Ubisoft ditches Rainbow Six Siege Starter Edition, upgrades existing owners to Standard

Ubisoft is making some big changes to Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six Siege as the tactical shooter approaches its Year 4 content drops. The company announced today that it will be reducing the prices of the game's various versions, removing the Starter Edition, and introducing a new pricing system for DLC operators.

The PC version's Rainbow Six Siege Starter Edition is being retired from sale come February 12. This version allows players to jump into the game at a much lower price point, but makes grinding out operators a much harder task than usual. To take its place, the Standard Edition is dropping in price to $19.99 across all digital stores.

The good news doesn't stop there, as those who've purchased the Starter Edition previously will have their copy be upgraded to the Standard Edition free of charge. Any previously unlocked operators and content will also be carried over.

The downside is that the 20 legacy operators from the base game will no longer be unlocked out of the gate. New players - and those who are upgraded from Starter Edition - will need to put down Renown, the free in-game currency, ranging from 500 to 2000 for unlocking each operator, which is still a measly amount compared to current DLC operator prices.

Speaking of DLC operators, Ubisoft is also planning to reduce their prices using a new scaling system, where older operators will be cheaper and easier to unlock than newer ones. More details on this system are planned to be revealed during the Six Invitational tournament, which currently is in the middle of group stages.

Meanwhile, the permanent price reduction is also being applied to all other editions of the game, in addition to updating what they offer for players. Full details on all four versions can be found on this new FAQ page. Celebrating the launch of another year of support, the company is currently running discounts on these new versions by up to 70% across all platforms as well.

Don't forget that Rainbow Six Siege's first Operation of 2019, Burnt Horizon, is also slated to be unveiled during the Six Invitational finals, which begins on February 17. This Australia-themed update will bring in two new operators and a map, among other changes.