Rainbow Six Siege Beta Impressions

The latest instalment in the long-running “Rainbow Six” franchise from Ubisoft comes this December on our next-gen consoles as well as PC. The game was delayed from its initial launch date that was October to make sure that the game launches smoothly.

Rainbow Six: Siege is an online tactical first person shooter in which 2 teams of 5 battle each other out with strategy, patience and teamwork. To make sure that the game launches smoothly, Ubisoft just launched a closed beta for the game. After putting enough time into it, Here are my impressions about “Rainbow Six: Siege” multiplayer beta.

Starting off, I would like to point out how shi**y the servers are. It takes ages to get into a lobby and when you do get into a lobby, annoying disconnection’s and host migration would stop you from actually playing the game.

I am not exaggerating when I say that 80% of my time in the beta was spent in just finding a lobby. Random errors, Migration of host, Disconnections ruin the experience and if Ubisoft wants this game to sell good, they need to make sure that they patch the beta itself to provide a smoother experience thus gaining back the trust of the players. Another annoying thing I experienced in the beta was the occasional crashes. The game crashed every now and then (yes even on consoles).

When I did manage to find a lobby, the game was a blast to play. Whether you play as an attacker or a defender, the game would force you to be tactical. Don’t even think of doing a “call of duty” here.

Currently, the beta has two game modes. PVP Team Deathmatch & Terrorist hunt mode. Terrorist hunt mode is basically a co-op mode in which you attack a certain location and hunt down terrorist’s present in that area. It’s a decent game mode to play with friends and the higher difficulty require some series strategies. The AI can be unpredictable as well as downright stupid.

This hurts this mode real bad. Sometimes they would just stand there and do nothing or on other occasions they would march in like Rambo and knock you out with one hit. Another annoying thing about this mode are the suicide bombers. Sure they bring in variety and a different type of challenge, but sometimes they can be brutally annoying.

They would storm in on you and no matter how much you spray your bullets on them, you just can’t control the beast. This leads to some cheap deaths which ruin the whole feel of the game. Apart from that, this game mode is good for practice before you enter the main deal i.e. “Multiplayer”.

The multiplayer is where the cool kids stay. It’s a standard PVP mode in which one team has to defend a bomb while the other has to defuse it. Before the start of round, The mode has a “preparatory phase” in which you either scout out the location or place traps, shields, walls, etc. depending on whether you are an attacker or a defender. I personally love being an attacker because it gives me more options to improvise but know this both are super fun. If you are an attacker, you must plan from where you would want to breach or attack. Work as a team and you might just be able to complete the objective. Choosing from a wide range of operators diversify each match. Each operator has a special unique ability that you could use in battle. While one can easily break walls while other could help revive you and your teammates.

This encourages teamwork even more. There is no overpowered class, weapon, gadget etc. You must understand the importance of each of your squad mate if you want to successfully win the match.

If you are a defender, you must make sure that you don’t leave anything open. Plant traps, security gadgets, reinforced walls, barricades, wires etc. to make sure that the attackers are not able to breach in easily. Heavy communication skills are required when you are a defender. Being a defender can sometimes be a bit overpowered provided you could just camp and kill the enemies.

Overall, I am having a blast with the beta and I can’t wait to play more. The game is fun to play (and super fun if you have friends to play with). The only major issue with the game are its servers, but I am sure Ubisoft would be able to correct this before the beta expires. If you ever craved for a tactical multiplayer shooter, Rainbow Six: Siege is your man (or game in this case).