When you talk about competitive online games, player feedback is critical, and Rainbow Six: Siege (R6) is no exception. The evolution of Rainbow Six has been shaped in part by the community. And the developers themselves have admitted that community feedback plays a part in the updates of the game.
A prime example of this is the introduction of the Pick and Ban system. This feature, which allows teams to ban operators for the duration of a match, was developed in response to a mixture of professional player demands and community feedback.
The introduction of Pick and Ban was a big change for Rainbow Six Siege. Ubisoft first tested the feature in custom games and professional leagues, but its arrival was met with mixed reactions from the community.
Some players welcomed the idea believing it would make matches more strategic, others thought that it could disrupt the game’s balance. The Pick and Ban system allows teams to veto certain Operators, forcing the opponents to adapt and diversify their strategies.
Player feedback on social media was integral in shaping the feature’s evolution. Ubisoft’s user research team, led by Julien Huguenin, closely monitored discussions across platforms like Reddit and Twitter, along with in-game data.
The data and feedback we collect is used to improve and balance the game at all levels of play, which means that what we observe, measure, and hear from all of our players drives our development efforts.
Huguenin explained in an interview with SiegeGG that while social media feedback is essential, it represents only a fraction of what Ubisoft considers.
The behaviors we observe in-game are critical, especially since a large percentage of players don’t engage much on social media.
This approach helped Ubisoft refine the Pick and Ban feature to meet the needs of its vast and diverse player base. For professional players, this has become a core part of the game. But for casual players, it introduced more frustration than excitement.
Huguenin also noted that the decision to implement the Pick and Ban system was partly driven by community feedback. Community sentiment about certain operators being overpowered or frustrating to play against was a recurring theme, and it became clear that a solution was needed to address this.
In addition, frustrations expressed by the community is used to do balancing and add/change features that will impact our entire community. A good example of that would be the development of the Pick & Ban feature
Initially, many players feared that Pick and Ban would make certain Operators virtually unplayable. A Reddit thread from 2018 voiced concern over consistently banned Operators like Echo and Jackal, who were seen as too powerful or frustrating to play against.
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The data-driven nature of the decision was crucial in guiding Ubisoft’s development process. Huguenin explained that player behavior, both in-game and on social platforms, played a vital role in shaping updates and features.
High-level players’ feedback tends to paint a clearer picture, as their gameplay is more consistent, and their input shows more player understanding of the game than the average player.
And that is where the problem also lies. High-level players consist of such a small portion of the player base that the meta between higher and lower ranks is often much different. And this makes balancing even harder.
What do you think of the pick and ban system in Rainbow Six Siege? Let us know in the comments!
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