Ubisoft sorry for "offensive" Division 2 marketing email flaunting "a real government shutdown" Eurogamer.net If you click on a link and make a purchase we may receive a small commission. Read our editorial policy. Ubisoft sorry for "offensive" Division 2 marketing email flaunting "a real government shutdown" "This was a grave breakdown in process." News by Robert Purchese Senior Staff Writer Updated on 1 Feb 2019 128 comments Ubisoft found itself in hot water overnight after sending a promotional email for The Division 2 declaring, in the subject line, "Come see what a real government shutdown looks like in the private beta." The shutdown has been at the forefront of American politics since December. It's the longest in US history - and it's an incredibly sensitive topic. Hundreds of thousands of federal employees went without paychecks over Christmas because President Trump could not agree with Congress a bill to fund his ridiculous border wall. The shutdown brought services such as the Coast Guard, TSA, prisons, FBI and many more to their knees. It has temporarily ended now, but the issue is still far from resolved. 'The Division 2 is not trying to make a political statement' - 20182019 be like: pic.twitter.com/4xKoRRfryw- Skill Up (@SkillUpYT) February 1, 2019 To see this content please enable targeting cookies. Manage cookie settings Less than an hour after The Division 2 email was sent, an apology landed. "A marketing email promoting Tom Clancy's The Division 2 was sent in error today," it read. "This was a grave breakdown in process and we apologise for this error and the offensive subject line of the email. We recognise the very real impact of the United States government shutdown on thousands of people and did not intend to make light of the situation." It's a particularly grievous error for a company at pains to stay out of discussions about politics in its games, despite some of their politically volatile and modern settings - Far Cry 5 in particular. Apparently, being political is "bad for business", a Ubisoft executive said. pic.twitter.com/EoYLxa26kC- Jake Dekker (@jacobdekk) February 1, 2019 To see this content please enable targeting cookies. Manage cookie settings Ubisoft's is an increasingly problematic stance given the inherent political nature of Tom Clancy's work - the brand The Division 2 is a part of. "At least he embraced the role of the fiction-maker as an interpreter of the times," wrote Edwin in a piece looking at Tom Clancy's body of work, "as political weathervane rather than pure fantasist." The Division 2 arrives 15th March on PC, PS4 and Xbox One. The beta will run 7th Feb to 11th Feb in the UK, and you can either sign-up on The Division 2 website for a chance at joining in, or pre-order the game, which I never think is a particularly good idea. Anything else you want to know about The Division 2 beta should be covered by a handy page of ours. Become a Eurogamer subscriber and get your first month for £1 Get your first month for £1 (normally £3.99) when you buy a Standard Eurogamer subscription. Enjoy ad-free browsing, merch discounts, our monthly letter from the editor, and show your support with a supporter-exclusive comment flair! Support us View supporter archive More News Splatoon 3 Amiibos will be out next month Ink-coming! 3 Fans think Phil Spencer's shelf is teasing the Xbox Game Pass streaming box UPDATE: Xbox confirms old Keystone prototype. 61 Modder dives into Demon's Souls files following PS5 jailbreak, discovers fabled Ring of the Chieftain Who knows what's nexus? 5 Google announces cloud gaming Chromebooks less than a fortnight after Stadia shutdown GeForce Now preinstalled. 11 Latest Articles Digital Foundry Sennheiser's legendary HD 599 open-back headphones are just £70 at Amazon in the Prime Early Access Sale Comfortable with neutral sound and a wide sound stage. Preview Football Manager's new Console edition is the best you'll get without a PC Getting Touch-right. 1 Splatoon 3 Amiibos will be out next month Ink-coming! 3 Fans think Phil Spencer's shelf is teasing the Xbox Game Pass streaming box UPDATE: Xbox confirms old Keystone prototype. 61 Supporters Only Premium only Off Topic: Take a minute to appreciate Cookin' with Coolio's incredible scallops recipe. What a great book. Premium only Off Topic: Reading City of Glass in comic form "Where exactly am I going?" Premium only Off Topic: Il Buco is a transporting film about a really big hole Underlands. Off-Topic Netflix handled Sandman brilliantly It was Dreamy. 9 Buy things with globes on them And other lovely Eurogamer merch in our official store! Explore our store