Rainbow Six: Lockdown Interview

We have a nice little chat with Ubisoft about their upcoming title from their highly successful series, Rainbow Six.



Q: Jedi, age 17 from MI asks: What changes have you made to game play from the previous games?

A: Most of the changes lay in features intended to immerse the player into the game. Things like advanced physics and ragdoll features, iron-sights, water and dust effects on the goggles, footprints on the ground, heat shimmer effects and so on. But there are also many new options to the player, like not only being able to breach a door with a breaching charge, but also with a shotgun or breaching hammer. The biggest addition for the Xbox however is the Persistent Elite Creation Mode on Xbox Live!

Q: Snowblind, age 16 from Seattle, WA asks: This "create-an-operative" mode; will it be in single player as well as multiplayer? If so, how will the single player version differ from the multiplayer one?

A: No, the Persistent Elite Creation Mode is multiplayer only.

Q: Sam, age 16 from Dublin, Ireland asks: What is it you seek to achieve in the R6 brand?? Is it realism? Action? A compelling story or multiplayer?

A: The Rainbow Six franchise has always been about realism, both in story and in gameplay. The trick is to find a fine balance between realism and entertainment. This said, the true strength of the brand has always been multiplayer and that is where Lockdown too will excel.

Q: Echoes, age 14 from Texas, asks: Is there an online mode? If so, what can we expect from it?

A: Yes, there is a strong multiplayer support. Not only online, but also for LAN and splitscreen. You can expect 16 player Xbox Live! and LAN games. When playing on Xbox Live!, you have the option to choose to play Persistent Elite Creation Mode or regular multiplayer. There are four types of adversarial multiplayer games: Total Conquest, Retrieval, Team Sharpshooter and Team Survival. You will also be able to player 4 player coop missions over Xbox Live! or two player splitscreen coop missions on one TV. The real strength of Lockdowns multiplayer features lay in the Persistent Elite Creation Mode that allow you to create your own persistent character. What persistent means is that the characters class, stats, skills, appearance and equipment of your character is saved when you log off, so you can access it again when you log back on the next time. This feature allows clans to create their own unique look, and have members specialized at certain tasks. Since you can play as Commando, Combat Medic, Engineer and Spec Ops, there is a class that appeals to everyones style of play.

Q: Mike, age 17, from Miami, Florida asks: What have you guys done to this game to prevent cheaters from returning again? Will we get better response time on Bug patches?

A: Our design team took great care in assessing previous issues in Rainbow and addressed them for this version. As far as patches are concerned we will address any possible issues in timely manner due to a new patch delivery procedure.

Q: Mrmp3, age 17 from NY asks: 6. Have you added any more options in terms of server hosting (i.e. assigning administrators, banning any weapon of your choosing, vote kick players on/off, etc.)?

A: We are using the same server options that were present in Rainbow Six Black Arrow. The ban weapon feature is not present however.

Q: There were many issues in terms of lean-glitching in terms of the net code. Have both been improved? If so, is the net code going to make a game as lag free as 90% of as many current Xbox Live games are?

A: We have modified the code so that bullet hits are not calculated in the same manner, this will make for a much more accurate feel in the game and you should no longer get hit after leaning back on a corner.

Q: Robert, age 17 from Nova Scotia, Canada asks: 8. Can we expect some maps that aren't extremely large, but still offer some good close quarter combat?

A: Definately. There are maps to accomodate both styles. Some are a bit larger, with open spaces here and there. Others are smaller and more cramped.

Q: Can players expect to see some interactive environments and possibly a little destruction?

A: The maps in Persistent Elite Creation Mode can be effected by the players. The Engineer class has the ability to operate machinery, that allows them to open up or close off access routes and specific avenues of approach.

Q: Trabucles, age 20 from Puebla Mexico asks: 10. Talking about single player, the character I choose will have any special abilities from others, or all characters will perform the same way?

A: In singleplayer, you do not actually chose your characters. They are chosen for you, but differ depending on which mission you go on. All Rainbows are specialized, meaning some are better at doing certain tasks (like disabling cameras or disarming bombs).

Q: If they do have special abilities, will they be enabled/useful on live/LAN game play?

A: The singleplayer abilities only matter in singleplayer or cooperative game modes.

Q: Brandon Totten, age 15 from Vallejo California asks: 12. How much better will the weapon selection be in RS4 compared to RS3?

A: We have added some very interesting new weapons to the game such as the M4 with an under barrel shotgun and the OICW assault rifle. Some familiar guns are also back from RS3 however everything has been tweaked so that all guns now have their own purpose.

Q: Will the M8 gun be included in the game?

A: The XM8 will not be available with the launch version of the game.

Q: Mark, age 17 from Ohio asks: 14. My favorite game type in the previous Rainbow Xbox titles was Cooperative play. Playing with 3 buds on live and going through missions was always a blast. Will this return?

A: Yes, most definately!

Q: Will you make any noticeable improvements to satisfy the co-op fans like myself?

A: The Coop mode will require you and your friends to be a lot more tactical then previous titles.

Q: Lonnie, age 16 from Ohio asks: 16. How much military/SWAT research has gone into Rainbow Six 4, if any?

A: Our research process for the game involved meeting with law enforcement officers, reading countless books on CQB tactics, weapons and equipment and in many cases manipulating equipment ourselves to get a feel for the real thing.

Q: Will Rainbow Six 4's story incorporate anything that is currently going on in Real-World affairs?

A: Certain elements in the game may seem familiar due to the extensive conflicts around the world, however we try to stay away from directly portraying real world events in the game.

Q: Incognito, age 21 from Toronto, Canada asks: 18. From the screenshots, all the HUD's look somewhat obstructing; will there be an option to turn the goggle effect and information on and off?

A: The HUD information can be toggled on and off to a certain degree. The goggles however, cannot.

Q: In the trailer I noticed that when the gun was being aimed with iron sights, the reticule/crosshair was still there, defeating the purpose of iron sights. Will this be changed before the release? Will there be an option to turn the reticule completely off to utilize the iron sight feature?

A: The purpose of the iron sight was to give a more realistic feel to zooming in, instead of a simple zoomed in vision. The core game play of Rainbow Six has always involved the reticule and it will remain present even when zoomed in. The Iron sights are a realism touch added to the game.

Q: How does the weapon buying system work?

A: You never buy weapons in Rainbow Six Lockdown. In the Persistent Elite Creation mode however, you buy equipment and certain class specific items.

Q: Will guns be customizable? Such as scopes, suppressors, lights, red dots and other upgrades?

A: The skills involved in using the weapons will be customizable but the weapons themselves will not be.

Q: Can we expect download content of previous maps and new ones?

A: At this time no downloadable content has been announced, however it has been in our habit in the past to provide both free and premium content for Rainbow games so you will have to be patient.

Q: Can we expect download content of previous maps and new ones?

A: At this time no downloadable content has been announced, however it has been in our habit in the past to provide both free and premium content for Rainbow games so you will have to be patient.

Q: Reclaimer-XBA, age 29 from Houston TX asks: 23. What can we expect in terms on enemy artificial intelligence?

A: The enemy AI starts of at a low level as the first terrorists encountered are untrained and not experienced. As you progress through the game, you will encounter increasingly difficult enemies. Gradually, enemies will make more use of cover, suppressing fire and grenades. Eventually, you will find yourself pitted against an enemy that will "open and frag" or "open and flash" on you.

Q: Has there been any upgrades to the computer controlled squad mate's artificial intelligence in the off line story mode?

A: We have a new engine and with it comes new AI behaviours, Squad mates now react to each other in a more natural way. They will make comments based on their environment and the other team members. They can also be ordered to react to enemies differently by changing the rules of the engagement.





Thanks guys!