Since Rainbow Six: Siege launched in 2015, Ubisoft’s tactical shooter has steadily grown in both operator and player count, with more than sixty playable characters andover seventy million players across all platforms. While the operators have made appearances in other Ubisoft titles such as Ghost Recon: Breakpoint, these highly-trained soldiers are getting ready for what may be their most challenging mission yet, as the Siege spin-offRainbow Six: Extraction prepares to launch early next year. When hostile parasite-like aliens called the Archaeans threaten the planet, eighteen operators have stepped up to bring their unique abilities and weapons to this co-op shooter. But despite a lower price point and free two-week trials that game owners can share with their friends, Extraction may have a tough time standing out in an increasingly crowded genre, when titles likeBack 4 BloodandAliens: Fireteam Elitehave both launched in recent months with similar premises. To account for this, Ubisoft has discussed several unique mechanics that could help allure new players and Siege fans alike to take on this deadly alien threat.
Each run in Extraction, referred to as “incursions,” will task players with completing randomly-assigned objectives that change in location through each playthrough. A full incursion consists of three smaller maps, but players can choose to extract themselves in between each successfully completed objective. Exploring further into each area comes with plenty of risk as higher difficulty enemies are more likely to spawn, but players who manage to escape with their operators intact will be granted higher-quality rewards, although it’s still unclear exactly how the progression will play out and encourage players to continue accepting new missions. If an operator does fall in combat, that operator will go “missing in action” and will be unable to be selected for future missions until players perform an extraction mission. Even operators who barely survive a mission can run the risk of being severely injured and may be unplayable for a given period of time, encouraging the player to choose their operator wisely before each mission, particularly since two players can’t play as the same operator in an incursion.
Since Rainbow Six: Siege has fully established the weapons and abilities of each operator, it only makes sense that their loadouts would carry over into Extraction. From Sledge’s destructive breaching hammer to Pulse’s heartbeat sensor that can spot enemies through walls, the unique nature of each operator will open the door to experimentation with team composition, as players can consider the mission objective and difficulty when determining which character to bring along. Other gameplay mechanics from Siege will be present in Extraction as well, including a ping system, recon drones to peek ahead and fully-destructible interiors that can be broken down to catch enemies by surprise or reinforced to keep out unwanted visitors. While experience with Siege will help veteran players grasp the basics quicker, the less-punishing nature of fighting AI creatures that won’t instantly headshot you should give novice players more breathing room to figure out how these returning features can be used to their advantage.
Perhaps Extraction’s most noteworthy feature is its enemies, or more specifically how Ubisoft wants players to approach the alien threat. In addition to spreading “sprawl” that slows players down and buffs its allies, the Archaeans come in both standard and special types, with unique variants with names like the Apex and the Tormenter. But instead of being expected to mow down hundreds of these creatures without a second thought, Extraction looks to encourage stealthy gameplay to surprise and overcome the infested areas, rewarding players who remain quiet and use their abilities to gain the upper hand and punishing players who make noise or wantonly risk the life of their operators. The player’s health and ammo are both reflective of this focus, as pickups for both are limited and players cannot regenerate health on their own. Ultimately, Rainbow Six: Extraction will need to prove that its additional level of challenge can be both fun and rewarding to players of all skill levels when it launches on January 20 for PS5, Xbox Series X/S, PC, PS4 and Xbox One.
