[GameSpot] - Rainbow Six Siege Operation Solar Raid Release Date, Trailer, And New Info Revealed

[343iBot]

Rainbow Six Siege continues to grow, with Ubisoft confirming that the final season of Year 7, Operation Solar Raid, will launch on December 6--and it's yet another big-time update.

Described as Siege's biggest season yet, Operation Solar Raid adds fan-requested features like cross-play and cross-progression, as well as a new battle pass, a new map, a new Operator, and a new Ranked 2.0 playlist, among other things. The new season also adds Siege's latest crossover event, bringing skins from Square Enix's Nier to the game. Specifically, the skins are inspired by Nier: Automata and Nier Replicant.

Siege's new Operator is Solis, whose signature gadget is a SPEC-IO Electro Sensor that picks up "crucial" information that teams can use to get the upper hand.

"Solis can clearly analyze and identify Attacker devices including drones, breaching devices, and more. Her gloves also allow her to interact with the gadget overlay and trigger a cluster scan. Solis is a medium speed, medium health Operator, carrying the P90 or an ITA 12L as a primary weapon and an SMG-11 as a secondary weapon," Ubisoft said.

As for the Ranked 2.0 playlist, the big change is that overall rank is now decided by how many rank points they win or lose after each match instead of by their MMR. Additionally, every rank now has five divisions, each of which requires 100 rank points to push through to the next. Finally, a new rank--Emerald--has been added to sit between Platinum and Diamond.

For cross-play, players can now use Ubisoft Connect to team up with players on other consoles. Cross-play can be toggled off from the options menu. As for cross-progression, all progress, currency, and items are shared between platforms, and everyone gets a free Alph pack.

The new map is called Nighthaven Labs, and it will be available at launch.

"Serving as an extension of Nighthaven's headquarters, the map’s open sea, green cliffs and clear sky invites players to explore its immaculate architecture and technological marvels on display," Ubisoft said. "The interior features many access points, allowing for free navigational flows, especially if players are ready to take down the many breakable walls. Both Attackers and Defenders will have to avoid getting too comfortable as they could easily be flanked and lose their position. Built for creative strategies, this R&D facility challenges players to take advantage of unusual opportunities like the runout hatch just outside Meeting Room."

For the battle pass changes, it's now a two-tiered system featuring branching paths. This will allow players to prioritize the specific rewards they want, not unlike the Season 01 battle pass in Call of Duty: Modern Warfare II and Warzone 2.0.

The Nier content, meanwhile, will come to the in-game on November 21. It includes an elite set inspired by 2B from Nier Automata for Iana and a new bundle for Maverick based on the hero of Nier Replicant.

Finally, quality-of-life changes coming to Siege with the update include the removal of friendly fire in the preparation phase of a match, drone speed no longer being slowed down in some circumstances, and that all operators now move at the same speed when aiming down sights. There are also new accessibility updates, including the expansion of team color customization options.

Check out the video above to get a closer look at Operation Solar Raid.

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