Rainbow Six Siege is getting ready to unleash Y6S4, known as Operation High Calibre. There's plenty of new content coming to the game, just as there always is with new seasons of content. From the new operator known as Thorn, to the map rework on Outback. Ubisoft Montreal has added plenty of new things to get fans excited as they look to round off the final update for Year 6.
But there's also plenty of changes afoot, and that's why you'll want to make sure you take a look at the game's latest patch notes. We've rounded up the major changes for the upcoming season just below, but it's always worth checking back regularly. You never know when the game might unleash a small hotfix with big consequences to the game's meta. Read on, we've got all the information you need.
Latest News
30 November 2021 -
Rainbow Six Siege Y6S4 High Calibre is releasing today! Downtime for maintenance will begin later today and as with any update, a small period of maintenance is required for each platform before the new season can begin. The server downtime is planned to last one hour, however, as with any server downtime, this could vary.
Writing on Twitter the team told fans that the deployment schedule will start with PC players, then PS4/PS5 owners and finally Xbox users.
PC server downtime begins at 9:00 AM ET / 13:00 UTC. For those in the UK that means a 1pm GMT. Xbox server downtime begins at 10:00 AM ET / 15:00 UTC. That means UK based players will go offline at 2pm GMT. PS4/PS5 server downtime starts at 11:00 AM EDT / 16:00 UTC. Finally that means Xbox players will go offline at 3pm GMT.
HOW BIG IS THE RAINBOW SIX SIEGE Y6S4 UPDATE?
Ubisoft has confirmed that the Rainbow Six Siege Y6S4 update and patch will be quite a small one. Approximate files sizes can be seen below:
APPROXIMATE Y6S4 PATCH SIZES
- PC - Steam: 4.80 GB, Uplay: 5.36 GB
- PS4 - 4.38 GB
- PS5 - 4.10 GB
- Xbox One - 4.08 GB
- Xbox Series X - 4.31 GB
Y6S4 Designers Notes
Before we get to the patch notes, we also want to recommend that players take a look at the latest notes from the dev team. The recently released Y6S4 Designer's Notes go into far more detail than the patch notes. For instance, one of the big changes in Y6S4 is a change to the Angled Grip weapon attachment. Here's a quick recap of the change:
- The increase to ADS speed provided by the Angled Grip is now 20% less than it was before.
Now, whilst the patch notes will give you the above intel, what it won't tell you is why? That's where the Designer's Notes come in.
click to enlarge
+ 2In the case of the Angled Grip, we learn not only who the change is targeting, (in this case Top Ranked players and Pros), but also a deep dive into the change itself. Here's a small snippet of what to expect:
Before we get into the description, we want to acknowledge that we know this isn't going to be a popular change. We all love the angled grip, but that's part of the problem - it's so effective that it has become an essential attachment in just about every case. We know that by changing this, it will have an effect that's felt throughout the game, so we ask you to please jump on the Test Server, give it a try, and then come to us with your thoughts. In theory, it's a big change - we know that - but we truly want to understand how you feel with it in practice. This is something we can and do plan to continue tweaking, so we're extremely open to hearing your thoughts, as always.
Keen to learn more details from the Rainbow Six Siege Designers Notes? Then follow the link.
click to enlarge + 2Rainbow Six Y6S4 Patch Notes - Operation High Calibre
Now onto the really important details. Here's a look at the patch notes which reflect the Y6S4 test server, but it's quite possible that the dev team make changes in the lead up to launch on live servers. So be sure to check back for updates.
R6 Y6S4 | Test Server Patch Notes
TEAM COLORS
Since the game's release, Rainbow Six Siege has always used two colors to represent teams: blue and orange. The default team colors have now changed to blue and red, with opponents always being red. This change is mainly reflected in the UI and round feedback. It aims to bring consistency to the UI and improve onboarding for newcomers. The team colors can be changed between blue, red, or orange in the Accessibility section of the Options menu. To go along with this change, teams are now referred to in-game as Your Team and Opponents instead of Blue Team and Orange Team.
PLAYER COMFORT
DRONE COUNTER
- Defenders now have access to a drone counter in the HUD to help them keep track of the number of regular drones they've destroyed. This feature can be turned off in the HUD section of the Options menu.
HUD REWORK
- Visuals for the HUD have been updated to be more in-line with the game's art direction.
- Compass now displays pings and other marker locations, as well as feedback for height differences.
- Loadout (weapons, gadgets and unique abilities) was regrouped together to follow more consistent display rules.
- Text action reminders (ex: Press [SPACE] to Vault) have been replaced with icons to take up less space.
PLAYER PRIVACY
- A new Privacy section in the Options menu allows players to adjust settings related to in-game privacy.
Operator Balancing
Echo & Mozzie
- Increased drones’ time outside the building to 10s (from 3s).
Finka
- Can now activate Adrenal Surge while in DBNO.
- Removed Recoil Boost granted by Adrenal Surge.
- Increased cooldown to 20s (from 10s).
Maestro
- Evil Eye cameras can be rotated by teammates if Maestro is not actively using the camera.
- If hacked, Dokkaebi and Attackers will also have access to camera rotation.
Valkyrie & Outdoor Cameras
- Cameras thrown outside will lose connection after 10 seconds of activity.
- This change also applies to Bulletproof Cameras and Maestro’s Evil Eye.
- Cameras are accessible while in the air, but video feed does not begin until they attach to a surface.
- This change also applies to Zero’s ARGUS cameras.
Weapon and attachment balancing
Angled Grip
- The increase to ADS speed provided by the Angled Grip is now 20% less than it was before.
Gamepad recoil comfort
- Reduced lateral recoil on:
- Jäger – 416-C
- Ash – RC4
- Vigil – K1A
- Zofia – M762
- Ace – AK-12
- Warden, Dokkaebi and Vigil – SMG-12
- Mozzie, Aruni – P-10 Roni
- Alibi – Mx-4 Storm
TWEAKS & IMPROVEMENTS
BATTLE PASS
First Win of the Day Bonus
- Earn extra Battle Pass Points when winning any PVP playlist game within 24 hours of the first matched played.
- Time starts at the first match played and resets each day.
Battle Point Booster Update
- Boosters now give a 30% bonus for you, a 10% bonus for your teammates, and a 30% bonus for a team with at least 3 active Boosters.
- The bonus can be stacked for up to 100% bonus points.
GAME BALANCING
DSEG - Disabled State for Electronic Gadgets
- Created more consistent Scoring and Warning messages.
- Operators' access to Observation Tools while being affected by DSEG has been normalized. Previously the access was only blocked for Attackers, and now it is blocked for Defenders too.
- Iana, Finka, Lion, Dokkaebi and Warden's unique abilities cool down timer is now paused while affected by DSEG.
- Jackal's Eyenox automatically deactivates when affected by DSEG
- Dokkaebi's Logic Bomb ability can be interrupted by DSEG during its casting.
- Attackers affected by disabled state won't receive Finka's adrenaline boost anymore.
Testing Grounds Playlist (TS)
- No Squad MMR Restriction.
- Join in Progress enabled.
- No leaving penalty.
- Pro League map pool and New/Reworked map with a higher chance of appearance.
- No map ban.
- Operator ban enabled. New and reworked Operators can’t be banned.
- Mix of Unranked and Quick Match settings (3 rounds role swap and one round Overtime).
PLAYER COMFORT
Grenade Indicator
- Changes made to the UI so it is more reliable.
Operator Autopick
- While AFK during the Planning Phase, the Operator selected will be based on the player's personal statistics.
- This does not affect the behavior of the Random button.
Esports
- Live notification added when there is an ongoing match.
Alpha Packs
- New visuals for Alpha Packs.
- Behavior of Siege Esports Packs has been adjusted so that, instead of duplicates, it will give out Battle Pass Points.
Switch Firing Mode
- Switch Fire Mode was removed for weapons, but the function (now called Switch Ability Mode) was kept for Operator's that have unique abilities with different modes (Ex. Zofia, Capitao).
GAME HEALTH
Player Privacy
- New Privacy tab in the Options menu.
- Prevent Queue Sniping options moved to this new section.
- Options are: Hidden Matchmaking Delay and Hide Region and Latency.
Map Rotations
- Added Outback map and removed Border map from the Newcomer playlist.
- Added Outback map to Ranked/Unranked.
- Added Playlist Presets when creating a Custom game.
BUG FIXES
GAMEPLAY
- FIXED – Total ammo count is incorrect on some weapons.
- FIXED – Movement speed while using ADS upside down is faster than right side up during Rappel.
- FIXED – Changing sensitivity mid-game removes the ability to look in any direction while ADS.
- FIXED – Assist is not counted for the player that injures an opponent if a teammate puts the opponent in DBNO and then eliminates them.
- FIXED – Barbed wire can be destroyed by allies when friendly fire is off.
- FIXED – Muffled sound on some weapons.
- FIXED – Some device recharging cooldowns don't get paused while in DSEG.
LEVEL DESIGN
- FIXED – Multiple issues with planting or picking up the defuser in specific areas on various maps.
- FIXED – Collison, asset, and texture issues on various maps.
- FIXED – Multiple LOD issues on various maps.
- FIXED – Attacker can instantly teleport down from the roof by dropping to the lower ledge and entering Rappel on Bank map.
OPERATORS
- FIXED – Mute's Signal Disruptor area of effect is visible in Support Mode for Attackers and Defenders.
- FIXED – Ash's R4-C assault rifle total ammo count is incorrect.
- FIXED – Pulse's Cardiac Sensor does not appear on screen after a player joins a match in progress.
- FIXED – Lesion's Gu mine maximum limit is displayed as 99.
- FIXED – Zero's smart ping is misplaced and offset when the piercing camera is placed on the ceiling.
- FIXED – Ela's deployed Grzmot Mines appear in their undeployed state for a player that joins a match in progress.
- FIXED – Valkyrie's Black Eye camera can't be picked up if its thrown under tight spaces.
- FIXED – Goyo's Volcán Shield canister shells remain present after being destroyed for a player that joins a match in progress.
- FIXED – Thunderbird can peek behind cover without opponents seeing her when she deploys a Kona Station.
- FIXED – Ping marker doesn't appear when IQ aims at the edge of asset if it's behind an obstacle.
- FIXED – Various animation issues.
USER EXPERIENCE
- FIXED – Various UI issues.
- FIXED – Various localization issues.
- FIXED – Various customization issues.
- FIXED – Various VFX and audio issues.
- FIXED – Custom Playlists present some inconsistencies between cross-platform for PC and Stadia.
- FIXED – Saved Customization can be reset after a patch.
Rainbow Six Y6S4 Test Server Changes
The below developer notes reflect some changes made to Y6S4 based on feedback from the test server.
24 November -
23 November -
For more articles like this, take a look at our Rainbow Six Siege and Gaming News page.