“Getting Shot Three Rooms over through a Hole in the Wall” and other Fun ways to Spend your Saturday Night

Welcome to Tom Clancy’s Rainbow Six: Siege, you poor, poor soul.

This is the shooter that defies the modern shooter. In a world where running and jumping around the map is rewarded, Siege requires slow, methodical gameplay that people aren’t used to. It plays similarly to, I imagine, a SWAT team raiding a building, leaving no stone unturned as they clear the building. Except in this you aren’t a SWAT team, just 5 operators trying not to get shot before even entering the building.

Operators are who you play as in Siege. Each has their own weapons of choice, speed and armor values, and a single special ability. These abilities range from offensive to defensive to utilitarian in nature, all to help your team either complete the objective or kill the other team. All game modes are 5 vs 5, Attackers vs Defenders. The attackers want to defuse a bomb/ secure a room/hostage. The defenders want to stop them for the allotted time, usually 4 minutes. And they both want to kill each other (That’s usually how the rounds end). Defenders get 45 seconds to set up, while the attackers go in and scout them out at the same time. Games consist of either Best of 5 or Best of 9 rounds, with the winners being prominently displayed and usually saying “gg ez” in the chat even if it went into overtime.

Siege is both he slowest and fastest shooter you will ever play. You have to play carefully, with a plan and on guard at all times. Once, the gunfights break out, however, they’re over in about 2-3 seconds tops. The time to kill in Siege is ridiculously fast, being able to end your opponent before they even turn around. Also, headshots are lethal. Always. a 50x damage multiplier ensures that even catching a 9mm pistol round across the map in the dome will end that round for you really quick. These mechanics ensure that every round of Siege is intense and fun, and it’s one of the reasons the game is one of the most popular today.

If you have the patience and time to learn (probably a good 30-40 hours before you become “decent”) It’s an extremely rewarding game to play and can lead to some of the best gaming moments you’ll ever have.