Tom Clancy's The Division Public Test Server Launches

Presumably in anticipation of the game's next set of mission-heavy DLC, Survival, the teams at Ubisoft and Ubisoft Massive have stood up a public test server for their co-op-focused TPS/RPG, Tom Clancy's The Division. This is complemented by an official FAQ on the forums, but I'll quote from the announcement for now:

The Division development team is in the process of fixing some lingering bugs and issues in the game, and they want your help. Starting today, if you own the PC version of The Division, you can download a special version of The Division PC client via Uplay and Steam that will give you access to the Public Test Server (PTS). The PTS is a way for the development team to test fixes and tweaks with the public before it all gets integrated into the live version of the game, and your feedback will be instrumental in making sure these changes contribute to the overall health of The Division.

Want to participate? Here are some other things you should know about The Division’s PTS before jumping in:

What experience should I expect on the PTS?
The PTS is a testing server. By playing on the PTS, you must understand that:

• You will face issues, bugs, and crashes
• You may also lose items and progress
• The PTS version is not final, and features may be incomplete, or missing entirely
• Localization may be missing

Is everything on the PTS going to make it to the live game?
No. We may use the PTS to test things before deciding if they should make it to the live servers or not. Also, based on community feedback, some aspects of the features and modifications implemented on the PTS may change entirely before implementation on the live servers.

Where do I download the game client?
The PTS version will appear directly in your Games on Uplay and Library on Steam. From here, you can download and install it as a normal game.

Do I have to create a new character on the PTS?
No, your characters from the live game will be transferred to the PTS. However, in some cases, we may ask you to create a new character for testing purposes.

Will my progress on the PTS transfer to the live servers?
No, your progress will not transfer. Also, your character data will be imported from the live servers to the PTS regularly, and overwrite your current progress on the PTS.

Will the PTS remain open constantly?
We will keep the PTS open for as long as needed in order to get as much feedback as possible. However, once we’ve gathered enough feedback, the PTS will close and only reopen when we have new things we would like to test.

For more details on the PTS, check out the official FAQ.