The Division Resurgence review – Ubisoft just gave us the slickest mobile shooter of the year

The Division games scratch a very specific itch for me. Ubisoft’s mix of cover-based combat, loot goblin behavior, and a gritty open world is something many other games have tried to copy, but few come close. Bringing such a dense experience to mobile is a notion that I’ve been curious about since the game’s reveal. Could it really work on a device that’s smaller and less powerful than my PS5? Ubisoft proves it can. The Division Resurgence is a seriously impressive achievement.

It sits in a unique spot among free mobile games. Many third-person shooters and FPS games promise a console-like experience, but they rarely deliver. Call of Duty: Warzone Mobile showed this clearly before it shut down, with shared console content and mechanics like Black Ops 6’s omnimovement. Call of Duty: Mobile, while a decent game, still doesn’t have that singular feel the series is known for. With The Division Resurgence, it is impressive not only how well it works on mobile, but also how closely it matches its console versions.

You can play with touch controls or a full mobile controller, and neither option feels like it holds the other back. I know some of you might hesitate at the idea of playing a Ubisoft shooter with touch controls, but they work surprisingly well. The game offers three different control layouts and a wide range of customization options. You can truly tailor the on-screen setup to fit your style. Even with the default settings, I’m constantly surprised that moving between cover and taking down enemies feels so smooth and responsive. If I did not have my Backbone Pro controller with me, I would not mind using touch controls at all.

Playing with a controller is wicked, though. Driving bullets into rival factions never fails to make you feel cool like a big-screen action hero. Want to demolish enemies with just a pistol like John Wick? Or do you prefer sinking in brutal shots from afar? That’s up to you. It still has the familiar quirks that make it a Division game. Most enemies are bullet sponges, and their behavior ranges from competent flankers to outright morons. When it’s the former, firefights in snow-covered New York streets or empty alleyways are steeped in white-knuckle tension.

That is where The Division Resurgence shines, helped by some streamlined mechanics. Like any game in the series, Resurgence can be as detailed as you want. You can collect weapons and stick with whatever has the biggest number, or dig into the stats of your loadout. The game, thankfully, doesn’t punish either approach.

At the same time, the path to turning your agent into a one-person war machine is waiting for you. Instead of heading to a tinkering station or other benches, you start by leveling up your gear as you progress. Your power still depends on better wearable equipment and experimenting with attributes, but your base damage starts with the weapon in your hands. These upgrades have level caps that increase as you improve, and early on, they’re not vapid resource sinks.

If you want to really experiment with your kit and push those damage numbers higher, the familiar crafting vendors are still there. If you’ve played the series before, building up your loadout will feel familiar, especially since it all begins in the New York Base of Operations. Everything is there just as you remember it. And yes, you can finally run through that blue corridor. Alongside your journey of collecting weapons, you’ll be shaping your specializations.

These are your classes, each offering play styles to flip between and see what works best for you. I’m a sucker for using the riot shield and blasting bad guys with a gun, so the Bulwark specialization is perfect for my needs. You might prefer dealing AOE damage, which is where the demolitionist build comes into play. Each specialization has numerous skills within it that you can improve over time.

For newcomers, I think Ubisoft is doing a grand job making The Division approachable, and that applies to soaking up lore, too. The Division Resurgence sees you deployed as a first-wave agent. Before the Dollar Flu outbreak, you’re already enrolled and ready to be activated. Then the moment comes, and New York City descends into chaos.

Running between The Division 1 and 2, your agent’s story explores unseen events, adding new lore to the universe. Things are complicated for you, though. You see, your agent falls into a coma while The Division 1 is happening. When you wake up, New York City is a no-man’s land of gang violence and disorder. Think 28 Days Later, but with flamethrower-toting maniacs instead of zombies.

You’ll likely recognize the likes of the Rikers and Cleaners, but the Freemen are a new faction prepared to make your life hell. Often armed to the teeth with LMGs, drumbarrel shotguns, and bulky armor, the Freemen wouldn’t be out of place in a Mad Max movie. All these foes are out there, but it isn’t just down to you to clean up the streets. In a first for The Division series, Ubisoft is giving us a completely shared, open world, where other players are roaming around, squadding up, and completing missions together. Before, this was only possible in The Division’s PvP Dark Zone areas or Safe Houses.

Now that I’m experiencing The Division embrace MMORPG traits, I can’t really see the series without it. It gives way to those emergent moment-to-moment choices that games like ARC Raiders excel at. I want to meet fellow agents, form alliances, and reap the rewards together. Of course, if you want to see the downfall of other agents, the Dark Zone returns in Resurgence.

The Dark Zone is, putting it lightly, for the uber sweats – and that’s fine. This area of The Division is all about bare-bones survival, looting, and returning to your base in one piece. Before Escape From Tarkov blew up the extraction genre, Dark Zone was available from day one in March 2016.

Like previous iterations, it requires a bit of grinding and decent gear before you even consider testing your mettle. But you don’t need to worry about finding things to do; The Division Resurgence is already exceptionally content-rich. Between weekly bounties and quests, story missions, daily tasks, open-world events, and side missions, it’s easy to find yourself venturing off the beaten path. What I like about this is that Resurgence isn’t concerned with absorbing your time. If you want to hop on for 20 minutes during a train journey or sink hours into it, the game is willing to meet you on your terms.

That also applies to performance. The Division Resurgence runs well on lower and mid-range devices. I play on the Nothing Phone (4a) Pro, and while it’s not as powerful as the REDMAGIC 11 Air or the iPhone 17 Pro, it still performs well. I can play on medium settings at a steady 45 FPS. You can choose between Vulkan and OpenGL shaders. Vulkan usually suits less powerful hardware, but I prefer OpenGL because it gives me more control over the graphics on my device.

FOMO is a big issue with live-service games, and at launch, Resurgence is doing its best to stave off that feeling. Whether that persists with forthcoming updates, we’ll have to wait and see. On that subject, I do think the microtransactions are still as egregious as The Division’s console cousins. There are heaps of boring, generic clothing available to purchase with real-life money. I get it, Resurgence is part of the free-to-play machine. But if I’m going to part ways with my money, I want it to be worthwhile. I’ve always felt that the customization in these games is lacking, and that sadly persists here.

Crafting a character is nowhere near as detailed as building a loadout. I’d hoped that it wouldn’t be the same here. Ubisoft could do with taking some notes out of The Finals’ book when it comes to giving players proper control over their aesthetic. I’m not asking for unrealistic outfits, but I’d appreciate a little more freedom to shape my agent.

Despite this, it’s clear to me that The Division Resurgence is shooting for success right out of the gate. It’s polished, packed full of content, and launches a new era for the series by offering its first fully shared open world. Combat is just as satisfying as ever, and building your agent is going to please those of you doing the math on your damage numbers. This isn’t a compromise. The Division Resurgence is the real deal, standing tall as the slickest mobile shooter this year so far.