Rainbow Six Siege was one of my biggest gaming surprises. It’s typically not the type of game that I get into but I spent countless hours with it. Extraction had me excited from its initial announcement before it had its name change. This was a game that was definitely up my alley.

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Reviewed on Google Stadia

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I just recently put up a review of Far Cry 6, which was my game of the year for 2021, Rainbow Six Extraction will be my game of the year for 2022. It’s early in the year but I’m calling it now.

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Extraction looks and feels just like Siege, it even uses the same operators making it look even more familiar. This familiarity made it easier for me to initially get into the game since I knew all the operators already. While the gunplay and controls are identical to Siege the gameplay is very different.

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The story is interesting but is not fully explored. Earth is invaded by aliens called Archeans or “Archies” for short. You are tasked with doing everything you can to get intel on them to be able to fight off the invasion.

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Compared directly to Siege, extraction is closest to the “Training Grounds” mode. Extraction is a PVE game only, there is no PVP in this game. You can go at this game alone or with a team of 3. Teams are highly recommended but you can go at it solo if you want, that is how I spent most of my time. n

In a nutshell, the game is a horde shooter, however, calling it that is a severe understatement. This game does not just copy games like Left 4 Dead, it does something new and different. The game works off of a risk reward system. When you start each game it’s broken into three sub zones with one objective in each zone. When you load into the map you have 15 minutes to complete the first objective. You have two markers on your display at all times. You can see where extraction is to leave the level, and you can see where the airlock is to go to the next sub zone.

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You can extract at any time, which becomes important, but I will get back to that. You can also go to the airlock at any time to move to the next objective. You do not have to complete the objective to move on to the next one, and you do not have to complete the objective to extract, you will just get less experience. To gain the maximum experience you need to complete all three objectives and extract from the final subzone.n

The reason extracting at any time is important is that death comes with some consequences. When you die and fail to extract your character becomes stuck in stasis and remains in the map. You then have to pick a different operator and go back to that same location to rescue your falling operator.

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Much like other games in this genre, there are a slew of different Archeans with different abilities that you will go against, each having its own weakness as well. Figuring out how to go at each one was a fun experience to learn and even after 100 hours I’m still learning new techniques.

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As you play you will earn tech points to unlock more gear, you will level up and unlock new operators, and you will open up new locations to fight off Archeans in. There are four locations with 3 different areas in each one. Each location comes with its own set of missions called “studies”. Completing studies will grant you experience needed to keep leveling up.

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Even after completing all the studies I still keep going back to all the locations and I don’t find myself getting bored. I look forward to seeing what Ubisoft brings to Extraction in the future.

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Verdict

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Again I’m going to say it, Rainbow Six Extraction will be my game of the year for 2022. The shooting is great and the gameplay loop is so addicting for me. Playing with friends or by myself was always a joy. Just writing out this review makes me want to stop everything I am doing and go kill some Archeans.

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Final Score 10/10