Jack Dinom
This week, Ubisoft showcased its highly anticipated free-to-play shooter, The Division Heartland, which has been in development since at least 2021. As you’re aware, the title underwent numerous iterations before finally becoming another analogue of Escape from Tarkov.
According to former Ubisoft developer Ryan Smith, The Division Heartland initially started as a battle royale mode for The Division 2. Eventually, they made the decision to create a standalone game with a slightly different genre.
I was fortunate to be part of a skilled team that embarked on this project in 2019. It was initially intended to be a battle royale game for The Division 2, designed with a focus on safety. We had a solid plan and everything was going smoothly, but Ubisoft and Red Storm had their own ideas and things took a drastic turn. It’s unfortunate that the game will never be released.
After The Division Heartland got canceled, it was revealed that the talented employees from Red Storm Entertainment would be seamlessly transitioned to XDefiant and other exciting projects within the Rainbow Six franchise.