Boots On the Ground
We conducted some exclusive recon on all the new updates for Year 7 of Rainbow Six Siege. Here are top takeaways from our debriefing session with Alex Karpazis, Creative Director of the franchise, with insight on what you can expect to excite in Year 7.
Living for Deathmatch
A big addition that should make jumping into Siege a smoother experience for beginners is the new game mode, Team Deathmatch. It features five-on-five gameplay and no special abilities. “We’ve been asked about this kind of game mode for a while and we’re super happy to ship it in Season 1,” Karpazis revealed. “Team Deathmatch is a lot more approachable for new players to understand how our gun handling reacts and how destruction works in the game.”
A New Reverence for Reputation
In Season 2, you’ll start seeing signs of a new Reputation System—a behind-the-scenes monitor that has been quietly active for about a year. “It highlights players who are positive in the Siege community, while making sure we have the proper tools to address cheaters and toxicity in our game, where we have a zero-tolerance rule,” Karpazis said.
Phase 2 of the Reputation System is slated to launch in Season 3; it screens for inappropriate voice and in-game chat violations and makes sure that players who abuse those systems don’t have access until they appropriately change. “In Season 4, you’ll see a Reputation System in full that can reward players for good behavior and features a more robust mechanism for penalizing or banning players for toxicity or cheating,” he vowed.
Start Your Siege Journey in Year 7
Ubisoft is making it easier than ever to start playing Rainbow Six Siege with new additions in the form of in-game Operator Guides and shooting range. “We laid a lot of groundwork in Year 6, but a lot of these things come alive in Year 7, which is why it makes this year one of the biggest ever for us,” Karpazis said. “Starting with Season 2, we have the new Shooting Range so players can test out all the weapons and learn more about them, and we’re also dropping our in-game Operator Guides. Whether you’re in the menus or live in a match you can learn more about an Operator and their gadgets.”
Progression System Overhaul in Season 3
Karpazis teased updates to the competitive playlist. “We’re doing a big re-work of our Ranked progression system, calling it Ranked 2.0. We’re making sure it’s a lot more rewarding every time you climb during the season.”
Console Crossplay in Season 4
In a huge update, Karpazis’ crew is facilitating crossplay between consoles and cross-progression on every platform Rainbow Six Siege is on! “This means you can play on whatever system you’re comfortable with and bring your customization and friends list along with you,” he confirmed.
Arcade Accentuation
In Season 4, a permanent Arcade Mode is scheduled to arrive, designed to expand upon the breezy entertainment the Siege team delivered in their previously random and beloved Arcade releases. “We wanted to provide a permanent place for players to jump in an experience something completely different in Siege. Whether it’s the Golden Gun, Showdown, or many other events that we’ve run, it will be a constantly rotating game mode list where players can have fun with friends, blow off steam, and experience something a little different,” he stated.
Dialing Up New Operators
When developing new Operators, Karpazis and his team must consider the meta along with the minutiae of the character. “Where are they coming from? What is their country of origin? What kinds of new gameplay mechanics can we bring? What kind of gameplay mechanics can change the meta or balance out the roster? We never approach each operator with a theme or template; each one is unique,” he said. “When you see Azami in Season 1, this is an operator we’ve wanted to do for years now that we can finally launch and it changes the core of the game—instead of destruction now this Operator is an architect who can rebuild a map.”
What Else Are You Excited About?
“Things like bringing an FOV slider to the console population—players have been asking for that and we’re super happy to bring it to them,” Karpazis exclaimed. “I’m also excited about crossplay and cross-progression and making sure it doesn’t matter where you want to play Siege, you can still access it.”
New maps are arriving this year for both the Competitive map pool and Team Deathmatch. “We’re trying to use different ingredients that we haven’t seen before to bring alive new environments,” Karpazis confirmed.
Meaningful Meta
Built on years of evolution, listening to the community, and fine-tuning accordingly, Karpazis feels the game is in a good place at the moment, while the updates will make it more accessible to new players. “We’re really happy with the meta that we’ve achieved,” he said. “Siege is a very different game from when it first launched. Our cast has ballooned to over 60 Operators…and that can be a little intimidating for new players. We want to provide them with the tools to learn and immediately enjoy the game, too.”
Season 1 saw updates to Goyo’s canisters and has received a positive response from the community. “This is the kind of re-work players can expect throughout the year, where we look at the utility of an Operator and what they bring to the table. Are they still fun to play? Is there something new that can mesh well with others? We have fresh ideas for characters including Rook, Nokk, Zero, Thatcher, and more,” Karpazis hinted.
Some of these updates have already dropped as Year 7 rages on, so any time is a good time to log in and check out the latest in Rainbow Six Siege.
For more on Rainbow Six Siege, be sure to check out our breakdown of Demon Veil, including the new Operator Azami, changes and additions like Attacker Repick and Match Replay for console players, improved face tech, and so much more.