Ubisoft has taken some big steps in regards to quality-of-life changes and fair play when it comes to Rainbow Six Siege. In the six years that the game has been out, it has had to tackle quite a few challenges when it comes to balance and player support. Yet rage quitters and leavers continue to chew away at Rainbow Six Siege players' enjoyment of the game.
This problem can have negative effects on any title, but it tends to hit Rainbow Six Siege, and some operators in particular, harder than others. With abilities like Caveira’s interrogation in play, a rage quitter can easily disrupt a match. While players can still receive the information from an interrogation, they lose out on their kill which in turn affects their overall KDA ratio.
RELATED: Rainbow Six Siege Adding First Transgender Operator
Keeping Characters in Matches
There are already some tactics used to make rage quitters less disruptive, but Rainbow Six Siege could still look to other titles for more inspiration or another idea that would make rage quitters less troublesome. There have been plenty of games across a wide array of genres that have figured out different techniques for handling these types of players.
Pokemon Unite has implemented a two-headed system that might not work entirely for Rainbow Six Siege but is a good place to start. Players who disconnect from a match have their character still present in-game and an option to follow a teammate. Simultaneously, their Fair Play score is penalized for how long they have been idled or disconnected from that match.
When Fair Play points drop low enough, access to certain game modes becomes restricted. Fewer than 80 points and a player isn’t allowed to participate in ranked play. Fewer than 60 and players will not be allowed to join random matches. This means players can only play with friends and against bots, eliminating their ability to matchmake and enjoy the game to its fullest. With consistent new releases, like Blastoise, not being able to utilize matchmade play can hamper one’s ability to enjoy all that Pokemon Unite has to offer.
This approach is something that Rainbow Six Siege could learn from when addressing these problems. While there are leaving penalties and ranked play is affected, the inability to participate in games seems like one of the best options that the game can take. It could also make life easier on players who use some of the best defending operators in Rainbow Six Siege.
Similar Approaches
Games like League of Legends and Super Smash Bros. Ultimate have implemented time-limit bans for ranked play similar to Rainbow Six Siege but these have proven to be somewhat ineffective. While they do provide consequences for a player’s actions, nothing is stopping the offender from alt+tabbing to something else. Playing a different game or scrolling through a phone app can be quick time-killers while waiting for a penalty to resolve.
Other highly competitive FPS games like PlayerUnknown’s Battleground and Apex Legends have also handled rage quitters and have introduced QOL changes to make play fairer between players as well. These models still take damage and can go down, but provide a space for players if they attempt to return. So, if a player leaves and they haven’t been killed, they’ll respawn in whichever spot their character is in.
This approach doesn’t give control of the character to a teammate, but does still provide a double-edged sword for leavers. If they can reconnect then they simply have to try and play better, but if an enemy can secure the kill then they’re out of luck. While this method in itself could still become the product of abuse, it at least provides an avenue to fix the current dilemma before cross-play and cross-progression come to Rainbow Six Siege.
Other PvP problems have been handled fairly well in Rainbow Six, though, with over 90,000 players banned in 2020 for cheating. Still, so long as players feel opposing teammates do not receive any real repercussions for disrupting matches, they’re likely to voice their discontent. With games like Rainbow Six Siege kept up by strong communities, it’s important that a comprehensive approach to tackling rage quitters is brought forward so fans feel that their voices are heard.
Rainbow Six Siege is available now for PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.
MORE: Every Ubisoft Game Rumored or Confirmed to be in Development
