Rainbow Six Siege: Operation Skull Rain trailer showcases interrogations and the tactical crossbow

The Rainbow Six Siege: Operation Skull Rain launch trailer begins with lovable loser Bob McKenzie trying to text his brother Doug to ask what he did with their dad's beer money. Little does he know that Baron Samedi's younger, less hospitable sister is sneaking up behind him with a gun! A few harsh words later, and he's spilled the beans on all his pals, whose positions are now clearly visible to her teammates.   

I may have taken some liberties describing the video's underlying narrative, but the important thing is that we can now see how Caveira's interrogation mechanic, initially hinted at last week, actually works. Also on display are the asphyxiating and explosive crossbow bolts fired by her compadre, Capitão, a man who looks like he's seen a lot of hard miles. 

“BOPE have extensive experience in guerrilla and close quarter urban warfare due to working exclusively in favelas, where streets can quickly become lethal ambush sites. The intention was to create street-smart Operators who had ample experience navigating such perilous perimeters. That’s why our new Operators can adapt to their environment to gain a tactical advantage,” Ubisoft explained in a blog post from last week. Rainbow Six Siege Creative Director Xavier Marquis added that the developer wanted the new operators “to display a level of resourcefulness that goes beyond the use of gadgets.”

Operation Skull Rain's BOPE operators will unlock for Rainbow Six Siege season pass holders on August 2—that's tomorrow—and will be available for purchase separately on August 9. The Favela map will also go live on August 2, and is free for everyone.

Andy Chalk

Andy has been gaming on PCs from the very beginning, starting as a youngster with text adventures and primitive action games on a cassette-based TRS80. From there he graduated to the glory days of Sierra Online adventures and Microprose sims, ran a local BBS, learned how to build PCs, and developed a longstanding love of RPGs, immersive sims, and shooters. He began writing videogame news in 2007 for The Escapist and somehow managed to avoid getting fired until 2014, when he joined the storied ranks of PC Gamer. He covers all aspects of the industry, from new game announcements and patch notes to legal disputes, Twitch beefs, esports, and Henry Cavill. Lots of Henry Cavill.