Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six Video Game Series

The plot axis of all games in the series Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six are the actions of the title's fictional anti-terrorist unit, composed of highly trained soldiers representing various NATO (and other) countries. The player most often takes on the role of the commander of one of the operational groups, and his task is to carry out actions against terrorist individuals and organizations. The action of the game always takes place in the not-too-distant-future.

What distinguished the initial games of the Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six series against competing tactical FPSs, was the operation planning stage, allowing to "program" soldiers. This element, as "too complicated," was completely removed in Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six: Lockdown, which caused controversy among quite a few fans.

Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six takes us back to the years 1996-2000. NATO forces decided to create a new special unit to fight terrorism, which was named Rainbow. The unit's first task is to stop eco-terrorists. The title is distinguished from other shooters by the high complexity of the tactical layer. Before each mission, the player selects operators, their equipment, and plans the movements of AI-led strike groups. In Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six every bullet counts, and one well-fired bullet can make an opponent die, but keep in mind that this works the other way as well.

The storyline of Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six: Rogue Spear revolves around the threat of illegal nuclear weapons. After the collapse of the USSR, a lot of military equipment, including sizable amounts of plutonium, ended up on the black market. A Russian gangster decided to start selling it to terrorist organizations in the form of small bombs the size of a suitcase. Once again Rainbow has to face the threat. The title didn’t bring a revolution in gameplay: the game is largely based on the solutions of its predecessor, focusing on an expanded tactical mode and realism.

The third full-fledged installment of the series, Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six 3: Raven Shield, takes us to the year 2005, with an elite anti-terrorist squad fighting a neo-fascist organization that wants to start a worldwide revolution. Despite the still strong tactical and realistic element, the third installment of the series slowly began to introduce elements known from popular action shooters like Counter Strike, such as larger gunpoints and magazines.

Story axis of Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six: Lockdown is based on the threat of a nanotech virus that has fallen into the wrong hands. The game aroused a lot of controversy among fans, because as the first installment of the series completely abandoned the planning phase of our team's movements. Moreover, the title introduced saving at any time, something that was also in vain in previous installments. It should be noted that the multiplayer modes in Lockdown differ significantly between versions for different platforms.

Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six: Critical Hour introduces us to the story of the Rainbow team commander. The aging soldier retires, while recalling the missions he took part in. It should be noted that the title refers in its formula to the classic installments of the series. The tactical phase of the gameplay returns, and many realistic elements that were abandoned in Lockdown, such as the effect of wounds and gear on shooting accuracy.

Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six: Vegas takes place mostly in the titular city, which is under attack by terrorists. The Rainbow team is sent in to bring the situation under control. Of course, nothing is as simple as it seems at first glance, and the case has a second bottom. The game has introduced several new features. The ability to save the game at any time was abandoned and checkpoints were introduced instead. Futhermore, the health system was also changed, which was now able to regenerate when our character wasn’t under fire. Still, some weapons (likegrenades) or close bursts from higher-powered weapons could kill the player instantly.

Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six: Vegas 2 is a direct sequel and partly a prequel to the previous installment of the series. The game's action takes place before, during and after the events presented in Vegas. In the continuation some of the well-known characters from the previous installments return. The plot of the title focuses on the search for a chemical bomb that fell into the hands of terrorists. In Vegas 2, the multiplayer segment has been significantly developed. The game allows us to create our own character, which can be used in single- and multiplayer modes. The title also introduced several novelties, for instance, selected missions have a day and night cycle implemented, while some shields can be destroyed.

Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six Siege is the first game in the series focused exclusively on multiplayer. The title allows players to take on the role of members of anti-terrorist groups from around the world and face off against each other. The selected operators differ in their equipment and special skills. The game also boasts that many elements of the environment can be destroyed or shot through, which introduces new tactical possibilities. The title has a fairly wide selection of separate game modes, which present players with different challenges and add variety to the gameplay.

Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six: Extraction departs somewhat in climate from what we can have in other installments of the series. In the game, together with up to two other friends, we will face the challenge of confronting a mysterious parasite. Extraction introduces many elements that bring the title closer to survival horror.