In this new instalment of Designer’s Notes, we will tell you about imminent balancing changes. However, most importantly, we will offer you to have a glimpse at what we have in store for the future. Some of these changes will be tested on the Y4S2 Test Server, while others are still being tested, tweaked and finalized. We encourage you to download the Test Server client and let us know your feedback!

• The Desert Eagle can now be equipped with a muzzle break or a suppressor.
• Smoke’s FMG-9 has now the option to be equipped with a Vortex scope (Mozzie’s scope).
• Out of consistency, Finka’s ability will now cleanse the resulting tinnitus, While affected by an explosion.

GLAZ

In order to use the OTS-03 scope at maximum efficiency, Glaz players will now have to stand still. Moving in any direction will progressively cause the bright yellow colour to fade out. Extra information will also be displayed on the side of the scope. In the original Operator design, Glaz was supposed to be a long-range operator, but his ability turned out to be underwhelming and rarely used. Therefore, the OTS-03 scope received the ability to see through smokes, while operators were highlighted in bright yellow. These additions made Glaz frustrating to play against and became a very strong close-range operator. He excels as at pushing towards the objective while being visually hidden. It is often difficult to counter him effectively when he uses smokes at his advantage. The current Glaz playstyle does not exactly reflect our initial intentions. To restore the original idea behind the Russian Sniper, our balancing team looked into his entry-fragging ability, and thus pursued the changes listed above.

Take a look at the upcoming Glaz scope[ubistatic19-a.akamaihd.net]

MAVERICK

With Y4S1 release, we increased the swap time between the SURI Torch and his weapons. We are still monitoring community reaction around Maverick. Player feedback indicates that the sound may be too quiet, so we are still looking at audio tweaks; it is too early to share specifics.

SMOKE

A new propagation system for Capitão’s asphyxiating bolts has been introduced. We are now exploring how to use the same technology for other Operators and gadgets.

Smoke’s gas clouds are sometimes clipping through objects, and we are looking to improve its interaction with the environment, and reduce the frustration stemming from misleading visual information. We are also investigating how to adjust the rendering of the gas cloud itself and modifying the damage dealt.

Reworking a gadget in this way so as not to affect performance is a difficult and time-consuming task, so we do not have an ETA for when it will be complete.

DEPLOYABLE SHIELDS

The prototype presented during the Six Invitational was rather convincing during our internal tests. These shields will now align perfectly with doorframes. Black mirror slits have been replaced by regular bulletproof glass, thus giving the opportunity for attackers to spot defenders hiding behind the new shield.

There is still some polishing to do, we will tell you more about these shields when they are ready.

BALLISTIC SHIELDS

We want to reinforce team play when it comes to Shield Operators. We are exploring different options. Again, the frustration generated by certain Shield Operators is being investigated and ware exploring possible solutions that still allow Shield Operators to feel like a solid frontline choice.

Try out the latest Rainbow Six updates on the Test Server and earn and exclusive charm through the Bug Hunter program[rainbow6.com].

Follow us and share your feedback on Twitter, Reddit, Facebook[www.facebook.com], and on our forums[forums.ubi.com].

Kompletter Artikel: Y4S2 DESIGNER'S NOTES: PRE SEASON

Nøkk has been a mystery for quite some time. There is very little that anyone outside Rainbow knows about her. For an accomplished undercover agent whose work remains mostly unrecorded, it is amazing that she has managed to hold onto who she is at her core.

Focused and driven, she uses her special operations training to infiltrate, gather intel and defeat her opponents. As a member of the Jægerkorpset, she strikes fear into the hearts of anyone who goes up against her.

On top of that, she harnesses a spirit of loyalty and leads by example to elevate the people she works with. Unlike the general population, her fellow Operators know who she is and welcome her into the fold. The potential scandal her family might face is of little importance to them; she’s one of the best in her field, and they wouldn’t betray her even if it came to that.

https://youtu.be/zoRWqiIjUR0
Her gadget is just the icing on the cake for an already dangerous operative. The HEL, which she worked on to improve with specialist Grace “Dokkaebi” Nam, makes Nøkk nothing short of a ghost, and leaves her opponents looking over their shoulders.

Nøkk is joining the Attacking team in Operation Phantom Sight. For more information, follow us on Facebook[www.facebook.com] and Twitter or join the discussion on our subreddit and forums[forums.ubi.com]! Visit our Rainbow Six Twitch Channel[www.twitch.tv] on May 19th for the full reveal of Operation Phantom Sight during the Pro League Finals, live from Milan, Italy.

Kompletter Artikel: MEET NØKK: Y4S2 ATTACKER

Reverse Friendly Fire (RFF) is coming to the live servers tomorrow. When a player abuses the friendly fire mechanic to grief their teammates, this system is activated. We believe that this first version will be a positive step forward in our fight against team killing while maintaining the same intensity and high stakes gameplay that is core to the Rainbow Six Siege experience.

The Y4S1 release of RFF is not our final version of the system. Future iterations and improvements will continue based off data and player feedback.

Community feedback so far has been invaluable and allowed us to make early iterations to the system. For example, RFF can now activate based on total friendly damage. In these cases, there is no validation screen for the offending player’s teammates. We are also striving to make it clearer how operators and gadgets will react to this system. We have consolidated some guidelines below for your reference.

ON WEAPONS/THROWN OBJECTS
Impacts:

• Primary/secondary weapons
• Direct hits from thrown unique gadgets
• Exothermic-S Torch (Maverick)
• SK 4-12 (Buck)
• Mounted LMG (Tachanka; regardless of who’s using the turret)
• M120 CREM (Ash) when the breaching round directly hits someone
• KS79 Lifeline (Zofia)
• Airjab Launcher (Nomad)
• Pest Launcher (Mozzie)

Before RFF activation:

• Can cause damage to teammates
• Will count towards activating RFF

After RFF activation:

• Teammates will not receive damage
• Will reverse damage dealt

ON EXPLOSIVES
Impacts:

• Generic gadgets (frag grenade, C4, breach charge) that results in an explosion*
• Gas Grenade (Smoke)
• TAC MKO asphyxiating bolts (Capitão)
• M120 CREM (Ash) when the breaching round explodes
• Cluster Charge (Fuze)

*Explosive gadgets that do not do damage (i.e. stun grenades, Ying’s Candela) will not be affected by RFF in any way
Before RFF activation:

• Can cause damage to teammates
• Will count towards activating RFF

After RFF activation:

• Can cause damage to teammates
• Does not reverse damage dealt*

*Explosives currently will continue to damage teammates even under RFF. This is not intended and will be fixed in Season 2.
Exceptions*:

• Claymore
• Entry Denial Device (Kapkan)
• X-Kairos pellets (Hibana)
• Exothermic Charge (Thermite)

*These explosives do not trigger RFF. While under RFF, these also do not reverse damage dealt and can continue to damage teammates. This can change in the future with feedback and further game design considerations.

ON DRONES/OPERATOR CAMERAS
Impacts:

• Evil Eye (Maestro)
• Shock Drone (Twitch and Mozzie)

• Before RFF activation:
• Can cause damage to teammates
• Will count towards activating RFF

After RFF activation:

• Teammates will not receive damage
• Will reverse damage dealt (onto the drone/camera)

Further changes for Reverse Friendly Fire will come during Year 4 Season 2. We will introduce situations where the system will activate for the whole squad. How gadgets will react and behave under Reverse Friendly Fire will also be fine-tuned based on data and feedback. We look forward to sharing future developments with you.

We welcome any additional feedback on the Rainbow Six subreddit!

Kompletter Artikel: DEV BLOG: REVERSE FRIENDLY FIRE UPDATE

As a part of our ongoing efforts to identify and tackle game issues as fast and efficiently as possible, we introduced R6Fix[r6fix.ubi.com] last year. Since then, we have received over 7,000 bug reports.

Today, we are excited to introduce our brand new Bug Hunter Program, an initiative that has been designed to reward all those dedicated players that help us to improve the game’s health with every new update.

It’s simple, all you have to do is report any issue you might encounter on the Test Server through R6Fix[r6fix.ubi.com]. You can find a detailed guide on how to report issues here[r6fix.ubi.com] as well as an FAQ[r6fix.ubi.com]. Once we receive your report, our QA team will test it and try to reproduce it, if they succeed, your contribution will be marked as Acknowledged.

All issues need to be in English, clearly stated and with visual evidence, either a screenshot or a video that clearly shows the problem. Only the first person to report the acknowledged bug will receive credit towards the rewards.

Please note that all duplicated issues after this first report will be automatically discarded and will not count in order to get the rewards.

Once you reach the threshold of 3 issues or more marked as acknowledged, you will receive a very special reward. Rewards will be distributed every other Friday.

Veteran players will remember one of our more ancient and harmless bugs, the raptor legs[i.redd.it]. We are bringing it back, but only in the shape of a Frost charm to be granted to all those players that reach the threshold of 3 acknowledged bugs.

We are planning to add more thresholds in the near future and we will keep you updated on how to get new rewards.

The Bug Hunter Program will be activated on the test server on April 25th 2019 and will remain active until further notice. All reports received before that date will not count towards the rewards.

We look forward to your feedback on this feature on the forums[forums.ubi.com], and the official subreddit!

Kompletter Artikel: Bug Hunter Program

We have compiled the many variables involved in weapon FOV and input sensitivity on PC in order to ensure everyone understands how to get their perfect sensitivity.

Weapon Field of View (FOV) is modified differently depending on which weapon and optic you have equipped. When aiming down sights, each optic type changes your FOV based on a specific modifier.

Read the full article on the official website.[rainbow6.ubisoft.com]

Kompletter Artikel: FOV AND INPUT SENSITIVITY

Halfway through each Season, the “Designer’s Notes” shares information about the work of our balancing team. We are using data gathered since Wind Bastion balancing changes and the introduction of new Australian operators.

We use player feedback to help show us where to begin looking, and data to drive balancing changes. Combining both of these aspects helps us to decide if adjustments are needed. Sharing this data should give everyone as much context as possible to explain our changes and explain the reasoning behind them.

Lion

• Replaced the scan outline by a red ping debuff
• Reduced the ability warning from 3 to 1.5 seconds
• Reduced the scanning from 4 to 2 seconds
• Reduced the ability cool-down from 27 to 15 seconds
• Increased the number of charges from 2 to 3

The Lion rework is ready. This change is aimed at reducing the oppressive feeling of his ability while maintaining his intel-gathering role. Following the changes introduced, we expect players to put more thought before using this ability and require more skill to be advantageous for the attacking team.

By switching from a scan outline to a ping debuff (like Alibi’s), the effectiveness of the enemy detection will be diminished. Now, moving defenders can be detected up to three times, with 1 second between pings. Lion’s scan will be more viable and will allow defenders to counter-play successful Lion detections.

The total duration of Lion’s ability is shorter for both the warning and the scanning phases. The scan will last a total of 3.5 seconds (from 7 seconds).

To balance things, we have increased the number of uses to 3 and also reduced the ability cool-down.

Nomad

• Added an idle sound cue to activated Airjabs.
• Stun grenades replace her Claymore.

In response to feedback about Airjabs being too difficult to counter, we added an idle sound following the gadget deployment. Our goal is to reward cautious players to spot nearby Airjabs and to adapt appropriately.

Thanks to her Airjabs, Nomad already had three gadgets designed to counter flanking by the defending team. That is why we decided to give her stun grenades instead.

Ying

• In order to make Ying’s Candelas more intuitive and simple, we have inverted the cooking mechanic.

Just like frag grenades, the longer you cook them, the earlier they will explode. This change should also drive Ying players to put more effort into planning their attacks and to reduce Candela’s spamming.

Kaid

• We have reduced the TCSG12 total ammunition to 51 (from 61).
• The AUG-A3 damage is increased to 33 (from 27).

By reducing the amount of slugs, we want players to choose between destroying soft walls to prepare their defence and using the weapon to repel attackers.

Increasing the damage of the AUG-A3 should make it a more viable choice for Kaid mains.

Maestro

• To reduce the effectiveness of his Evil eyes, its bulletproof windows will now be half-way opened when affected EMPs or Shock Drones.

By allowing Thatcher or Twitch to have an effect on Evil Eyes, we want teams to rely a little less on soft destruction operators. Maestro mains will also have to be slightly more cautious when placing their gadgets.

Blitz

• To reduce the frustration generated by this operator, the ballistic shield flash cool-down has been increased (from 2 to 7 seconds.)

We are looking into reducing the amount of frustration generated by Blitz, without hampering his ability to rush the objective. Increasing the cool-down of his shield flash should give more leeway to defenders to adapt and counter the operator.

Echo

• IQ can now detect Echo when he is using his PDA.

For consistency, IQ will now detect Echo when he is using his PDA.

Doc and Rook
Following the MP5 damage decrease (patch Y3S4.2), we have seen a slight reduction in Doc and Rook pick rates as well as in their win ratios. They both remain two very solid anchors who are now closer the overall pool of defenders in terms of statistics.

Ash
The removal of Ash’s ACOG removal with Burnt Horizon was an attempt to reduce her pick rate. We removed a popular attachment that was unnecessary to her role as an opener. Following an impressive drop of 20% in her pick rate, she remains a very popular attacker and her win ratio has even improved.

Kompletter Artikel: Y4S1.3 Designer's Notes