Rainbow Six Siege Is Free to Play This Weekend

Rainbow Six Siege is hosting a free-to-play weekend to give newcomers a shot at the tactical, breach-and-clear shooter.

Beginning on Feb 15 and lasting until Feb 20, a Thursday to a Tuesday, players on each Rainbow Six Siege platform will be able to play for free at slightly different times depending on the platform. The PC version will be free from Feb. 15-18, the Xbox One version from Feb. 15-19, and PlayStation 4 players can take part for free from Feb. 15-20.

If you haven't tried Rainbow Six Siege before, you might find that it'll take a bit longer than just the free period to get acquainted with the game. With many different operators that bring unique advantages and disadvantages coupled with the hardcore nature of the Tom Clancy games where one mistake is a quick path to a loss, Rainbow Six Siege certainly has a learning curve. Whatever you accomplish in the free weekend will carry over to the full game should it be purchased, but this transfer doesn't apply to the Starter edition. This version is a cheaper option that gives players a few operators right from the beginning at the cost of more grinding to unlock the other characters. There are several other editions ranging from the Standard to the Gold to the Complete, each one including different levels of content depending on how high you want to go.

Now is also the perfect time to get into Rainbow Six Siege before the exciting events of the first season of Year 3 kick off. Operation Chimera, an expansion that's releasing in March, is a less conventional patch than most Rainbow Six Siege players are used to, one that adds two new operators while also introducing an interesting game mode called Outbreak. This game mode involves teams of three operators facing off against some mutated monsters that possess their own unique effects and strengths just like the operators. This game mode and other Operation Chimera changes will be tested on the technical servers first before being made available for all players.

The free Rainbow Six Siege weekend starts soon, so be sure to give it a chance if you haven't before.