Rainbow Six Siege's new operation is around the corner, so let's look at the incoming features players will experience. One of the most anticipated new updates is the Squad Up program. But does it live up to the hype?
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What is the Squad Up program?
The Squad Up program is a reward system that rewards players who have already played Year 7.
To be eligible to get these special cosmetics, a player must play 5v5 matches with up to four teammates who were inactive during Year 7.
This includes players who have never played Rainbow Six Siege and also those who already have the game but have yet to play Year 7.
What rewards are included in Rainbow Six Siege's Squad Up program?
Rainbow Six Siege's Squad Up program rewards players with non-duplicate operators and exclusive cosmetics. If you already own all operators, the pack will contain Battle Points instead.
The idea behind the Squad Up program looks very promising. It urges already established players to invite friends to try out Rainbow Six Siege or to just give it another chance. After playing five matches, teammates will receive a Year 4 or Year 5 operator — not only does the leader get rewards but also its teammates.
At the same time, the new players can join the Squad Up program as leaders once they have played five matches into Year 7. That amount is enough to make them eligible to obtain the leader rewards, which are arguably better. The leader rewards include Year 6 operators, and also an exotic weapon skin for Ash's R4C.
Is Squad Up a good addition to Rainbow Six Siege?
Free operators and exclusive cosmetics should always be a yes and be welcomed with a great smile. This is a great system that rewards players with cosmetics and more by getting new players to the community.
There's a twist though.
Although this is a great start and a wonderful idea, the rewards might be a bit too weak. Many players in the game already own all the operators in the pool. Giving battle points instead of operators in case these are all already owned, it just doesn't feel right. Battle points shouldn't be the solution, nor Renown — although that would make more sense.
Rainbow Six Siege should work on a better reward system, including more cosmetics. So, a cool idea would be giving out an exclusive cosmetic instead of going for the comfortable, lazy option, which is just handling battle points. Players who constantly play the game will probably see these as not very useful since they probably complete the Battle Pass with not much effort.
Overall, great concept, poor execution. A bit too lazy, but the idea is there. The R4C cosmetic looks insane, too. Rewarding leaders with more of these might be a better idea though.