The Bad
While I don’t have any complaints about the fundamental gameplay of Rainbow Six: Siege, I do have some gripes about what goes on outside of the matches, namely unlocking operators. Unlocking items and upgrades through progression in modern shooters seems a bit archaic these days. Rainbow Six: Siege uses a credits system that allows you to purchase what you want using credits you earn from challenges, the single player scenarios, and most importantly multiplayer matches. While this is far and above the older level-gating progression system, it seems kind of strange to start you off with no unlocked operators when the game is essentially a multiplayer only game. What’s more, the cost to unlock operators goes up by 500 credits per previously unlocked operators from the same unit (e.g. a second FBI operator will cost 1000 credits, a third FBI will cost 1500, etc.).
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“I don’t mind shelling out the asking price for a multiplayer only game like Rainbow Six: Siege, but why do I need to unlock all the characters? Why do I need to grind out hours of game time in order to maximize my experience?”Â
I would like to know the reasoning behind restricting operators behind credits. It likely has something to do with the fact that you can buy credits boosters that multiply your earnings per match with really money. But I fear that limiting new players to one or two operators early on severely limits their experience. If the one operator they bought early on gets chosen by a teammate first, the new player is forced to take the Recruit class, a generic operator with no special gadget or ability. I don’t mind shelling out the asking price for a multiplayer only game like Rainbow Six: Siege, but why do I need to unlock all the characters? Why do I need to grind out hours of game time in order to maximize my experience? Credits do have their place for unlocking weapon modifications and skins, but just not for operator classes.
The Ugly
Earlier I mentioned that Rainbow Six: Siege is great when it’s at its best. Well, let’s talk about its worst. These are the inexcusable transgressions of the game. These are the issues that bring all the fun I was having to a screeching halt. I am of course talking about connection problems and model clipping. Firstly, there seems to be a unanimous outcry of people having connection issues when trying to queue as well as in games. A recent patch has fixed a lot of these problems (on average), but I’ve still had games where I was on the short side of a 3 v 5 match. As I mentioned earlier the game is very well balanced…when it’s 5 v 5. If a team is down a member or two it’s an uphill struggle to eke out a victory. It is possible, but only if the enemy team gets overly cocky or if they make some very rookie mistakes. In other words, you are banking on the other team to mess up; if they play perfectly (or closer to perfect than you) it’s almost always a loss.
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“The other issue that frustrates me more than any other is feet and elbows clipping through walls. Five years ago I would have overlooked this and just wrote it off as a technical limitation.”Â
The other issue that frustrates me more than any other is feet and elbows clipping through walls. Five years ago I would have overlooked this and just wrote it off as a technical limitation. Now, it’s crucial to have this problem fixed. Rainbow Six: Siege does a great job at creating tense moments where you are in a tactical standoff with an enemy. You try to hug your shield you placed in front of you while you lie prone on the ground. All of a sudden you find yourself dead and wonder if someone got you from behind. Lo and behold, the omnipotent Kill Cam reveals your foot protruding from the front of the shield and exploding in a red mist from a rain of bullets. You did everything the right way but the game engine decided your foot should be able to collide with bullets rather than the leeward side of your shield. Admittedly it doesn’t happen often, just enough to leave some infuriating memories.
Rainbow Six: Siege has been a ton of fun for me with a surprising amount of replay value. Despite its flaws, it delivers exactly what I want in a team focused tactical shooter. Just remember, don’t pick Fuze when trying to save a hostage.