Rainbow Six Siege’s Boss Explains Why There’s No Siege 2, and How Ubisoft Plans to Ride Out GTA 6’s Launch
Grand Theft Auto VI is still almost two months out, but live-service teams across the industry are already bracing for the hit its November 19 launch is expected to deal to their player counts. Rainbow Six Siege creative director Joshua Mills addressed that head-on in an interview with The Game Business, laying out both why Ubisoft never built a full Rainbow Six Siege 2 and how the team intends to hold onto its community once Los Santos opens its doors.
Why Siege X Instead of a Sequel
Asked why Ubisoft opted to overhaul the existing game into Siege X rather than start over with a true sequel, Mills pointed to the sheer cost of splitting the studio’s attention. Building and running a second, separate version of Siege alongside the original would demand a level of staffing and specialized expertise that would be extraordinarily difficult to pull off at the same time, making a full-scale relaunch of the live game the more realistic path forward.
Bracing for GTA 6
Mills doesn’t expect Siege to be spared when GTA 6 arrives. He acknowledged that Rockstar’s launch will pull players away regardless of genre, though he framed the dip as temporary, expecting people to drift back once the initial wave of interest settles. Internally, he said the focus is on managing expectations so the team and leadership stay aligned rather than panicking over a short-term dip in numbers. As for the players who do stick around during that stretch, Mills said the plan is simple: “We don’t go on vacation just because a competitor is swelling the market. We double down and reward those spending their valuable time with us.” He described treating loyal players like kings and queens during that window, rather than pulling back on content.
Rainbow Six Siege’s Year 11 Season Four is planned to launch around GTA 6’s November 2026 release window.
What’s Coming Around GTA 6’s Launch
Part of that retention push is timing. Mills confirmed Siege’s Year 11 Season Four is planned to launch around GTA 6’s November window, and said the team is holding back unannounced content specifically to make an impression during that stretch, rather than going quiet while attention is elsewhere. Separately, Ubisoft is also working on Rainbow Six Siege Tactics, a turn-based tactical spin-off set for release in 2027, part of a broader push to expand the Siege brand beyond its original tactical shooter format.
For more on how GTA 6’s approach is already shaking up the industry, see our earlier coverage of how its Extended Look reveal sent console sales soaring in the UK.
Keep the adventure going! Check out more Gaming News on Gamersuniverse.
Picture Source: Ubisoft
