Rumours abounded ahead of Ubisoft's E3 conference that the long-delayed Rainbow Six: Patriots would be resurfacing, though we can now assume that Patriots has essentially been cancelled and replaced with what just might be the adrenaline boost the franchise needs: Rainbow Six: Siege. The gameplay footage shown off begins in a police helicopter, as a house is being scoped out: inside is a team of bad guys with a hostage, and if you play a cop, it's your mission to eliminate the bad guys and secure the hostage. We see the use of a drone to obtain a visual inside the home ahead of a breach, at which point an intense game of cat-and-mouse begins. As we observe the match unfolding from the perspective of the cops, we see them methodically sweep through the building, and every time a player is killed, the odds are updated on-screen to remind you how well (or how horribly) you're doing. It clearly won't appeal to the CoD crowd as it's simply too patient and deliberate, but as we see near the end of the match, planting an explosive charge above the enemies and dropping in to deliver "death from above" looks like it will be tremendously satisfying. Fondly recalling the earlier, better Rainbow Six games mixed with a dash of the brilliant S.W.A.T. series, Siege was certainly one of the stand-out surprises of this year's conference. You'll be able to play it sometime in 2015.
Stay at home dad who spends as much time teaching his kids the merits of Martin Scorsese as possible (against the missus' wishes).
General video game, TV and film nut. Occasional sports fan. Full time loon.
