Ubisoft Could Be Planning to Sell a Second Season Pass for Rainbow Six: Siege

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Ubisoft Could Be Planning to Sell a Second Season Pass for Rainbow Six: Siege

//cdn.themis-media.com/media/global/images/library/deriv/1347/1347612.jpgA second season pass could be on the way for Rainbow Six: Siege if a survey leaked on Reddit is accurate.

Rainbow Six: Siege launched on December 1, 2015 - nearly a year ago. Along with the game, they also offered a season pass, like most other games do. If a survey that popped up on Reddit [https://www.reddit.com/r/Rainbow6/comments/51elyo/year_2_confirmed_uniforms_this_survey_was/] is accurate, Ubisoft may be considering offering up a second season pass in the near future. The screenshot of the survey mentions uniforms, a monthly exclusive skin, and other customization items.

The survey asked for respondents to rank a list of items that could be included in a "future Season Pass." Ubisoft said when the game launched (on the game's Steam page [http://store.steampowered.com/app/417460/]) that the original Season Pass would only cover items through December 1, 2016. The Season Pass doesn't cover major expansions that add operators and maps, as those have all been free. What it does include is early access to the operators, exclusive cosmetic items, and discounts on in-game store purchases.

Obviously, a survey isn't a confirmation, but a second Season Pass wouldn't be a huge surprise. Back when Rainbow Six: Siege launched, Ubi said that they planned to offer all post-launch maps for free. They also said that they had "ambitious post-launch plans" for the game. A second year of content would certainly fit into that sort of plan.

I'll be curious to see how this news is received. While some people will certainly frown on a second Season Pass for a game, I do think it's worth arguing that we'd rather have more content via a new season pass than a sequel that we have to buy all over again (and probably another Season Pass anyway). Let us know how you feel in the forums.

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[Thunderous Cacophony]

I always thought that 'Season Pass' was a euphemism for all the content that would be coming out. I could see dropping some extra money up front, but definitely wouldn't want to keep resubscribing to one just for some cosmetic items. How many people are still playing Siege enough to warrant spending another $40 for frills?

 

[Quellist]

It could be a good thing, i mean if the Season Pass means early access to new content it then means that new, hopefully free content will be coming too.

I'm not normally one to give UBI the thumbs up but if the market is there, then why not?

 

[Rommel102]

As this is for content that is all cosmetic in nature (aside from the early access for new operators, and the immediate unlocking of them) I see no problem.

Siege is a fantastic shooter, easily the best I have played in a decade, and they have supported it post-launch rather well. Patches have been regular, balancing tweaks have made sense, and the new operators and maps have been varied and fun. The fact that a regular player can easily use in game currency (earned by playing) to unlock everything worthwhile has proven a good combination of paid/free content.

 

[fix-the-spade]

I always thought that 'Season Pass' was a euphemism for all the content that would be coming out. I could see dropping some extra money up front, but definitely wouldn't want to keep resubscribing to one just for some cosmetic items. How many people are still playing Siege enough to warrant spending another $40 for frills?

It was, but publishers are increasingly trying to define 'Season' in the same way that TV defines Season. So potentially the same game can have multiple 'Seasons' requiring multiple Season Passes.

It's effectively a subscription model via the back door, some games like Destiny have more or less carried it off, others like Borderlands not so much.

 

[tippy2k2]

As someone who just got Siege, I'm not so against this.

The important shit is free (maps) or unlockable playing the game (Operatives, though granted that does take a while for the "F2P" peeps). As long as I can keep getting free stuff off of the payments of the DLC buyers, I'm fine with it.

 

[Paragon Fury]

I always thought that 'Season Pass' was a euphemism for all the content that would be coming out. I could see dropping some extra money up front, but definitely wouldn't want to keep resubscribing to one just for some cosmetic items. How many people are still playing Siege enough to warrant spending another $40 for frills?

I think the Escapist even reported it here, but even as of a couple of months ago after Skull Rain launched R6S had more people playing concurrently than at launch. It's gotten more and more popular both as an E-Sport and for being the only true AAA tactical shooter out there, giving people a relief from older games or from playing non-stop CS:GO.

 

[Thunderous Cacophony]

I always thought that 'Season Pass' was a euphemism for all the content that would be coming out. I could see dropping some extra money up front, but definitely wouldn't want to keep resubscribing to one just for some cosmetic items. How many people are still playing Siege enough to warrant spending another $40 for frills?

I think the Escapist even reported it here, but even as of a couple of months ago after Skull Rain launched R6S had more people playing concurrently than at launch. It's gotten more and more popular both as an E-Sport and for being the only true AAA tactical shooter out there, giving people a relief from older games or from playing non-stop CS:GO.

I can see it being popular among competitive gamers, but the total numbers are not great. It's holding at about 8000 to 10,000 players on Steam (launch was about 30,000, jumped in August with Skull Rain to about 40,000 but dropped like a stone afterwards). Assuming similar retention among other platforms (Steam sold 400,000 copies), there's about 60-70,000 players still going at it. That's not bad, but it's not a huge base to try and squeeze out the price of almost another brand-new game (or a AAA title after about 3 weeks on Amazon).

I guess if there were any people willing to spend the money, it would be those professional gamers. It's a darn good game, but I just don't know how much money they can make with it, or the precedent it sets up to keep chipping away at consumer wallets.

Sources
http://steamcharts.com/app/359550#6m
https://www.reddit.com/r/Rainbow6/comments/46ia7i/rainbow_six_siege_sales_stats_and_future/

 

[Paragon Fury]

I always thought that 'Season Pass' was a euphemism for all the content that would be coming out. I could see dropping some extra money up front, but definitely wouldn't want to keep resubscribing to one just for some cosmetic items. How many people are still playing Siege enough to warrant spending another $40 for frills?

I think the Escapist even reported it here, but even as of a couple of months ago after Skull Rain launched R6S had more people playing concurrently than at launch. It's gotten more and more popular both as an E-Sport and for being the only true AAA tactical shooter out there, giving people a relief from older games or from playing non-stop CS:GO.

I can see it being popular among competitive gamers, but the total numbers are not great. It's holding at about 8000 to 10,000 players on Steam (launch was about 30,000, jumped in August with Skull Rain to about 40,000 but dropped like a stone afterwards). Assuming similar retention among other platforms (Steam sold 400,000 copies), there's about 60-70,000 players still going at it. That's not bad, but it's not a huge base to try and squeeze out the price of almost another brand-new game (or a AAA title after about 3 weeks on Amazon).

I guess if there were any people willing to spend the money, it would be those professional gamers. It's a darn good game, but I just don't know how much money they can make with it, or the precedent it sets up to keep chipping away at consumer wallets.

Sources
http://steamcharts.com/app/359550#6m
https://www.reddit.com/r/Rainbow6/comments/46ia7i/rainbow_six_siege_sales_stats_and_future/

It's way more popular on console, because on console they don't non-stop constantly masturbate over CS:GO so they play other things more often.

Seriously, PC gamers just won't let go of their obsession with CS:GO for anything. Console gamers aren't even as dedicated to CoD as PC is to CS:S/CS:GO.

 

[JohnnyDelRay]

Did anyone else just really, really want another improved, Rainbow 6: Vegas? I loved that series for what it was, and have been hoping for years for another game to come out just like it. Now it seems to be more of an online thing.

Can anyone who has experience in previous R6 games give me a quick run down on how this game compares, in a single/co-op setting, and if it's worth getting into as an older fan of the series? Just worried about getting stuck into it as it seems there's a lot of paid content. I was roped into this bullshit after really enjoying Payday: the Heist, then when I got Payday 2....well you know how that shit turned out.

 

[Metalrocks]

i havent played this game for some time now. even forgot the last time i have played it. not sure what to think of the new pass if true. i certainly didnt get buy a season pass. only spend a small amount to get some new characters but thats about it.

 

[Arnoxthe1]

I thought it was generally understood that buying a season pass meant you got a free pass to ALL DLC in the future. What a fucking rip-off. Fuck you, Ubisoft.

 

[LostCrusader]

Did anyone else just really, really want another improved, Rainbow 6: Vegas? I loved that series for what it was, and have been hoping for years for another game to come out just like it. Now it seems to be more of an online thing.

Can anyone who has experience in previous R6 games give me a quick run down on how this game compares, in a single/co-op setting, and if it's worth getting into as an older fan of the series? Just worried about getting stuck into it as it seems there's a lot of paid content. I was roped into this bullshit after really enjoying Payday: the Heist, then when I got Payday 2....well you know how that shit turned out.

The short answer is don't get it if you want single/co-op.

There is no singleplayer campaign in siege. What it does have are "situations", which is basically training missions so you can learn the mechanics. That's it.

Co-op has terrorist hunt, which will be familiar from vegas. I've hated it in siege and vegas for plenty of reasons, but that's just my opinion.

So that just leaves the online multiplayer, which is really different from vegas (FPS vs third person cover shooter, focus on destructible environtments).

OT: I haven't had any trouble getting operators without the first season pass and wouldn't bother with a new one. But if they just make it a huge grind to get new ops, I would probably just stop with the game over throwing more money at them.

 

[JohnnyDelRay]

snipped

The short answer is don't get it if you want single/co-op.

There is no singleplayer campaign in siege. What it does have are "situations", which is basically training missions so you can learn the mechanics. That's it.

Co-op has terrorist hunt, which will be familiar from vegas. I've hated it in siege and vegas for plenty of reasons, but that's just my opinion.

So that just leaves the online multiplayer, which is really different from vegas (FPS vs third person cover shooter, focus on destructible environtments).

OT: I haven't had any trouble getting operators without the first season pass and wouldn't bother with a new one. But if they just make it a huge grind to get new ops, I would probably just stop with the game over throwing more money at them.

Thanks for the reply, yeah that's the only thing I really wanted to confirm. The only other thing holding me back is the amount of paid content for what is really a full-priced game. I was always under the impression that Season Passes are a one-hit way to get everything, short of waiting for a GOTY edition or the like. Never seen a second Season Pass go out on the one game before.

Oh, just one small correction to your post though - Vegas was played in first person, though yes it is cover-based and you see your own character in third person when you hold down the cover button. And this, too was different from previous Rainbow 6, non-Vegas games, which were more leaning-based as I recall

 

[Elijin]

The anger from these topics is always magical. Its a Season Pass, not a Lifetime Pass. You guys seem to understand seasons in everything that isn't DLC, why does it suddenly become incomprehensible when applied to DLC?

 

[Timedraven 117]

The anger from these topics is always magical. Its a Season Pass, not a Lifetime Pass. You guys seem to understand seasons in everything that isn't DLC, why does it suddenly become incomprehensible when applied to DLC?

Because the industry is trying to change the previously accepted definition of a season pass at the detriment to the consumer, as eventually some company will get the dim idea to stagger DLC over the years to charge as much as possible, so instead of getting say 6 DLC packs in a year, you will get 1 DLC pack a year.

 

[Elijin]

The anger from these topics is always magical. Its a Season Pass, not a Lifetime Pass. You guys seem to understand seasons in everything that isn't DLC, why does it suddenly become incomprehensible when applied to DLC?

Because the industry is trying to change the previously accepted definition of a season pass at the detriment to the consumer, as eventually some company will get the dim idea to stagger DLC over the years to charge as much as possible, so instead of getting say 6 DLC packs in a year, you will get 1 DLC pack a year.

Nope, cant get behind this notion. Even when Season Passes were first introduced people immediately made the connection that it would be a years worth of DLC. If I had the time and inclination, I could search back on these very forums for the first news post about Season passes, and it was very clear that's what it would be. No one is moving the goal post, its just that most triple A games these days only have a year lifespan. Whats happening here is that a game feels confident enough to actually create another full season of DLC, which is the oddity. Not the 'changing the accepted definition of a season pass'.

As for your point about a company trying to cheat people? Well, every season pass I've purchased has openly stated how many DLC packs it will contain. If you're buying Season passes that don't outline what/how many you're paying for, that just sounds like being a lazy consumer. Businesses prey on lazy consumers, welcome to the world.

 

[josemlopes]

snipped

The short answer is don't get it if you want single/co-op.

There is no singleplayer campaign in siege. What it does have are "situations", which is basically training missions so you can learn the mechanics. That's it.

Co-op has terrorist hunt, which will be familiar from vegas. I've hated it in siege and vegas for plenty of reasons, but that's just my opinion.

So that just leaves the online multiplayer, which is really different from vegas (FPS vs third person cover shooter, focus on destructible environtments).

OT: I haven't had any trouble getting operators without the first season pass and wouldn't bother with a new one. But if they just make it a huge grind to get new ops, I would probably just stop with the game over throwing more money at them.

Thanks for the reply, yeah that's the only thing I really wanted to confirm. The only other thing holding me back is the amount of paid content for what is really a full-priced game. I was always under the impression that Season Passes are a one-hit way to get everything, short of waiting for a GOTY edition or the like. Never seen a second Season Pass go out on the one game before.

Oh, just one small correction to your post though - Vegas was played in first person, though yes it is cover-based and you see your own character in third person when you hold down the cover button. And this, too was different from previous Rainbow 6, non-Vegas games, which were more leaning-based as I recall

The season pass content isnt important if you dont care for cosmetics, the content that actually matters is free for everyone. The new operators do have to be unlocked at a higher in-game credits price but its about a week of gaming (1 hour each day) for one character.

And if you really want there are some easy ways to let the game farm money itself, but I dont find that necessary.

On the singleplayer/co-op side I like it here more then in Vegas. The campaign in Vegas was fun but it wasnt worth many playthroughs since it was rather linear, I liked the T-Hunt more and in Siege T-Hunt is much better, and since they give away maps there are always new levels to play in.

Every round is different with new enemy distribution, on the hardest its really hard and the different co-op game modes do change how you aproach the level:
T-Hunt classic is what you expect
Hostage has a better sense of direction, the closer to the hostage the more fortified it is, so you can choose to clear everything out or go straight to it if you know his position
Disarm bomb is about positioning and preservation, you will want to play very defensively since you have to go to two diferent objectives and defend them for a short period of time
Protect hostage is where you play as the defense team against waves of enemies, its all about protecting yourself and securing entry points.


Also, Siege doesnt have the problem with enemy spawning that Vegas had where you could walk into a room and it would trigger the same enemy attack every time, making the map predictable.

So yeah, if you can find it cheap I think its well worth it if you like the idea of what T-Hunt is about (have a map, have some enemies, do whatever you want)

 

[Grouchy Imp_v1legacy]

Did anyone else just really, really want another improved, Rainbow 6: Vegas? I loved that series for what it was, and have been hoping for years for another game to come out just like it. Now it seems to be more of an online thing.

Can anyone who has experience in previous R6 games give me a quick run down on how this game compares, in a single/co-op setting, and if it's worth getting into as an older fan of the series? Just worried about getting stuck into it as it seems there's a lot of paid content. I was roped into this bullshit after really enjoying Payday: the Heist, then when I got Payday 2....well you know how that shit turned out.

There is no paid content really. The DLC packs are all free, all the season pass gives you is 7-day early access and removes the necessity of having to unlock the new operators with the in-game currency ('Renown'). I bought the vanilla version of the game and have unlocked the full operator roster without having to spend a penny, so don't worry in that regard (although the DLC operators are *much* more expensive than the regular ones).

As for how it stacks up against previous titles? Well I only have Vegas 2 as a comparison, but pretty well I'd say. There is no story campaign like in V2 - instead the focus is entirely on adaptations of the Terrorist Hunt mode, both PvE and PvP. The cover system is gone, but given how freely walls are destroyed this doesn't feel like a bad thing. Instead you'll rely primarily on a member of your team using an operator such as Blitz or Montagne to head the assault with a shield providing cover for the rest of the squad.

PvE Terrorist Hunt sees you and up to four other players competing in four game modes, Terrorist Hunt Classic (identical to TH from V2), Bomb Defusal, Hostage Extraction and Hostage Defense. The first three game modes see you picking your operator from the attacking roster, whereas the last sees your team (taken from the defenders roster) try to defend a VIP from waves of White Masks. On Normal difficulty these objectives are fairly easy, and can be achieved by a halfway decent team with CoD/Halo levels of coordination (which is to say little or none), but on higher difficulties good team communication, strategy and tactics are an absolute must.

PvP is online TDM essentially, but with teams of 5 split into Attackers and Defenders, with the teams taking turns at each. I've only played three games of online play however, so can't really give a decent account of it's pros and cons.

 

[JohnnyDelRay]

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Thanks guys for your input, that's really quite helpful. And interesting, I think the game would be worth a look if I can find it cheap. Trouble is, Steam sales are fewer and further between, and not that great anymore. I don't think this game crops up in many other places like GMG and the like.

I like the idea of wave defence and coop, and I'm interested in the THC (heh) if it could make for some tense standoffs. I'm definitely not worried about the lack of cover system with the new enviro destruction and tactics that would entail.

I also like the idea that the TH is more random this time and that means less standing in one place trying to fire shots to bait out the same number of guys from the same spawn points.

Thanks again! Will definitely check this one out now (though without any season passes)