Rainbow Six Siege Operation New Blood : All Things New

Ubisoft will launch significant changes to its popular tactical shooter, Rainbow Six Siege, with Operation New Blood in Year 9, Season 2.

The latest update, revealed before the Grand Finals of the Manchester Major between BDS and beastcoast, brings a host of new features, operator remasters, gameplay enhancements, and improvements aimed at refining the overall player experience.

Recruit Remastered: Striker and Sentry

One of the most notable additions in Operation New Blood is the remastering of the Recruit operator. The reimagined recruits, now named Striker (attacker) and Sentry (defender), fit today's meta more effectively.

• Striker can equip a versatile loadout, including weapons like the M4 and M249. And secondary gadgets such as stun grenades, hard breach charges, frag grenades, and more. This adaptability allows Striker to play various roles depending on team needs.

Striker Loadout (Image Source: Ubisoft)

• Sentry brings defensive prowess with weapons like the Commando 9 and M870. And gadgets including impact grenades, deployable shields, nitro cells, and proximity alarms. This flexibility ensures Sentry can fortify positions and adapt to various defensive strategies.

Sentry Loadout (Image Source: Ubisoft)

Balancing Changes and Quality of Life Improvements

In this season, significant updates are coming for defensive powerhouses Solis and Fenrir.

• Solis will no longer be able to use her SPEC-IO glasses during the prep phase. Thus limiting her ability to disable attacker drones early on. Additionally, her gadget's capacity is reduced from 20 to 10 seconds. And it also requires a full charge to activate.

• Fenrir sees a reduction in his mines from five to four and his codes from three to two. Moreover, his F-NATT mines will no longer be bulletproof when inacitve, necessitating more strategic placement.

New Gameplay Features and Training Modes

Operation New Blood introduces several new features aimed at enhancing player engagement and training.

• Endless Drill: A new warm-up mode allowing players to continuously train on every floor of a map for up to 60 minutes, sharpening their skills before heading into battle.

• Map Filtering: A new system in the Standard Playlist lets players select from Ranked, Non-Ranked, or All Maps, allowing for more tailored gameplay experiences.

New Map Filters for Standard (Image Source: Ubisoft)

• Attrition Mode: A returning Arcade game mode where operators played in each round are eliminated for the rest of the match.

Player Protection and Anti-Cheat Improvements

To tackle toxicity and cheating, Ubisoft is enhancing its reputation system and anti-cheat measures.

• Reputation System: Delayed to ensure quality and reliability, the system remains in beta to gather more player feedback and improve its effectiveness in reducing toxicity.

• Anti-Cheat Enhancements: The introduction of new data bans and collaboration with SteamVac has led to a 60% increase in ban rates. And a significant reduction in cheaters, particularly rage cheats.

Anti-cheat collaboration with Steam (Image Source: Ubisoft)

Marketplace and Monetization Updates

The Rainbow Six Siege Marketplace allows players to trade cosmetic items for R6 credits. It will be fully accessible to players with a clearance level of 25 and above.

A new premium rewards system offering monthly benefits such as the Premium Battle Pass, exclusive customization items, and Rainbow Six Credits.

Rainbow Six Siege membership bonuses (Image Source: Ubisoft)

Spectator Mode Enhancements

The viewing experience for spectators, casters, and observers is getting a major overhaul.

HUD Improvements: Player cards have been moved to the bottom of the screen. Providing more dynamic and contextual information during matches. These changes aim to make watching Siege matches more engaging and informative.

Map Updates and AI Enhancements

Stadium Alpha and Stadium Bravo maps are receiving quality of life updates. To improve gameplay balance and reduce reliance on bulletproof glass in objective sites.

Versus AI Playlist: New maps, AI defenders, and playable attackers are being added to enhance training and warm-up options for players.

Community Feedback and Future Updates

Ubisoft remains committed to listening to player feedback and making continuous improvements.

Test Server Access: Players can explore Operation New Blood on the Season Test Server starting next week. With the Live Release planned for June 11. Players can provide feedback and report issues via R6 Fix.

Operation New Blood marks a significant evolution for Rainbow Six Siege, bringing fresh gameplay dynamics, improved player protection, and enhanced training tools to keep the game competitive and engaging for its community.

Watch the Full Reveal of the new operation HERE.

Featured Image Source: Ubisoft