This is my long-standing Steam review that goes back to 2016. At one stage I would have said R6:Siege was my favourite game of all time, maybe even the best MP shooter of all time, not any more however.
20/08/23: Everytime I return to this game I get more and more disappointed. It's just a shadow of its former self and it's sad.
23/01/22: I can't believe every time I return to this game it gets worse and worse. The new ops are hilariously out of place even for a game that launched with mini-EMP grenades. The maps have been simplified to the point that you can hardly build strategies anymore. Even if you could the entire playerbase has moved away from gathering intel and pairing equipment, instead it's now entirely a twitch shooter comprised of fast peeks and holding angles. The creativity once found in this game is well and truly dead and it's genuinely sad to see how far it has fallen.
24/12/20: Currently in the worst state it's ever been in. I've tried for months to enjoy this game but I've really fallen out of love with it, the community is absolutely horrible now, I play with mic/chat turned off to avoid all the toxic teammates. Teamkilling and abusing the team-damage system is rampant. I've run into cheaters for the first time in god knows how long. The game isn't fun anymore and it's primarily down to the fact the community is so bad now, unless you're a 5 stack this game is unbareable at any rank.
17/10/20: The community is more toxic than ever and Ubisoft have been streamlining the game with simpler maps more suited to pro-league. The map pool for both casual and ranked is lame now and new ops are hit or miss. Sometimes this game makes me want to jump off a bridge but it's my most played game ever so take that for however you will.
27/11/19: Yeah its still good
9/03/18: The implementation of the toxic ban has been great. The people banned permanently from the beginning have been considered to be in the top 1000 most toxic players according to Epi, so I'm happy to see them go. Toxic players tend to be the worst and most obnoxious to be on a team with and to play against, so I'm glad the community is getting cleaned up a bit. The new operators are pretty cool, and it's nice to see outbreak trying something new, even if it really isn't that well done. Supplies are way too easy to come across in Outbreak, you never really need them, and some of the already limited operators are useless to play as, such as Ying or Ash. The game overall is still more twitch shooter than tactical shooter, especially now that you can interrupt reloads at any point and just keep firing. The buffs and nerfs done have improved the game and I think it's better now than it was before White Noise.
28/12/17 - This game has become quite different to what it used to be, all the mechanics are still there but the most recent update added operators who feel really out of place, Zofia especially has far too many abilities and her guns are just too good. Similarly the matchmaking seems to have gotten worse, solo queuing punishes you because it basically means you're always going to be matched into an ongoing game in casual. Since the newest update I don't think I've joined any new casual lobbies when soloing and it's a pain. Similarly the ranked games are so skewed, with silvers and platinum players often sharing the same game. Most players now, even at the lower levels, have played long enough to learn stuff like run-outs and peeks, which are valid strats but make for very boring and infuriating matches, not the fault of the developers, just one of those things. Furthermore smurfs are more prevalent than ever, and good luck joining a game that doesn't have a premade in it.There's still a game here to enjoy but it's not as good as it used to be. I whole heartedly believe this game was one of the best multiplayer games made but in its current state it's definitely not that. The community has also devolved from being one of the best around to almost being on par with total♥♥♥♥♥♥fests like TF2 and CSGO, definitely not as bad since there isn't a market where money can be made but it's not far off it.
25/08/17 - I still stand by this update, genuinely one of the best multiplayer games ever made. Although the recent announcement that they are putting a greater focus on ESL and actually removing maps for being "unbalanced" is ridiculous. That's fine for ranked but trying to make casual even less casual is an all around bad decision. I really hope they reverse it.
400+ hours later and it's my favourite game. It still has a few problems though, namely connection issues related to uplay but it's been getting better in general.
Edit: This is now my most played game and for good reason. Operation Health is coming too so hopefully most of the real issues with this game will be resolved.
Original review:
This is probably the best multiplayer FPS available right now. It's surprising to say that the devs behind a Ubisoft published game actually seem to care about what they make and what the community thinks because they've been fairly ontop of balancing, issue-fixing and releasing patches and content.
The game is 5v5 in one of three similar game modes where one team defends and one attacks. Each side gets access to a number of 'operators' which are basically the game's versions of classes. Each has a unique ability and particular weapons depending on their CTU. The balancing is great, with each class having direct and indirect counters. Each class has its role and while there are a few that can be ignored they can still prove worthwhile on some maps. All the guns fill a niche and none are there purely for padding, the same can be said for attachments.
Destructability is the primary difference between this and other FPSs. The maps are all CQB and most of the combat happens through a wooden/plaster medium. There are distinctive destructable materials in the walls, floors and ceilings and the key to this game is map knowledge, because you'll know exactly where to punch a hole to get a good sight line or where to blow up for easy entrance into a reinforced room. You can have awful aim, poor crosshair placement and generally just be bad, but if you have map knowledge then you're halfway there to winning. It's a testament to really good level design more than anything.
There are problems though, the netcode being the biggest. I still run into issues of severe peeker's advantage where an enemy can poke out, kill me, and pop back into hiding without me ever seeing them because I've died before the server sends me the information that they're there to begin with. Rubberbanding happens frequently and sometimes searching for a game can take up to five minutes in ranked.
The lack of a singleplayer isn't a bad thing, there are situations to ease you into the game which don't have overdramatic cutscenes, pointless backstory and aren't an extended tutorial. They give you a set loadout and tell you to beat a mission. This lets you get used to the operators, the abilties, the guns and the maps without any unnessecary fluff.
You can play this game solo, although most people don't use microphones or communicate much at all, but it's playable and still fun even in ranked. It's better with friends though since information is the key to winning. I bought the game for €15 as a Starter Edition but considering that it took me only 5 months to acquire nearly half the playtime I have in CSGO which took 4 years, I'd say the game is worth paying €60 for. It also ruined CS for me, by showing me what it's like to play a tactical 5v5 shooter that's actually good. I would say avoid the starter edition and just get the full game when it goes on sale once every three months for only fiver more than the starter edition though.
20/08/23: Everytime I return to this game I get more and more disappointed. It's just a shadow of its former self and it's sad.
23/01/22: I can't believe every time I return to this game it gets worse and worse. The new ops are hilariously out of place even for a game that launched with mini-EMP grenades. The maps have been simplified to the point that you can hardly build strategies anymore. Even if you could the entire playerbase has moved away from gathering intel and pairing equipment, instead it's now entirely a twitch shooter comprised of fast peeks and holding angles. The creativity once found in this game is well and truly dead and it's genuinely sad to see how far it has fallen.
24/12/20: Currently in the worst state it's ever been in. I've tried for months to enjoy this game but I've really fallen out of love with it, the community is absolutely horrible now, I play with mic/chat turned off to avoid all the toxic teammates. Teamkilling and abusing the team-damage system is rampant. I've run into cheaters for the first time in god knows how long. The game isn't fun anymore and it's primarily down to the fact the community is so bad now, unless you're a 5 stack this game is unbareable at any rank.
17/10/20: The community is more toxic than ever and Ubisoft have been streamlining the game with simpler maps more suited to pro-league. The map pool for both casual and ranked is lame now and new ops are hit or miss. Sometimes this game makes me want to jump off a bridge but it's my most played game ever so take that for however you will.
27/11/19: Yeah its still good
9/03/18: The implementation of the toxic ban has been great. The people banned permanently from the beginning have been considered to be in the top 1000 most toxic players according to Epi, so I'm happy to see them go. Toxic players tend to be the worst and most obnoxious to be on a team with and to play against, so I'm glad the community is getting cleaned up a bit. The new operators are pretty cool, and it's nice to see outbreak trying something new, even if it really isn't that well done. Supplies are way too easy to come across in Outbreak, you never really need them, and some of the already limited operators are useless to play as, such as Ying or Ash. The game overall is still more twitch shooter than tactical shooter, especially now that you can interrupt reloads at any point and just keep firing. The buffs and nerfs done have improved the game and I think it's better now than it was before White Noise.
28/12/17 - This game has become quite different to what it used to be, all the mechanics are still there but the most recent update added operators who feel really out of place, Zofia especially has far too many abilities and her guns are just too good. Similarly the matchmaking seems to have gotten worse, solo queuing punishes you because it basically means you're always going to be matched into an ongoing game in casual. Since the newest update I don't think I've joined any new casual lobbies when soloing and it's a pain. Similarly the ranked games are so skewed, with silvers and platinum players often sharing the same game. Most players now, even at the lower levels, have played long enough to learn stuff like run-outs and peeks, which are valid strats but make for very boring and infuriating matches, not the fault of the developers, just one of those things. Furthermore smurfs are more prevalent than ever, and good luck joining a game that doesn't have a premade in it.There's still a game here to enjoy but it's not as good as it used to be. I whole heartedly believe this game was one of the best multiplayer games made but in its current state it's definitely not that. The community has also devolved from being one of the best around to almost being on par with total♥♥♥♥♥♥fests like TF2 and CSGO, definitely not as bad since there isn't a market where money can be made but it's not far off it.
25/08/17 - I still stand by this update, genuinely one of the best multiplayer games ever made. Although the recent announcement that they are putting a greater focus on ESL and actually removing maps for being "unbalanced" is ridiculous. That's fine for ranked but trying to make casual even less casual is an all around bad decision. I really hope they reverse it.
400+ hours later and it's my favourite game. It still has a few problems though, namely connection issues related to uplay but it's been getting better in general.
Edit: This is now my most played game and for good reason. Operation Health is coming too so hopefully most of the real issues with this game will be resolved.
Original review:
This is probably the best multiplayer FPS available right now. It's surprising to say that the devs behind a Ubisoft published game actually seem to care about what they make and what the community thinks because they've been fairly ontop of balancing, issue-fixing and releasing patches and content.
The game is 5v5 in one of three similar game modes where one team defends and one attacks. Each side gets access to a number of 'operators' which are basically the game's versions of classes. Each has a unique ability and particular weapons depending on their CTU. The balancing is great, with each class having direct and indirect counters. Each class has its role and while there are a few that can be ignored they can still prove worthwhile on some maps. All the guns fill a niche and none are there purely for padding, the same can be said for attachments.
Destructability is the primary difference between this and other FPSs. The maps are all CQB and most of the combat happens through a wooden/plaster medium. There are distinctive destructable materials in the walls, floors and ceilings and the key to this game is map knowledge, because you'll know exactly where to punch a hole to get a good sight line or where to blow up for easy entrance into a reinforced room. You can have awful aim, poor crosshair placement and generally just be bad, but if you have map knowledge then you're halfway there to winning. It's a testament to really good level design more than anything.
There are problems though, the netcode being the biggest. I still run into issues of severe peeker's advantage where an enemy can poke out, kill me, and pop back into hiding without me ever seeing them because I've died before the server sends me the information that they're there to begin with. Rubberbanding happens frequently and sometimes searching for a game can take up to five minutes in ranked.
The lack of a singleplayer isn't a bad thing, there are situations to ease you into the game which don't have overdramatic cutscenes, pointless backstory and aren't an extended tutorial. They give you a set loadout and tell you to beat a mission. This lets you get used to the operators, the abilties, the guns and the maps without any unnessecary fluff.
You can play this game solo, although most people don't use microphones or communicate much at all, but it's playable and still fun even in ranked. It's better with friends though since information is the key to winning. I bought the game for €15 as a Starter Edition but considering that it took me only 5 months to acquire nearly half the playtime I have in CSGO which took 4 years, I'd say the game is worth paying €60 for. It also ruined CS for me, by showing me what it's like to play a tactical 5v5 shooter that's actually good. I would say avoid the starter edition and just get the full game when it goes on sale once every three months for only fiver more than the starter edition though.