Ubisoft has officially revealed Rainbow Six: Tactics, a new single-player turn-based tactical game that brings the Tom Clancy franchise into XCOM-style territory.
Rainbow Six is heading in a very different direction with its next game.
During Gamescom Opening Night Live 2026, Ubisoft officially unveiled Rainbow Six: Tactics, giving us our first look at a turn-based strategy experience built around the operators, gadgets and tactical destruction associated with the franchise.
Rather than another competitive shooter following Rainbow Six Siege, Tactics will be a single-player game where players command a squad of elite operators through carefully planned missions.
And yes, the XCOM comparisons are going to be inevitable.
Rainbow Six: Tactics Brings Turn-Based Combat to the Series
Rainbow Six: Tactics takes the fundamentals of Ubisoft’s tactical shooter franchise and translates them into turn-based battles.
Players will command a team of Rainbow operators, positioning them around the battlefield before coordinating attacks against enemy forces.
Destructible environments also play an important role.
Walls and other parts of the environment can be breached to create new entry points, allowing squads to surround enemies or launch synchronized assaults from multiple directions.
That should retain at least some of the tactical identity Rainbow Six fans are familiar with, despite the dramatic change in genre.
According to Ubisoft:
“Tom Clancy’s Rainbow Six Tactics is a single-player tactical game set in the Rainbow Six universe. Command elite operators in tense turn-based battles, breach through destructible environments, and outsmart enemies with synchronized assaults.”
Between missions, players will return to their HQ, which can be upgraded throughout the campaign.
Improving the headquarters unlocks new skills and equipment, while players will also gather clues connected to a wider global conspiracy forming the backbone of the game’s story.
A Very Different Rainbow Six Game
Rainbow Six: Tactics represents a significant departure for a franchise that has spent much of the last decade associated with Rainbow Six Siege.
It will also be the first new Rainbow Six game released for consoles since Rainbow Six Extraction arrived in 2022.
The timing makes the reveal particularly interesting for Ubisoft.
The company has experienced a turbulent 2026, with several projects reportedly canceled alongside layoffs and studio closures. Bringing one of Ubisoft’s biggest franchises back with a completely different type of game could therefore become an important release for the publisher.
There are still plenty of unanswered questions surrounding the campaign, playable operators and progression systems, but the first trailer makes Ubisoft’s intentions clear: this isn’t Rainbow Six Siege 2.
It’s a tactical strategy game built around planning, positioning and making every move count.
Rainbow Six: Tactics is currently expected to release in 2027.
What do you think about Rainbow Six becoming a turn-based tactical game? Is an XCOM-style Rainbow Six something you’d play? Let us know in the comments below.
