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Rainbow Six: Vegas Is Reportedly Coming Back: Ubisoft Greenlights New Game Codenamed “Spades”

Nearly two decades after Rainbow Six: Vegas 2, the series may finally be heading back to Sin City. According to Insider Gaming’s Tom Henderson, Ubisoft has greenlit a new Rainbow Six: Vegas game at Ubisoft Montreal, the studio behind both original Vegas games and Rainbow Six Siege. The project is reportedly codenamed “Spades” and is in very early development. Ubisoft has not announced or commented on the game.

What does the report say?

Based on Insider Gaming’s report and follow-up coverage from outlets including IGN and DualShockers, here is what has been claimed so far:

  • The project is codenamed Spades
  • It is one of three new projects recently started at Ubisoft Montreal
  • Another of those three is said to be set in the Rainbow Six universe in some way
  • Sources expect a new entry, effectively Vegas 3, rather than a remake
  • Concept work and prototyping only began recently, so setting, platforms and release window are unknown

Henderson has a strong track record on Rainbow Six. He was the first to report Ubisoft’s turn-based Rainbow Six Tactics, more than a year before it was officially revealed. Even so, early projects can change shape or be cancelled, so this is far from a release announcement.

Ubisoft Montreal studio building in Montreal
Ubisoft Montreal, which made both Vegas games and Siege. Photo: Shuichi Aizawa / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY 2.0)

Why Rainbow Six: Vegas still matters

Released in 2006, Rainbow Six: Vegas sent a new counterterrorism squad to fight mercenaries across a besieged Las Vegas. It modernized the series with a cover system, regenerating health and a more cinematic campaign, and its Terrorist Hunt mode and co-op became fan favorites. Vegas 2 followed in 2008, starring Bishop, and the online servers were finally shut down in 2021.

Since then, the franchise has been dominated by Siege, the 2015 competitive shooter that became one of Ubisoft’s biggest live-service hits. The co-op spin-off Rainbow Six Extraction arrived in 2022.

Chart of Rainbow Six release years: Vegas 2006, Vegas 2 2008, Siege 2015, Extraction 2022, Tactics planned 2027
Graphic: Nerdism. Data: Ubisoft release history.

What about Rainbow Six Tactics?

Ubisoft is already working on a return to single-player Rainbow Six. Rainbow Six Tactics, announced in August, is a turn-based game currently scheduled for 2027. DualShockers notes it is being built without an in-game shop or microtransactions and brings back Bishop from Vegas 2 as the head of Rainbow, a sign Ubisoft is already leaning into Vegas-era nostalgia.

Reported codename Spades, in early development at Ubisoft Montreal
Graphic: Nerdism. Source: Insider Gaming (report, unconfirmed by Ubisoft).

When could a new Vegas game come out?

Not soon. With work only just underway, a release is unlikely within the next couple of years, and an official reveal could be a long way off. Fans hoping for a grounded, campaign-driven tactical shooter will want to see whether Ubisoft keeps the series’ single-player roots or builds another live-service game, something the report does not address.

It is a busy stretch for shooter news. Xbox just confirmed Wolfenstein 3, and Ubisoft’s next big moves will be watched closely after this year’s Golden Joystick Awards left its games out of the top prizes.

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Sources: Insider Gaming (Tom Henderson), DualShockers, VGTimes, AltChar.