Initially, Ubisoft’s Membership for Rainbow Six Siege players wasn’t well-welcomed by the community. During its live reveal in Manchester, England, the crowd’s reaction was a mix of booing and insulting, expressing a huge discontent towards Ubisoft’s decision to replace the Year Pass with a Membership the community didn't know much about.
Six months later, we have decided to explore questions that some fans may still have, including if the initial reaction was out of control, if the year pass was better, and, most importantly, if Ubisoft’s Membership is worth its price.
What was Rainbow Six Siege’s Year Pass?
For those unaware, Rainbow Six Siege’s Year Pass was a feature that offered players exclusive benefits in the shape of unique cosmetics and challenges, immediate access to brand-new operators, and many more. This feature has been part of the game since Year 1.
As years went by, the Year Pass also changed. For Year 5 and with the arrival of battle passes, Ubisoft decided to not instantly give players the 600 R6 Credits that had been included in the previous four-year passes. Instead, a 30% discount and 30% faster progression on battle passes were added, which would also include 600 R6 Credits. Meanwhile, in Year 6, Ubisoft decided to not create a year pass.
Starting in Year 7, Ubisoft introduced the Premium Year Pass, giving players the option to unlock more content. For instance, the Year 7 Pass could be purchased for US$29,99, while the Year 7 Premium Pass could be purchased for US$59,99. The Year 8 Pass was the last one of its kind to be released in Rainbow Six Siege, as no Year 9 Pass was launched.
Disappearance of Year Passes and Membership reveal
With the disappearance of the Year Passes, players could only get exclusive content by purchasing the Premium Battle Passes. For 1,200 R6 Credits, the equivalent of US$10, players could get access to multiple exclusive items, including:
- 18 Bravo Packs
- 1 Bravo Ticket
- Exclusive operator cosmetics and weapon skins
- 600 R6 Credits
- 10% discount on the game’s store
- 30% more of Battle Points
In other words, by completing the Premium Battle Pass, saving the 600 R6 Credits obtained in the progress allows players to cut the next Premium Battle Pass price by 50%. Overall, purchasing every premium battle pass in Year 9 can cost between US$25 and US$40, depending on if you decide to save or to spend the 600 R6 Credits on other items.
However, three months after the conclusion of Year 8, Ubisoft unveiled Rainbow Six Siege’s Membership during the BLAST R6 Major Manchester and Operation New Blood’s full reveal. The news wasn’t taken lightly and, inevitably, a lot of the players got annoyed.
The community’s reaction to the news wasn’t just negative on the BLAST R6 Major Manchester venue but also on social media. Rainbow Six Siege’s post on June 11 on X (formerly known as Twitter) promoting the game’s Membership has gathered over 400 replies and over 100 reposts, most of them being negative towards Ubisoft’s brand-new feature.
Initial takes can't be taken too seriously. They can be right up to a certain point, but the best we can do is give it some time and then decide. Six months later, it’s time to judge Rainbow Six Siege’s Membership.
Rainbow Six Siege’s Membership price and included features
Rainbow Six Siege’s Membership can be purchased both monthly and yearly. If you decide to go for the monthly subscription, you will pay US$9,99 every month and end up paying around US$120 for the twelve drops. Meanwhile, the yearly subscription is worth US$79,99. In other words, paying for the yearly subscription means you will save 33%. Now that you know how much a Rainbow Six Membership costs, let’s have a look at what is included.
First of all, Rainbow Six Siege’s Membership gives you access to four premium battle passes, each one worth US$10. That’s already half of the final Membership price. The 10% discount on the in-game store and the 30% faster battle pass progression are also included here.
Secondly, Rainbow Six Siege’s Membership gives players access to four exclusive Legendary Bundles as every drop will include a Legendary item. Bundles of this kind are often priced at between US$15 and US$20 in the game’s store. It’s also worth mentioning that every three months Ubisoft releases an exclusive animated operator card background, a feature that so far has only been included in the game’s Membership.
Additionally, every monthly drop includes an Epic Bundle, including a weapon skin, a uniform, a headgear, and a weapon charm. So far, Mozzie, Bandit, Twitch, Maverick, Castle, and Mute have featured in these.
Last but not least, the Membership program also includes 12 Bravo Packs and 120 Battle Tokens.
Rainbow Six Siege’s Membership vs. Rainbow Six Siege’s Year Pass
It’s the moment of truth: let’s answer some questions, starting with… what’s better, Rainbow Six Siege’s Membership or the now-extinct Year Pass? To give you a final answer, we have compared the prices and the included features to take our conclusion.
Price
Starting with the price, both the Year Pass and the Premium Year Pass were cheaper than the current Rainbow Six Siege Membership – US$30 and US$60 against US$80.
Included features
Despite the prices of the Year Pass being cheaper than the price for the current Rainbow Six Siege Membership, the latter includes way more features than the now-extinct Year Pass. Let’s have a look at the benefits of each one:
Compared to the Premium Year Pass, which was US$59,99, Rainbow Six Siege’s Membership includes 14 more Operator Bundles and 40 more Battle Pass Tier Skips. Additionally, the Membership also includes exclusive features like the animated operator card backgrounds and 12 extra Bravo Packs. Plain and simple, it’s easy to see that Rainbow Six Siege’s Membership includes way more items than the Year Pass.
Versatility
In terms of versatility, the Membership is also superior to the Year Pass. The Membership allows players who can't afford to pay US$80 at one time to still be part of the program by paying a smaller monthly fee. Meanwhile, the Year Pass had to be purchased with a single payment.
With the Membership being not just a yearly but also a monthly subscription, players always get different items every thirty days. This keeps Membership players engaged, as they look forward to the cosmetics released in the next month.
Moreover, by offering a monthly subscription, players who want a certain item from the Membership collection have the option of subscribing for that exclusive month while also getting all of the benefits included.
Final answers
After comparing both the Year Pass and the Membership, we have concluded that Rainbow Six Siege’s Membership is better.
Although Rainbow Six Siege’s Membership’s price is US$50 more than the Year Pass and US$20 more than the Premium Year Pass, the included features make an abysmal difference between the three options.
Considering that the Year 8 Premium Pass was US$60 and included all of the benefits in the four premium battle passes, which players could purchase independently for US$10 each, this means that the two Operator Bundles and the 20 battle pass tier skips per season were worth US$20. Now, for an extra US$20, players can get 14 more Operator Bundles, 40 more battle pass skips, 4 animated operator card backgrounds, and 12 Bravo Packs.
Considering that each Epic Bundle could have a cost in the store of US$10, we could be talking of US$120 in exclusive Epic Bundles. The Legendary Bundles, which include animated items, would be slightly more expensive, with the price being between US$15 to US$20 for each bundle. Therefore, only in Operator Bundles, Rainbow Six Siege’s Membership offers around US$180 - to US$200 in operator items, and we're not including the exclusive animated operator card backgrounds and the 12 Bravo Packs.
Additionally, it's worth bringing up the existence of Marketplace. With Year Pass-exclusive cosmetics being sold there, we expect Ubisoft to allow players to sell Membership-exclusive skins in the future.
For instance, at the time of writing, Year 7 Premium Pass' skin Future Lands for Valkyrie's MPX is currently listed for 1,000 R6 Credits. In the future, we could see animated operator card backgrounds and other animated cosmetics included in Rainbow Six Siege's Membership being sold for a similar price.
Writer's opinion and conclusion
When G2 Esports' player Jack "Doki" Robertson revealed he had purchased Rainbow Six Siege's Membership, people ironically asked if acquiring it was a requirement to play in professional tournaments. After denying the claim, he said he believed the Membership was "good value for money." All of the reactions to his answer were from people who thought he was in the wrong.
Personally, I agree with him. And, to be fair, with Rainbow Six Siege's Membership including so many exclusive items compared to previous year passes, it's hard to not see it this way. The difference in terms of cosmetics is abysmal; from only two exclusive bundles to sixteen, some of them animated... to not mention the animated operator card backgrounds and the Bravo Packs.
Additionally, the Membership isn't the only way to acquire the battle pass; players can acquire it by spending 1,200 R6 Credits. Shortly, the Membership is something that's an extra and it's not obligatory to purchase to have access to premium battle passes.
As a Rainbow Six Siege fan who purchased the Rainbow Six Siege Year 6 Collector Case for around 112€ and who acquired most of the battle passes released in recent years, I consider myself as someone who enjoys having exclusive items and is willing to go an extra step to support the game. To me, Rainbow Six Siege is more than a game and, if that's not your mindset, you may disagree on purchasing the game's Membership.
Overall, the Membership is a great feature to have in Rainbow Six Siege. Just like R6 Share, players can support the game while also getting their hands on exclusive items. With this not being mandatory to purchase to enjoy the full Rainbow Six Siege experience, I believe all hate is baseless. If you want to contribute, you can do so; and, so far, I would say Rainbow Six Siege's Membership has delivered.