The Division: Heartland’s first trailer gives little away about the free-to-player shooter

Before announcing a bazillion Assassin’s Creed games during tonight’s Ubisoft Forward stream, the publisher did first show a handful of other games. Among them was a first look at The Division: Heartland, a free-to-play spin-off from the Clancyverse shooter, which was described as an “action survival shooter.” You can watch it below.

While The Division 1 and 2 were set in New York and Washington DC, Heartland shifts the action to a small, fictional town called Silver Creek in “heartland” America. The trailer above shows that small town alongside the fields that surround it.

There’s mention of needing to defend the town from various facts, a glimpse of a character possibly evacuating via helicopter, and some hiding behind low cover. It’s hard to glean much else from the video, even with the developer narration over the top. I can’t tell whether the shooting feels the same as in the other games, or exactly what form the “survival” elements will take.

There’s arguably more information in the leak earlier this week, which mentioned a 45-player PvEvP mode called Storm Operations, and a PvE “Excursion Operations” mode in which players will scrounge for gear. The game will also reportedly feature six agents and three classes, each with their own perks and skills. All of this remains unconfirmed, however.

There’s no release date for The Division: Heartland yet, but if you’re interested you can register now to take part in a future closed beta test. I found very little to get excited about in the trailer – even as someone who enjoyed previous The Division games.