Buckle up, soldiers: It seems the battlefield is about to become ADA compliant, as according to a new leak, the next playable operator set to be introduced to the roster of Ubisoft’s Tom Clancy’s Rainbow Six Siege will be taking the fight to the enemy from the seat of her wheelchair.
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The identity of Siege‘s next playable character was first revealed to the public courtesy of Twitter user @Shiiny7, who on August 21st shared two videos showcasing the game’s upcoming Operation Twin Shells expansion.
Therein, players were given their first confirmed look at their next playable option, the wheelchair-bound YS93.
Per the videos shared by @Shiiny7, rather than wheeling and shooting her way around the battlefield herself, the female fighter will take the fight to the enemy by way of two giant, remote-controlled mecha partners (both of whom were previously teased by Ubisoft by way of a preview graphic for Operation Twin Shells).
While some players may find that YS93’s playstyle evokes memories of Overwatch‘s Ashe and her robot companion Bob, what separates her from her more colorful counterpart is the fact that players can switch between either of her at a moment’s notice, albeit at the expense of leaving the other one immobile and vulnerable to enemy fire.
Though this new operator has yet to be officially revealed, it appears she will be making her debut proper on August 25th via a scheduled, Operation Twin Shells-specific preview livestream.
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Curiously, while this YS93 will not be the first disabled operator to be added to the roster of Rainbow Six Siege, she will be the first to not make use of the setting’s futuristic technology to adapt to her physical circumstances.
In November 2020, the game introduced Apha “Aruni” Tawanroong, a Thai explosives expert who unfortunately lost both of the limbs on her left side following a failed defusal operation.
However, in stark contrast to YS93, rather than continuing on without the use of her arm and leg, Aruni instead makes use of two highly-advanced prosthetics (as provided to her by the in-game Nighthaven PMC) to keep herself battlefield ready.
Ultimately, it seems that in true Ubisoft fashion – just look at the ability of Star Wars Outlaws‘ Kay Vess to take down Stormtroopers with barely a head-tap or the portrayal of the historical Yasuke as a full-blown Samurai in Assassin’s Creed Shadows – the developer has once again put the concept of representation over their own game’s in-universe logic.
And just to end things on a high note: Among the many critics of YS93’s character design is comedian Ricky Berwick.
Suffering himself from the physically debilitating Beals-Hecht syndrome, the comedian responded to @Shiiny7’s leak with a video of his own poking fun at Rainbow Six Siege‘s newest character.