Rainbow Six: Siege to punish drop-shotting and add bulletproof cameras in next major patch

Ubisoft is gearing up for Patch 1.2 in Rainbow Six: Siege, according to the official test server notes released last week.

Ubisoft is gearing up for Patch 1.2 in Rainbow Six: Siege, according to the official test server notes released last week.

This patch is packed full of more game-changing updates than most, including the introduction of brand new cameras, nerfs to drop-shotting, weapon sight realignments, and movement speed tweaks.

The first and more important update is the change to the drop-shot strategy, which has become increasingly popular in Siege over the course of the last few months. Just in case you don’t know, or you’ve been lucky enough to avoid it in competitive play, drop-shotting is smashing your prone key to drop to the floor immediately upon seeing an enemy.

This strategy makes it exceedingly difficult for the enemy to hit your head and gives you a few crucial moments to return fire, which is a significant advantage to have when it only takes one properly-aimed bullet to end your opponent’s life. Drop-shotting was first popularized throughout the Call of Duty franchise, where it still reigns as a supreme tactic alongside jump-shotting.

The upcoming nerfs will punish players who try to deploy this tactic. Ubisoft didn’t explain specifically what’s coming, but the notes say that operators will now behave differently when switching between stances, especially while aiming down sights, in order to gut the drop-shot strategy completely.

Without knowing exactly what will happen if you drop to the floor while aiming, it does sound like your aim will be hindered in some way. So if you try to use this strategy in a fight, you’ll be the one at an extreme disadvantage rather than your enemy.

Another serious change that was somewhat buried in the notes with only one line of text is the addition of a new operator gadget—the bulletproof camera. Now, some operators will have a single bulletproof camera to deploy, effectively flipping the meta on its head. This means that more operators will have more tools to catch flankers and roamers, doubling down on camping and stalwart defenses over mobility, at least until players figure out the best ways to deal with this new spyware.

Other upcoming changes include one-speed operators gaining more speed, three-speed operators losing a bit of speed, Echo getting a second drone with more charges, and the long-awaited introduction of picks and bans to custom games. There is not yet a specified launch date for Patch 1.2.