A Brief Background
Tom Clancy’s Rainbow Six, often referred to as Rainbow Six or R6 by the community, is a franchise forged by the author of Tom Clancy and converted into a franchise of tactical first-person shooter games across multiple platforms. Based on the notion of a counter-terrorist organization known as “Rainbow”, the first title was released at around the same time as the first Counter-Strike right at the beginning of the millennium.
Ever since 1998, with the release of Rainbow Six on consoles such as the PS1, the series began gaining momentum and further developed its gameplay and attract a loyal community and fan-base. A release schedule of every two years was disrupted in 2010, when an upcoming title was cancelled, leaving the community on hold.
It would only be in 2015, 5 years later, that Rainbow Six Siege would be released and take the world by storm. Developed by Ubisoft Montreal and published by Ubisoft, the new title released in 2015 embraced its roots by refining the formula.
Unlike the other titles in the series, Rainbow Six Siege offered gameplay oriented heavily on cooperation and appropriate use of the environment, rewarding skill and teammwork – so much so that it has successfully managed to nurture an esports scene which is currently considered a Tier 1 esports as Ubisoft pledges 10 years of post-release support.
How to Play
Playable on all platforms outside of the Nintendo Switch, there are a total of 5 core modes amongst others to enjoy which take place across the 20 playable maps at the moment (including the 9 DLC maps). The five modes are as follows:
- Bomb: competitive multiplayer PVP mode involving bomb defusal where defenders protect two bomb sites from attackers by either eliminating all of them or defusing the bomb. Attackers win by either erasing the opponents or successfully detonating the bomb.
- Secure Area: similar to Bomb, but in this case defenders must protect a single objective, the biohazard container and be present in a single room. Should the attackers manage to secure it and no defenders are in the room – victory is achieved. Again, besides the objective, eliminating the opposition works too.
- Tactical Realism: added as DLC, it’s essentially a hardcore variant of all the other game modes, removing player assists, most of the HUD and scarce ammo. Since, it has been removed from the game but may return.
- Hostage: another competitive multiplayer mode in which the objective encompasses a hostage situation. Besides the objectives of defending or securing the hostage for both sides, victory or defeat can depend on the state of the hostage too. Whichever side harms the hostage in any way and does not succeed to revive before bleeding out, that side will lose.
- Terrorist Hunt: a cooperative PvE mode where up to five players join forces as either the attackers or defenders to thwart waves of AI enemies across the modes of Hostage, Bomb or Elimination.
- Situations: the tutorial-style component of the game where players are thrown into multiple solo missions along with a few co-op to learn the basic mechanics and playstyles found in Rainbow Six Siege
- Arcade: random modifiers to the regular game modes
- Seasonal Events: often released through DLCs, new game modes such as Outbreak and Tactical Realism as mentioned above entertain the community and experiment with the game.
The main three modes are Hostage, Secure and Bomb.
Playing Rainbow Six Siege is often described as a ‘hardcore’ experience such as CS:GO, a title within the same genre, where players will be punished for even the slightest missing of shots. The aspects of no respawning, destructible environment such as walls and one-shot headshots with any weapon add a tangible level of tension when taking on the world.
When heading into Casual matchmaking, it’s a simple process. First, multiple choices need to be made:
- Choosing an operator: each with their own playstyle, strengths and special abilities, there are 7 official types – Hard Breach, Hard Breach Support, Soft Breach, Entry Fraggers, Disruptors, Angle Watchers, Area Denial and Intel Gatherer. Your choice will vary with your preferred playstyle.
- Choosing a primary and secondary weapon: choice of assault rifles, submachine guns, shotguns, marksman rifles, light machine guns, handguns, machine pistols and their various attachments.
- Choosing equipment: charges, grenades, flashbangs, claymores, shields, barbed wire, cameras and C4 are all examples.
Attackers and defenders will each have their own different options. For the first 45 seconds of each round, defenders have the opportunity to barricade the designated objective or area while attackers may utilize drones to figure out where enemies and the objective lie. Then, a round takes place within the usual 3 minutes where abilities and strategy will help one side clutch the victory. Do note that the rule set varies from Ranked and Casual modes.
Between each round, one can pick new operators and load-outs, potentially to specifically counter enemy operators. Once the round limit is reached, one side is crowned the victor.
How to Watch
From the very beginning, Ubisoft built Rainbow Six Siege with competitive play in mind as made evident by key features such as new operators being introduced regularly for variety together with consistent patch updates to keep competitive integrity sharp.
As an esport, 5 years later, Rainbow Six Siege has made tremendous progress to now be identified as a Tier 1 esport thanks to the joint efforts of ESL and Ubisoft. The Rainbow Six Pro League at first hosted both PC and console competitors which were then abandoned to focus primarily on PC. The Six Invitational has quickly become one of the largest events in the esports calendar, with the 2020 iteration offering a $3,000,000 prize pool to competitors.
Since then, the Pro League has officially been terminated in place of a new framework consisting of regional leagues based on earning points to qualify for events. The Tier 1 esport continues to grow at a steady rate with an undetermined ceiling above its head.
Tips and Tricks
Mechanical Skills
Unlike MOBAs, a tactical defusal first-person-shooter such as Rainbow Six Siege carries a stronger focus on mechanical skills. Naturally, there is an imperative focus on mechanical aim, to have an incredible connection between your wrist and aim. Headshots in Rainbow Six Siege are essential to winning gunfights, as all are one-shot kills.
Beyond pure repetition, here are some other Rainbow Six Siege Tips and Tricks to bear in mind:
- Experiment with sensitivity – with how important good aim is, adjusting dpi and other tweaks can make a world of difference
- Utilizing the leaning function – looking around corners with just your head popping out reduces your chance of getting caught running
- Improve your aim with aim training software too – dedicating regular time can assist in this regard
- Pre-firing corners – with how quickly you can die, using knowledge while knowing when to pre-fire a corner is essential
- Mastering movement – fluid change in direction and manoeuvring through maps perfectly is essential in game-defining moments
In-Game Knowledge and Awareness
Bearing those in mind, proper aim and movement will only get you so far in a tactical shooter. In fact, in-game awareness is just as, if not more, important. Mastering strategies and other factors to your gameplay is essential. Here are some pointers below:
- Get thoroughly familiar with maps. This includes knowing the best strategies on offence and defense in any situation. This comes into play in knowing where to place trap, cameras and other utilities.
- Build a pool of agents – know the strengths of each agent and how to counter each one. Making the most of your agent and playing your role well is essential in competition.
- Make use of sprint when necessary – weigh whether it’s worth making noise
- Watch the in-game tutorials – three tutorials which point out the essentials of the title
- Keep up to date with the meta changes, understanding agent and map changes
- Play custom games and develop go-to strategies in certain situations to minimize surprises in-game, instead of relying on practice
- Stay up to date with the competitive scene and watch competitive games
Personal and Interpersonal – Rainbow Six Siege Tips and Tricks
Some of the most memorable moments in tactical shooters are the most stressful. Oftentimes, players are put in unwinnable or difficult situations, being a man down or away from the objective. It’s in these moments that the personal and interpersonal tips and tricks come into play. Read on for some of them:
- Improved call-outs; maintaining your heart rate and making clear callouts while also taking in teammates’ input is essential
- Having the ‘clutch factor’ – the ability to make the right plays at the right time to execute an incredible win. Remaining calm is ideal, while making use of in-game knowledge and keeping your aim straight.
- Learn from your teammates and enemies – if a certain role is a touch unsuitable for your personality, try different agents out while learning from why it wasn’t easy to manage
As a Tier 1 esport, competitive Rainbow Six Siege is visceral and incredibly strategic. Another tip outside of those mentioned is to gain as many frames-per-second as possible through your PC and to have an ideal internet connection – together with our tips, you’re good to go.
