Red Storm helping with development of The Division

Ubisoft today announced the involvement of Swedish-based studio Red Storm in developing the highly anticipated online action-shooter RPG, Tom Clancy's The Division. Up until now, Massive Entertainment has been at the forefront, having built everything from their propriety Snowdrop engine powering the game, to desinging the world, to the story, to the innovative gameplay systems; but today, the company detailed how Red Storm is helping out.

"Red Storm’s primary focus is the artwork for The Division’s weapons," Ubisoft said. "The studio currently has three dedicated artists in North Carolina who are working with a team member in Malmo, Sweden."

“I, personally, have been doing it for about six years now,” said Lead Weapons Designer JD Cragg. “One of the guys on my team has been doing it for almost nine. This is pretty much all I do – authentic military weapons, vehicles and that sort of thing.”

One of the huge benefits that we have is our connections with local military,” added Red Storm producer Tony Sturtzel. “We’ve had manufacturers come in and literally disassemble the entire weapon all the way down to the nuts and bolts, and our guys are taking hi-res photos of those things. We probably have unparalleled access to these types of things because of our authenticity department and their focus on relationships. We’re not ever gonna let the cat out of the bag on some of the relationships we have!”

Despite the realism of the weaponry, Cragg also emphasized that "fun" is the number one goal and to that end, concessions have been made — thankfully, not many have had to. Head over the Ubisoft's blog for the full rundown regarding Red Storm's involvement.