Rainbow Six Siege has been played for free, but free players have missed some important content.
Ubisoft has released the Rainbow Six Siege X. This is a massive update to the game, marking its 10th year since its release.
The new update will overhaul and modernize some maps with changes in lighting, shadows and resolution.
It also improves the new player experience, adding new 6v6 dual front modes and a new anti-cheat system.
However, while the biggest change for most players may be the fact that the game is now free to play, there are major limitations on what free players can do without paying.
It’s free to play but…
The Rainbow Six Siege X has three tiers for new players. Free version, Elite Edition, and Ultimate Edition.
The free version has a choice of choice from 26 operators, even more to buy or unlock, and comes with quick matches, unranked, and dual front modes.
Anyone who wants to play ranked modes should spring for $20 in the Elite Edition. This adds a ranked siege cup and 16 additional operators, or a $40 Ultimate Edition.
Ubisoft also announced that anyone who purchased the game prior to the release of Siege X will have premium access, including additional modes and operators, and that progress and inventory will be transferred.
According to the game’s charts on SteamDB, the number of players has already caused spikes with the release of Siege X, so it will be interesting to see the long-term impact of playing for free on a player base.
There’s a mix of responses to new updates in Steam discussions and reviews for the game, but you should expect them every time a long-term game gets a major update.
Either way, that’s a big change for a shooter almost ten years ago. Hopefully, lowering the barrier to rookie entry by freeing the game will have a positive impact on the gaming community. It seems to attract new players at least for now, but you can see how it affects the game.
