Rainbow Six Siege X is coming as a major update to Ubisoft’s competitive esports game on June 10 to the consoles and PC.
While it’s a major free upgrade for anyone who owns Rainbow Six Siege, the Siege X update introduces free access, allowing new players to experience the tactical action of Siege for free in Unranked, Quick Match, and the all-new 6v6 Dual Front mode.
The game is debuting on PS5, PS4, Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One, Amazon Luna, and PC via Ubisoft Connect and Steam.
In Dual Front, attacking and defending Operators join forces, opening up new opportunities to synergize with clever gadget combinations as your team fights to secure enemy zones while defending your own. Plus, Dual Front allows you to respawn, letting you get back to the action quickly.
Ubisoft has also been working on reducing toxicity in the game, using new technology for detecting the bad actors and rewarding positive behavior in the game as well.
The game will have “veteran rewards” for those players who have played in the past. The audio system will be more precise, reliable and more immersive.
The game has modernized maps, destructible ingredients, improved rappel navigation, and more as part of a wide-ranging suite of upgrades, improvements, and refinements.
June 10 also marks the launch of Operation Daybreak (Year 10 Season 2) which will deliver an Operator remaster for Clash; balancing updates for Jackal, Sledge, Thunderbird, Jäger, and Blackbeard; changes to electricity and limb damage; and more. These updates will be free for all Siege X players, including those who download and play through Free Access.
Siege X
Siege X is the next evolution of Rainbow Six Siege that is free for all players who already own the game. It’s also introducing Free Access, which means anyone can hop in for free and play the Quick Match, Unranked, and Dual Front modes, and enjoy all of the upgrades delivered with Siege X.
Keep an eye out for newly placed destructible ingredients in every map, including explosive gas pipes, vision-clouding smoke detectors, and interactable metal detectors. Player movement will be more fluid thanks to the advanced rappel navigation allowing sprinting and turning corners, as well as the momentum movement improvement.
Siege X also introduces map modernization, a process through which the Siege team improves existing maps with boast new lighting and shadows, as well as higher resolution. Five maps will be modernized on June 10, with three more maps getting the upgrade each season. The audio system is also being overhauled, the result of which will be clearer, more accurate audio cues to help you gain richer intel about what’s happening around you.
You’ll be able to make callouts more effectively with the new communication wheel, and show off your cosmetic style with the new weapon inspect feature. And whether you’re refining your competitive strategy with the new pick and ban system in Ranked matches, or learning the ropes faster and more thoroughly with the new onboarding flow, you’ll benefit from the extensive upgrades and refinements throughout the game. More details can be found in our Siege X Showcase recap article from the Siege X Showcase in March.
At the recent RE:LO:AD esports event in Rio de Janeiro, more details were revealed on updates coming with Siege X, including an in-game esports tab that will allow easy access to keep up with the best Siege competition around the globe.
New beginner challenges and onboarding flow will offer in-game rewards to diligent new players, and experienced players will progress faster through the clearance levels with a new XP curve. Follow your progress with the new career stats tracker as you review your performance in different playlists by checking your stats, including the K.O.S.T. stat that esports fans will recognize as a popular metric in pro play.
The new Enlisted and Field Training playlists will cater to new and returning players, respectively, giving each a customizable practice arena to fight on full maps against AI bots trained on real player behaviors. Whether you’re training solo or playing matches against other players, you’ll now hear the voices of the Operators more often as the new Operator banter feature will bring new dialogue lines that illuminate the personalities and relationships between the characters.
PC players can get an early taste of Siege X in action in the test server session, starting on May 20 at 6 AM PT/3 PM CEST and running through June 9 at 6 AM PT/3 PM CEST. The session is open to all players who already own Rainbow Six Siege on PC, and the test server tile should automatically appear in your Ubisoft Connect library. If it doesn’t, you can register for the test server via the Ubisoft Connect website.
Operation Daybreak (Season 2)
Siege X will feature Operation Daybreak.
Coinciding with the launch of Siege X is the start of Operation Daybreak, the second season of Rainbow Six Siege Year 10. This season brings of host of balancing updates for various Operators, changes to electricity and limb damage, as well as an Operator remaster for Clash.
Clash is the first Defender to ever wield a shield, and it’s her CCE Shield that has received some significant upgrades. She can now deploy her CCE Shield MK2, freeing her to move more quickly and position herself to play off of her shield’s stationary position. While the shield is deployed, Clash can operate its taser remotely, applying the shocking and slowing effect in a broad cone-shaped area. Defenders looking to remove this obstacle can use explosives or, if they get close enough, simply burst through the shield and destroy it (but beware, Clash or her allies can also execute this burst-through maneuver for a surprise attack).
Clash can still play with her shield in-hand or on her back as well, and it’s been updated to automatically collapse and expand as she sprints, crouches, vaults, and crashes through barricades. She can deploy it, pick it back up, and put down somewhere else. It’s more nimble, more versatile, and gives Clash more ways to be an absolute force on the defending team.
Some notable balancing updates will also arrive with Operation Daybreak.
Electricity will no longer damage any Operators. It will be a neutral element that will still have a slowing effect on Operators, and will destroy gadgets regardless of team affiliation.
Limb damage will be reduced, making it more important than ever to aim for center mass or heads.
Shield Operators will no longer be able to aim down sights while vaulting or dropping from higher levels.
Blackbeard’s shield glass has been tinted to make it easier to see if it’s up or down.
Jackal will only ping an enemy position one time after scanning footprints, and the footprints will disappear immediately after being scanned. He will also be able to use it five times, an increase from the current three.
Jäger will now be able to eliminate Capitão’s bolts and Gridlock’s Trax Stingers with his Active Defense System.
Thunderbird will no longer allow enemies to heal from her Kona Stations (unless Brava’s Kludge Drone takes them over).
Sledge will be able to knock down shield users he comes across (which he is likely to do more often now that attackers and defenders can be on the same team in Dual Front).
Operation Daybreak is launching on June 10, read the full news breakdown on the official Rainbow Six Siege website.
R6 ShieldGuard and Anti-Toxicity
Introduced earlier this year, R6 ShieldGuard is the unification of game security and anti-cheat tools developed by the Rainbow Six Siege team to help ensure fair competition for everyone. Thanks to the introduction of new security hardening tech in Season 1, Operation Prep Phase, cheat reports are trending down as more cheaters are being banned.
Season 2 will bring a major security update as well as a powerful change to how updates are delivered. Soon, the unified anti-cheat system will be fully dynamic, allowing the dev team to push a new game executable directly to players at any time during the season and making it significantly more difficult for cheat-makers to adapt. This proactive approach will continue throughout Seasons 3 & 4 as the team works with pro players and the community to continually refine their systems.
In addition to protecting the competitive fairness of Siege X, the team is also focused on making the game more respectful and secure for all players. The now-fully activated Reputation System has seen the number of negative actions decrease, including a drop in abusive language, while text chat usage has increased along with reports of positive actions in-game. Seasons 3 & 4 will continue to bolster these efforts with voice chat moderation, new Reputation System actions, and improvements to privacy settings, abandon penalties, and in-game reports.
Seasons 3 & 4
Rainbow Six Siege X specs on PC.
Looking ahead to seasons beyond Operation Daybreak, the Siege X team has shared some tidbits about what’s on the roadmap for later this year. Season 3 will bring three more modernized maps – Nighthaven, Lair, and Consulate – as well as assignment changes in Dual Front with narrative ties to the new Operator. This new Defender will hail from Switzerland and introduce a new weapon to the game. Players looking for a true competitive challenge will have plenty of opportunities when the Siege Cup becomes available every weekend, and allows you to inspect the stats of your opponents before the match begins. Plus, be on the lookout for a returning Halloween event on a new map.
Season 4 will mark the 10-year anniversary of Rainbow Six Siege, and a special in-game event is planned to celebrate the occasion. The season will also deliver an Operator remaster of an Attacker, as well as another new weapon that will, for the first time, be available for multiple Operators upon release (first as part of the battlepass, and later to everyone).
Two more modernized maps are inbound – Theme Park and Skyscraper – in addition to a full rework and modernization for a third map. Significant updates for the training modes, including Keres Legion targets instead of test dummies, are also coming in Season 4, plus improvements to ranked matchmaking, a new Dual Front assignment, and continued balancing work that will address EMP and jamming systems. Finally, a new playlist called Testing Grounds will serve as a place for the team to explore new ideas and gather feedback as they shape the future of Siege X.
The full reveals of seasons 3 & 4 will come later in 2025, but suffice to say it’s a big year for Rainbow Six Siege X. The Year 10 dynamic roadmap is also available on the official Rainbow Six Siege website.
Rainbow Six Siege X is available on PS5, PS4, Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One, and PC via Ubisoft Connect, Steam, and Epic Games, as well as with a Ubisoft+ Premium subscription.
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