Rainbow Six Siege Update 2.1.1 Introduces Alpha Packs

A new update for Rainbow Six Siege went live recently. It fixed some gameplay issues, but more importantly, it introduced Alpha Packs to the game. They’re essentially loot boxes, containing all kinds of stuff, like cosmetics and weapons. It was high time – what self-respecting multiplayer game in 2017 doesn’t have loot boxes?

The blog post suggests Alpha Packs will be awarded for playing, like loot boxes tend to do. They’ll contain old cosmetics, like the Black Ice skin, as well as Legendary items you won’t be able to get anywhere else. The packs will be slowly introduced across different platforms, for stability’s sake. Each player will get one Alpha Pack immediately when they become available, and more will be revealed about them next week.

As for the gameplay improvements, they’re mostly about Hibana’s X-KAIROS Launcher gadget, which wasn’t working properly. There were instances of the pellets not exploding when they’re supposed to, not being displayed properly when shot between two reinforced walls, not being able to detonate them in mid-air, as well as some visual glitches. That’s all in the past now, thanks to the new patch.

The Kanal map was updated to stop Defenders from spawn killing the attackers, which is always nice to hear. It’s a living thing, this game. Finally, the Coastline map had some destructible walls that wouldn’t destruct, even when asked nicely, but that has been dealt with. They won’t bother you no more.

But the Alpha Packs are the meat of this update. We’re anxious to see what exactly is inside and how it’ll affect the meta. We’re also really interested to see whether they’ll go on sale at the in-game store as well. We expect they will. It’s 2017, after all. It’s only natural to try and sell tiny, microscopic additions for a game you’re already sold.