated, The Division 2 matchmaking system allows players to be automatically grouped with others in order to complete tasks of shared interest. To this point, fans have been able to use this system to easily find groups for much of the game's content, and many players expected The Division 2 raid matchmaking to allow them to do the same for Operation Dark Hours.
As such, the fact that The Division 2 Operation Dark Hours matchmaking will not be available is causing some fans to voice concerns. These players, who may not have clans or an extensive in-game friends lists, feel as though the absence of The Division 2 raid matchmaking will not allow them to play the game as they have been since release, thus preventing them from experiencing the latest endgame content.
On the other side of the debate are those that suggest that Operation Dark Hours will be too difficult for groups formed through The Division 2 matchmaking system to complete, and allowing players to group in this way will only lead to frustration and complaining. These players further indicate that those that are concerned about the lack of The Division 2 raid matchmaking can still use outside tools to find squad members.
The counterargument here is that The Division 2 does not have a companion app, like Destiny 2 has, to streamline this approach to group finding. Indeed, the straightforward The Division 2 matchmaking system is, in part, why some players have chosen to play the title, and these fans feel as though they should be able to decide for themselves if they want to attempt Operation Dark Hours with a random group.
All of this said, there is indication that further explanation on The Division 2 raid matchmaking will be coming from the developers. This may mean that there will be a change to what is currently known about matchmaking for Operation Dark Hours, but players should expect there to be no such system in place when The Division 2 raid release date arrives later this week.
The Division 2 is available now on PC, PS4, and Xbox One.