Tom Clancy’s The Division is the latest new series in the Clancyverse, the fictional backdrop for countless novels, movies, TV shows, and video games either directly written, or inspired by the works of the late Tom Clancy.
Since the Clancy games have so much in common, it can be confusing for the uninitiated to tell them apart. This video provides a rundown of the main series, events, and characters in the gaming Clancyverse, and where The Division may fit into it all.
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If you just want to know which of the Clancy games are right for you, here is a brief overview of the gameplay differences between them all.
The Division
- The Division is a third-person open-world massively multiplayer online shooter with RPG-like character progression and customization.
- Players can team up for co-op missions, or compete against each other in the PVP Dark Zones.
Rainbow Six
- The Rainbow Six games are first-person tactical shooters, with the earliest entries in the series placing a heavy emphasis on “tactical.”
- Typically you are fighting terrorist groups, rather than military organizations.
- The latest iteration, Rainbow Six Siege, is a multiplayer squad-based shooter featuring operators with unique powers.
Ghost Recon
- The Ghost Recon games are third-person, military tactical shooters where the Ghosts take part in covert operations that often escalate into intense firefights with lots of explosions.
- Recent games take place in a near-future setting and the Ghosts utilize future tech for a tactical advantage on the battlefield.
- The upcoming game, Ghost Recon Wildlands, is set in current day Bolivia and has the Ghosts fighting against a drug cartel and a corrupt local government in a sprawling open world setting.
Splinter Cell
- This third-person action-stealth series follows the exploits of spy Sam Fisher.
- The Splinter Cell series is known for its innovative use of light and shadows that can be used to disguise Fisher as the player attempts to sneak through levels with little to no conflict or shootouts.
- Splinter Cell Conviction from 2010 was a departure from previous games, forgoing some of the stealthier aspects of the series to make the game more accessible through the use of the new “Mark and Execute” and “Last Known Position” systems, which significantly sped up the action.
- The last game, Splinter Cell Blacklist, was most notable for replacing the original voice of Sam Fisher, Michael Ironside, with a new actor.
- The next Splinter Cell game has yet to be announced.
H.A.W.X.
- The H.A.W.X. games are arcade flight simulation games — basically Clancy with jets and helicopters.
- The last game, H.A.W.X. 2, was released in 2010, but no announcements have been made about a follow-up. Given the less-than-stellar reception of previous games, it is probably safe to assume it will be a while — if ever — before we hear about another H.A.W.X. game.
EndWar
- Tom Clancy’s EndWar is a real-time tactics war game that places a heavier focus on controlling units and battlefield maneuvers versus the resource management and base building prevalent in real-time strategy games.
- The player controls infantry, cavalry, and air units on the battlefield in a variety of mission types.
- There are three playable factions fighting against each other in World War III.
- One of the coolest features of the original game was its use of voice commands to control units, a novel approach to addressing the difficulty of controlling a tactical war game on consoles.
- The sequel, EndWar Online, is a browser-based free-to-play game also available on Steam.
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