Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six: Vegas

Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six: Vegas
Developer(s)	Ubisoft Montreal (360, PS3) / Ubisoft Quebec (PSP)
Publisher(s)	Ubisoft
Composer(s)	Paul Haslinger
Series	Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six
Engine	Unreal Engine 3 (PC and consoles) Unreal Engine 2 (PSP)
Platform(s)	Xbox 360, Microsoft Windows, PlayStation Portable, PlayStation 3, Mobile phone
Release date(s)	November 22, 2006 Xbox 360 NA November 22, 2006 EU December 1, 2006 Windows NA November 28, 2006 EU December 15, 2006 PSP NA June 12, 2007 EU June 28, 2007 PS3 NA June 26, 2007 EU June 28, 2007
Genre(s)	Tactical shooter, first-person shooter
Mode(s)	Single-player, adversial multiplayer, cooperative multiplayer
Distribution	DVD, DVD-DL, UMD, Blu-ray Disc

Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six: Vegas is the sixth game in the Rainbow Six series of video games. It was released for the Xbox 360 on November 21, 2006 and Windows on December 12, 2006. The PlayStation Portable version was released on June 12, 2007, while the PlayStation 3 version was released on June 26, 2007. The game's storyline follows a new Rainbow team that is dispatched to Las Vegas, Nevada to defeat international terrorist Irena Morales and her army of mercenaries that is repeatedly attacking key locations in the city. A sequel developed by Ubisoft Montreal was released on seventh generation consoles in March 2008 and on PC in April 2008.

Gameplay

Outfitting screen on multiplayer.

Rainbow Six Vegas changes the series with multiple new features, such as a new health system where the player regenerates health while not taking fire (it should be noted that the player may sometimes be killed instantly, without a chance to regenerate health; this usually happens from grenades, as well as taking close range fire from very powerful weapons, particularly to the head). The player's vision is greatly impaired while damaged, similar to the health system in Gears of War. Furthermore, a third-person view has been included for moments where players can blind-fire around corners to lay down suppression or covering fire. Other changes include a larger enemy presence and much tougher artificial intelligence, a shift in focus to where kills will be much harder to obtain, a reincarnated aiming system similar to the aiming system of the old Rainbow Six games and a context-sensitive D-pad based command system for the player's squad and sections of gameplay where the player will scale buildings and cause environmental damage. The player can also give voice commands using the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 headset, but team-mates are no longer audible through the headset.

There is no mission planning feature or save system, instead the game uses a checkpoint system. The developers also opted to almost entirely exclude cutscenes, telling the story through video feeds on a heads-up display. The player also has various skills, such as the ability to rappel up and down buildings while shooting and the ability to fast rope into an area.

Plot

Gabriel attempts to escape with the helicopter. Logan can either let Gabriel escape or he can shoot it down with his weapon. Afterward, Logan and the team are sent out to find the organization behind Irena's and Gabriel's terrorist activity. When the mission completes, the words "To Be Continued" appear on the screen, implying a sequel. As the credits roll, a news clip states that a helicopter had crashed in the lake, but Gabriel's body was not found.

Development

Patches

The game featured a number of glitches/bugs upon release. Eventually, patches were released months after the game's release. One of the main things that the game was criticised for was the lack of a stand alone dedicated server for the PC version, which the community tried to develop on their own, in hopes that Ubisoft improve on what the community tried to accomplish. However, Ubisoft took the unmodified stand alone dedicated server and included it into a patch.

During November 2007, the North American Support Supervisor announced on the Ubisoft forums that Ubisoft "has and will always provide support for this title", and also confirmed that Ubisoft was working on another patch." The patch was released on July 19, 2007 and updated the game to version 1.05. Since that time, Ubisoft has released the latest patch 1.06.

Collector's Edition

A Limited Collector's Edition of Rainbow Six: Vegas was released at the game's launch featuring alternative cover art and a bonus disc. The bonus disc contained a documentary on the making of Rainbow Six: Vegas and a Rainbow Six retrospective, which features information on all Rainbow Six games in the series.

Expansion packs

On April 18, 2007, the Player's Pack Red Edition was released as downloadable content on Xbox Live. The pack includes two new game modes. The first is "Assassination" whereby one team has to protect a VIP armed only with a pistol, whilst the other team needs to assassinate him. The second is Conquest (a "capture and hold"-style game, whereby each team has to hold as many strategic points for as long as possible). Three new maps were also included: "Doscala Restaurant," "Marshalling Yard," and "Roof." The maps "Killhouse" and "Border Town" have been redesigned and packaged as two new "redux" maps. The expansion pack comes directly after an update was released for the game. All original game modes and maps are compatible with those featured in the Player's Pack Red Edition. On July 6, 2007, the Red Pack was made available for download free of charge.

On June 26, 2007, a new downloadable content pack was released. The Player's Pack Black Edition features five new maps. "Red Lotus", "Wartown" and "Neon Graveyard" are the three newly featured maps. "Streets: Redux" has been redesigned in a similar fashion to the Redux maps found in the Player's Pack Red Edition, and "Presidio" is a map overhauled and upgraded from Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six 3: Raven Shield. On June 27, 2007, the Black Edition was retracted from the Xbox Live Marketplace. Ubisoft announced that it was pulled due to a pricing error, and that the pack (which was originally priced at 800 Microsoft Points) was intended to be free. On June 30, 2007, the Black Edition was re-released for download free of charge; Xbox Live users who paid for the pack had their points reimbursed.

Both the Red and the Black player packs were released for PC platform on July 26, 2007 and included are in the PS3 retail version.

Reception

Reception
Review scores Publication Score PC PS3 PSP Xbox 360 1UP.com B A- N/A A- GameSpot 8.7/10 9.1/10 N/A N/A GameSpy N/A N/A GameTrailers N/A 8.8/10 N/A 9.1/10 IGN 8.4/10 8.7/10 5.5/10 9.4/10 TeamXbox N/A N/A N/A 9.5/10 Aggregate scores GameRankings 84.10% 84.59% 60.58% 88.58% Metacritic 85% 86% 60% 88%

The Xbox 360 edition of Rainbow Six: Vegas was released to very positive reviews from major gaming news outlets, such as GameSpy (5/5), GameSpot (9.1/10), IGN (9.4/10), and TeamXbox (9.5/10). IGN called Vegas the "best first-person shooter on the Xbox 360", while GameSpot described the game as an "excellent, immersive tactical shooter". G4's X-Play also liked the game, putting it on their 2006 Holiday Buyer's Guide, and also giving it a perfect 5 out of 5. Hyper's Cam Shea commends the game for its "fantastic visual design, game mechanics and multiplayer". However, he criticises "some of the voice acting and terrorist supply closets". The PC and PS3 versions have also received positive reviews, while the PSP version received mixed reviews.

Rainbow Six Vegas has won numerous awards, including "Best First-Person Shooter", "Best Xbox 360 First-Person Shooter", "Best Online Game", and "Best Xbox Live Game" in IGN's Best of 2006, as well as an "Editor's Choice Award" from GameSpot. Gaming Target also selected the title as one of "52 Games We will Still Be Playing From 2006". It also received the "Best Online Game" award from OXM in their annual Game of the Year awards.

According to Ubisoft, as of March 31, 2007, Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six: Vegas had sold 1.7 million copies.

Dynamic advertising

Main article: Dynamic in-game advertising

Rainbow Six: Vegas includes dynamic real world advertising on billboards and lighted posters in certain areas. Some dynamic advertising requires that the player be connected to the internet, although the single-player campaign displays advertisements to the player on billboards by default, particularly Axe bodyspray.

Major League Gaming

In early 2007, Rainbow Six: Vegas became the first Xbox 360 title to join the Major League Gaming (MLG) Circuit. It premiered in the opening event of the season in Charlotte, North Carolina. This game had its last showing at Las Vegas Nevada, the final stop on the 2007 MLG Pro Circuit. However, Rainbow Six: Vegas 2, the game's sequel featured on the 2008 MLG Pro Circuit, with its first showing in San Diego, California.

External links

• Official Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six Vegas mobile game site
• Rainbow Six Vegas 2 Ranks - Multiplayer