Rainbow Six Siege is closing out its 11th year with some significant changes, including a new way to play Ranked, a major rework for Doc and a collaboration with one of gaming’s most badass characters.
Operation Vital Signal is the final seasonal update of Year 11, and Ubisoft is using it to make some meaningful changes to the way players experience the tactical shooter.
I recently got an early look at the update in Osaka. I also spoke with Rainbow Six Siege’s Creative Director, Joshua Mills, about the updates, attracting new players, and why the game still delivers for die-hard fans.
Rainbow Six Siege is making Ranked more accessible
For years, Siege has placed a huge emphasis on communication and teamwork. That’s a big part of what makes it such a rewarding game, but it can also be intimidating for people who are still finding their feet.
Operation Vital Signal now introduces two distinct Ranked experiences.
Ranked Solo/Duo is designed for players queuing alone or with one friend, while Ranked Flex is for larger groups looking to play together. Cross-Queue Matchmaking will also work across different squad sizes, with the aim of keeping matchmaking smooth.
Ubisoft is also lowering the account level required to access Ranked from 50 to 30.
Mills said the Solo/Duo option was a highly requested feature, with Ubisoft recognising that a significant number of players prefer to queue without a full team.
Mill’s hope is that it gives those players a more comfortable way to compete before they decide to build a regular squad.
The new Social Hub should help with that, too. It provides an overlay where players can manage friends, create squads and connect with people they’ve recently played with.
Mills said the idea is to help players work towards buildingthose connections and potentially move on to the Flex playlist.
But he also understands why jumping into a team-based game like Siege can be daunting.
“Expect to die often. Expect to have that pain of it. It’s part of the game. It’s part of the learning process,” Mills told QD.
Encouraging words.
Rather than worrying about letting teammates down, Mills wants newcomers to reflect on their mistakes and gradually improve. Learning the maps, understanding the mechanics and developing confidence all takes time.
His advice is to take things one step at a time.
“How do you eat an elephant? One bite at a time. That’s Siege.”
Joshua Mills, Creative Director
Doc gets a major remaster, Thunderbird receives a boost and weapon nerfs
Operation Vital Signal also brings aa significant update to Doc.
The Operator’s new E-HEAL Monitor system allows him to remotely heal and revive teammates across the map… through walls!
Rather than needing to be beside a teammate to provide assistance (or accidentally shooting them dead), Doc has healing patches attached to players and triggers them remotely when needed.
It’s a substantial change to how the Operator can support his team, particularly when teammates are spread across the map. Not sure how this will go in the competitive zone, we’ll wait and see.
Thunderbird is also receiving some welcome buffs.
She’ll gain the ability to cleanse stun and concussion effects — which looks awesome!
On the weapons front, the new MBZ-19 SMG is arriving as a primary weapon option for selected Defenders, including Jäger, Warden and Thunderbird.
It comes with a 64-round magazine, 33 damage per round and a fire rate of 750 RPM.
There are some balancing changes, too.
Lovers of the ACS12 and TCSG12 will be sad to learn that both of these guns are receiving reductions to their damage and magazine capacity.
Bank gets an update, testing groun fires up and more changes to come
Map changes are another part of the update.
Bank is getting a new entry point behind the building to give attackers a faster way into the action, alongside additional exterior cover.
The changes are also intended to affect how defenders approach holding the second-floor site.
Yacht, Favela and Tower are also receiving visual and gameplay enhancements as part of Ubisoft’s ongoing work on the map pool.
There are further experiments coming through the Testing Grounds playlist, too.
One of the most interesting is a prototype Half-Reinforcements gadget, which allows players to deploy partial reinforcements and create more options when setting up their defensive positions.
It’s an experimental feature and Ubisoft is using this playlist to gather feedback from the community before deciding what comes next.
DOOM Slayer joins Rainbow Six Siege
Theres a new Siege collaboration that’ll get people talking… and its coming straight out of Hell.
The DOOM Slayer is making his way into Rainbow Six Siege through a cosmetic collaboration.
But don’t expect him to become an official Operator.
Mills confirmed the collaboration is cosmetic only, unlike the Solid Snake crossover earlier this year.
“DOOM Slayer is not an official canon Operator in Rainbow Six, because he’d be a menace if we did,” Mills laughed.
It’s a fun distinction, and one that makes a heap of sense. The DOOM Slayer is hardly the sort of character you’d want to balance around Siege’s tactical gunplay.
READ MORE: Review | Doom: The Dark Ages (PS5)
Mills said collaborations are an opportunity for the team to celebrate the games and franchises it loves, while giving players another way to express themselves.
He described working with these major gaming properties as “a gaming nerd’s dream”.
Having the opportunity to announce the collaboration at a major event in Osaka was another highlight for Mills, who said attending events around the world and meeting the community was a rewarding part of the job.
He described seeing the excitement around the game in person as something that helps recharge the team’s batteries after the enormous amount of work that goes into each update.
Ubisoft wants to keep its veterans while welcoming new players
Speaking with Mills, it was clear that Ubisoft is trying to strike a balance between supporting its long-time community and making Siege easier to approach for a new generation.
The game has a steep learning curve — something I’ve personally discovered — and that’s not something the dev team is pretending will disappear overnight.
Year 11 seems to be focussed on improving the experience around that challenge.
Mills described the year as a rebuilding of the game’s content cadence, with each season bringing balancing updates, a new Operator, an Operator remaster, a new weapon and targeted map updates.
He said the aim is to ensure new and returning players aren’t left feeling as though they’re constantly trying to catch up with everyone else.
They’re experiencing those changes alongside the wider community.
That said, Ubisoft seemingly isn’t forgetting its most dedicated players.
Mills pointed to the new Legend Division, designed for the top 0.1 per cent of players, as an example of the team’s commitment to its competitive audience.
He also spoke about the importance of the professional scene, particularly the way major tournaments can influence the wider game.
“What happens on stage influences Ranked and the rest of the player base for the next six months,” Mills said.
He was equally enthusiastic about the opportunity for fans to experience the Six Invitational in person, describing the atmosphere as something that is difficult to replicate.
If I’ve learned anything from this preview it’s that Siege has a hyper-competitive community, but it’s a bloody strong one. The game is demanding, the mechanics are overwhelming… it requires teamwork on every front. But watching the best of the best battle it out was inspiring.
Obviously, Operation Vital Signal won’t suddenly make Siege easy. That’s not the intended goal.
The Solo/Duo playlist and other onboarding improvements could make taking that first step a little less intimidating.
As Mills told me, “We won’t be your first FPS, but we’ll be your last.”.
Rainbow Six Siege: Operation Vital Signal launches on December 1st.
Travel costs to the event were provided by Ubisoft.
