Sweep, Clear, & Have Fun: Rainbow Six Siege Review

2015 and 2016 were outstanding years for online multiplayer games. Tom Clancy’s The Division sorted itself out, Destiny released new content and free-standing giants like Titanfall 2 and Battlefield 1 blasted the field. Ubisoft’s December 2015 release, Tom Clancy’s Rainbow Six Siege was also a welcome treat. More than a treat, in this site’s opinion, Siege is a refreshing look into the stylized world of creative multiplayer shooters.

Rainbow Six Siege expands and grounds the Ubisoft Rainbow Six series, which soared to new heights with Rainbow Six Vegas 2 in 2008. Rather than playing as a characterized member of the fictitious Rainbow Team through a story-based campaign, players step into the combat boots of multiple real-world special forces operatives. Having been recruited for a new Rainbow Team, these agents combat terror threats around the globe.

Siege is an online multiplayer, consisting of short matches between players, or against computerized enemies. Team deathmatch pits teams of five against each other, in short, single-kill games. If you’re killed in one round, you will only respawn upon the start of a new round. Other modes include a bomb disposal run, a hostage rescue mission, and the classic terrorist hunt.

Terrorist hunt is the returned game mode during which five players must eliminate at least twenty armed terrorists to win. The game also has different types of terrorist hunts, including hostage defense, bomb disarming, and the classic hunt. Players facing off against the combatants need to remain aware of their surroundings, as any door, window or wall can be breached by the enemy just as players can.

This leads to one of our favorite features: destruction. We played one of our first online terrorist hunts in a map of a Brazilian favela. We took the role of Ash, an operator with the United States’ Federal Bureau of Investigation SWAT team. We prepared our loadout, including an assault rifle, pistol, smoke grenade, Ash’s personalized grenade launcher. We set off to disarm a chemical bomb and take out some bad guys. The first-person mechanics are not as crisp as notable FPS big leaguers such as Battlefield or Call of Duty, but control is easy to maintain with a little practice. We had Ash check her corners with a unique “peak” feature, and pick off hostile as they shot as her from behind a wall. Ash’s grenade launcher cut through the wall with ease, and our online comrades took out the bad guys. Breach, smash, punch, or shoot - any surface can be punctured or destroyed to better serve you (or the enemy).

Each operator is equipped with a special tactical ability or weapon - Ash has her grenade launcher, the UK’s SAS operator ‘Mute’ has a radar jammer, and France’s GIGN medic ‘Doc’ has a revive ability. Every game only allows teams to include one of each operator, so teams of five will choose their characters in the seconds before the match. Weapon choices often depend on the operator, but players have a decent variety of guns and attachments to equip. Each piece of equipment does come at a cost however, with a currency earned by playing and excelling in the game.

The array of operators in Siege is outstanding. Since release, more and more have been added generating a vast pool of ass kickers to choose from. Multiple nations are represented within the game, and detailed backgrounds on each agent is available upon purchase - yes, you need to earn currency to unlock more operators as you level up. With no campaign, the biographies of each trooper is the most you’ll see of scripted content, along with their introductory video. New and more diverse operators have been released for download and purchase since release, all them boasting new abilities and characteristics.

Siege has quite a few maps for gamers to blast through. Hotels, warehouses, and even houses can come under siege (ha). Each map isn’t all that large, seeing as matches don’t last that long with only five players per team. As previously discussed, the maps can be nearly unidentifiable after your team defends or attacks an area. Bullets will tear through walls, and breaching kits will splinter doors and walls. It makes for some pretty thrilling firefights between you and the terrorists, or the other players.

Ubisoft has provided gamers with a unique and lasting multiplayer in Rainbow Six Siege. The game doesn’t throw you into any matches with the keys to the kingdom - ammunition, health, and situational awareness are the player’s best friend as they sweep and clear an office building in search of a dirty bomb or a hostage. While it doesn’t reinvent the first-person wheel, it does cultivate a different sense of control during combat, and when navigating halls. With a year under its belt and more operators, abilities, and maps being released, online multiplayer fans are in for a unique treat.