Rainbow Six Siege Outbreak Trailers Reveal Monster Types, Gameplay, Tips

For several weeks now we’ve been foaming at the mouth and working our way through teases for the upcoming Rainbow Six Siege “zombies” mode called Outbreak. I put zombies in quotes because we’re not actually dealing with zombies here. Rather, you and your friends will be fighting against an extraterrestrial threat, and today, we get to see them for the first time. Check out the new Outbreak trailer above.

Yeah, so, we’re basically dealing with zombies. There has been an alien parasitic outbreak in the town of Truth or Consequences, New Mexico, and it has mutated the town’s residents into the terrifying creatures you see in this trailer. There are multiple enemy types, and each variant has its own unique attacks and abilities. You’ll be able to take them all on when Outbreak goes live on March 6.

Ubisoft released a follow-up video which considers each enemy time in greater detail, and offers players a few tips for how to deal with them. It’s also the very first Outbreak gameplay footage we’ve seen. Check that out below.

Gameplay and Tips Trailer

For those of you who have spent ample time playing through the various zombies campaigns in recent Call of Duty games, this setup will be very familiar. You and two friends will select your operators from a limited roster which has been curated specifically for this new game mode. It will likely take a few runs through the campaign to learn the various boss and enemy patterns before you and your buddies know which combination of operators best suit your playstyles.

The video also reveals that, should you find the normal campaign too easy, you can also crank things up and try to play on “pandemic” mode. This will toggle on friendly fire, and crank up enemy difficulty and enemy population.

So what about our friendly little mutants? Which enemies do you need to look out for, and what are they capable of? If you didn’t have time to watch the full video above, we have a few basic pointers below.

Breachers

The commentator on Ubisoft’s video calls these bad boys “bubble-backed breachers,” and we think that sounds like a great band name. And these guys are going to rock your world if you’re not careful. Breachers occupy that really annoying “exploding zombie” archetype, and if you let these guys go unchecked, they’ll make quick work of your reinforcements.

When you notice their signature bubbles on the walls around you, get ready to aim down those sites. You’ll want to keep breachers as far away from you and your squad as possible, because even if you get the better of them, they’re still going to explode upon death. If you find yourself face-to-face with a breacher, melee that sucker to clear up some space before taking it out.

Apex

This is one enemy type that you don’t have to worry about chasing you down. These guys will mainly stay back behind enemy lines, but trust us, that won’t be a blessing. When there’s an apex in the general area, you and your squad are going to notice some debuffs, while all of the enemies around you will grow stronger. They can also smother your face with an awful smoke, completely obscuring your vision.

The one and only thing you need to know about the apex is that it needs to die, and die soon. You can’t afford to let these guys linger, because you never know when a huge swarm is going to appear. The last thing you want when you’re low on health is a bunch of grunts and exploding breachers coming your way with enhanced damage output.

Smashers

“It’s all in the name,” the commentator quips. These guys have one job, and one job only. They’re here to run you down and smash you to bits. Every Rainbow Six squad has that one hero who never backs down from a fight, no matter how badly they’re outnumbered. You’re going to need to sit that person down and talk to them about the smasher. When this thing shows up, you do not face it head-on.

The smasher is coated is thick armor, and can run straight through most attacks without flinching. If you want to survive, you’ll need to lure it into slamming itself into a wall, stunning it and leaving you open to attack the weak point on its back. When this happens, get in there with a melee strike or some concentrated shotgun blasts to make quick work of this brute.