Rainbow Six Siege Operation Chimera Detailed, New Operators Revealed

Rainbow Six Siege's Six Invitational Tournament happened last weekend and with it comes new details of the tactical shooter's next big update. Operation Chimera will not only come with two new attacking operators but it will also include a co-op mode called Outbreak, putting three players against deadly creatures created by the Chimera virus. There will be five types of enemies in this mode and Ubisoft has provided the descriptions for each one: 

Grunts - Grunts are common hostiles that become highly resistant when the parasite detects an enemy presence. To protect its host, the parasite armors its body and becomes more resistant to bullet wounds. Caution and stealth is recommended.

Breachers - Breachers are proximity bombs that crater anything in their path. They make for a very agile opponent, but they launch themselves into the fray and blow holes in indestructible walls. Make sure you are nowhere close to them.

Rooters - Rooters are a more rare type of hostile. They send out coral spikes from the ground to injure and immobilize their targets. Rooters are always on the move and will keep you on edge. Beware when dealing them the final blow; they become extremely lethal when on the brink of death.

Smashers - Smashers are not discreet. The parasite reinforces its body under a massively thick hide, making it practically impervious to bullet wounds. They will also tear down walls without suffering any injuries.

Apex - Apex is at the top of the ET food chain. It sends waves of hostiles your way rather than attack you head-on. They can hurl blinding projectiles, which can only be countered by Finka and Doc. This opponent is a real test of your team’s communication skills.

This is the first time we see an event that brings in a new game mode to Rainbow Six Siege, and probably the first time we see new operator interactions since the release of the game. In the gameplay above you, you can see operator Thermite giving details of the operation and updating the team on the ground about the current situation.

The Outbreak game mode is an event that will be available for a limited time on PS4, Xbox One, and PC from March 6 to April 3. New Alpha packs will be available during the event that brings in a variety of new cosmetic items themed around Operation Chimera. 

New Operators - Finka and Lion

In Operation Chimera, we are getting two new attacking operators. Finka's gadget will be the first time the attacking side will have a buff of sorts to aid her team. Thanks to nanites already in your team's systems, Finka can activate them with a press of a button to give the team a boost in health, faster movement speed when going through barbed wires, reduced duration of concussion effects, and a reduced recoil fire for a limited time. Finka's boost in health can also be used to revive downed teammates, giving back 25 life. Finka can activate her ability twice per round and thankfully there are drawbacks to having the buff active. Pulse can detect you in far distances and you take more damage from Smoke's gas grenades. Echo's Yokai and Lesion's needle traps can also be used to cancel the effects of Finka's buff. It's hard to tell how it will affect the game's balancing but it's good to know there are a few positives the defending team can exploit because that reduced recoil sounds amazing. Finka will be a two speed and two armor, and her primary weapon choices are the Spear .308, SASG-12, and 6P41.

Lion's gadget might sound a bit overpowered but the drawbacks placed on it makes it an interesting ability that both teams can utilize. For a very short time, Lion's gadget ability can reveal the location of enemy defenders that are currently moving during the scan. Wall hacks, pretty much. But your location is only revealed if you are moving. Not moving your character's feet protects you from Lion and everybody in the game will get alerted if Lion is about to scan the area. He only has three scans and gadgets such as Mute's disruptor can protect you from Lion. Lion will be a two speed and two armor operator, and his primary weapon options are the V308, 417 Marksman Rifle, and SG-CQB.

It's interesting to see two new attackers coming in to start season 3, instead of the usual 1 new operator per side. Once these two are out in March the meta will change and just like every release, it will be a different game again thanks to the new team compositions.