Last minutes before the big jump. After months of competition around the world, ten days of definitive clashes between the 20 best teams in the world, the final phase of the 6th Invitational begins this Friday near Montreal (Canada). In the Place Bell den in Laval, the last competing teams will enter the arena in front of thousands of spectators from all over the world. Ingame: the title of the best team in the game Tom Clancy’s Rainbow Six Siege and a million dollars for the winners. Welcome to the fury of an esports tournament!
Among the last survivors of several months of battles, we find a team made up of French players, the Wolves, who made it through the group stage with some difficulty and then the round of 16 to maintain chances of playing in the final on Sunday, February 19. To go further, they will already have to fire the Germans from G2 Sports this Friday at 4:30 p.m. (Paris time).
Play as a SWAT or GIGN agent
rainbow six siege, doesn’t necessarily tell you much. This is an extremely tactical shooting game in which two teams of five players face each other, defined as attackers or defenders, who embody operators of intervention groups and special forces (SWAT, GIGN, GSG 9, Navy Seal, Spetsnaz, SAS…). The objective is then to completely eliminate the opposing team or achieve an objective (spread a bomb or prevent this, for example) on a game map where all elements can be destroyed with weapons, drones.
If the game was thought from the beginning as very competitive due to its team dimension and tactics, it was not designed to become an esports competition.
“rainbow six siege Est un jeu avec un esprit de compétition super fort, mais l’idee d’en faire une véritable compétition est vuelta bien après lors que la communauté des joueurs a décidé de s’en parer”, confide à Tech&Co Mohammed Benhenneda, directeur business et stratégie Game.
And as always, when the popularity of a game exceeds that of its creators, it is the community itself that organizes the tournaments. “It was when we saw this that we said we had to invest in esports with the game, because players were interested in its competitive aspect and the idea of organizing in a tournament,” he adds. And by its development teams’ own admission, Ubisoft’s game quickly exceeded all expectations.
Released at the end of 2015 -postponed due to the events of the Bataclan in November of the same year and released without much publicity-, rainbow six siege it had more than 20 million players after two years of existence, praised for the innovative side of its cooperative multiplayer system. Enough to chart a certain path to success in esports.
The difficulty of satisfying classic gamers and esports players
“To become an effective esports game, you have to offer depth, but also a real progression for the player, who can be part of an elite. We have both here”, welcomes Mohammed Benhenneda. Critically acclaimed for having an effective follow-up and numerous updates (addition of operators, maps, weapons and other accessories), the Ubisoft title has since multiplied the competitions that take place in America, Europe and Asia every year.
A decidedly esports game that is happy to hear from its professional players who are always looking for new things to improve their game. skills and remain even more competitive. To the point of forgetting the most classic players who just want to have fun with friends?
“When we talk about improving the game, obviously it is more complex when you are an esports game. Because in the end you have two types of player populations: the competitive population and the one that plays for pleasure”, admits the manager. . “Our role is really to stand between the two and see how we can talk to both, how we can make improvements that satisfy everyone without breaking the competitive aspect. We’re constantly looking to balance these two aspects.”
Tickets sold up to 245 euros
At Ubisoft, we recognize that professional gamers are called upon to advance the game, receive your feedback, and listen to your ideas. But that does not mean that the developers make everything possible. “They have the scope of the competition in mind, and sometimes their claims cannot be applied to a broader population,” he stresses.
But he also knows that it was the community that allowed the game to be what it is today, a shoot that it makes millions of dollars and owes it to its players, “the way they thought about playing it that we didn’t even imagine when designing it.” And that’s why he promises that creative teams will never forbid anything.
More than seven years after its release, rainbow six siege He has more than 80 million followers around the world. Some will be in front of their computer to follow the 6 Invitational all weekend live on Twitch and YouTube. Others paid from 170 to 350 Canadian dollars (from 118 euros to almost 245 euros) to live the event on site, give voice to cheer on their favorite players, in an environment that has nothing to envy to soccer stadiums. Something to remember that in esports there is also sport and the same madness.
Source: BFM TV
