Rainbow Six Extraction Succeeds Where Call of Duty Zombies Fails

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Although nowhere near as popular, Rainbow Six Extraction improves on what Call of Duty Zombies started. Call of Duty Zombies began as a game mode in Call of Duty: World at War, developed by Treyarch. The mode is simple yet detailed, tasking players to survive against increasingly difficult waves of zombies and other nightmares while purchasing and upgrading their weapons. Moreover, despite its simplicity, Zombies had an inkling of narrative with a hidden Easter Egg that required patience and knowledge of the map. However, the Zombies’ gameplay loop and features have remained consistent across seven games, despite the occasional new gameplay element being introduced every now and then.

In contrast, Rainbow Six Extraction started as a limited-time event in Rainbow Six Siege titled Operation Chimera. However, while the game is based on an event, Rainbow Six Extraction is different from Siege. Not only does Extraction expand on the gameplay loop of the event, refining the playable operators, it also changes the gameplay features from Siege to fit its setting and narrative. This is on top of mixing elements from other games like Dark Souls and adding to the roaster of enemies the players will face.

Despite starting as a limited-time event, Rainbow Six Extraction developed and expanded on its gameplay and story, whereas Call of Duty Zombies remained relatively the same. While Extraction takes elements from R6 Siege, it improves and expands to fit its PVE approach. The narrative also has some weight within the canon of Siege, with the story a continuation of Operation Chimera. While a departure from Rainbow Six Siege‘s original multiplayer setup, Extraction produces something new and relatively fresh.

Rainbow Six Extraction Expands CoD Zombies’ Gameplay

Call of Duty Zombies takes gameplay elements from the proper Call of Duty games from the weapons and perks, with the gameplay loop remaining relatively the same across every iteration. Rainbow Six Extraction, however, while sharing parallels to Rainbow Six Siege, expands on its gameplay mechanics. Trading the methodical and slower-paced gameplay of Siege for a quicker and more frantic one mixes up the gameplay. Extraction also takes advantage of Siege‘s immersive audio elements and creates atmospheric levels, adding additional layers to the narrative.

Additionally, where Call of Duty Zombies’ story branches off to various storylines, Rainbow Six Extraction‘s story is linear and more focused. While this can be seen as too simplistic and changing what the Tom Clancy branding used to mean, the foundation of the narrative is far more stable and concise than Zombies. The cast of characters also connects with R6 Siege, creating a more cohesive and plausible narrative despite its science-fiction premise. Moreover, the narrative Easter Eggs in Zombies have become more eccentric, with the task of triggering them feeling drawn out. In contrast, Extraction takes a more simplistic route to further its narrative and world-building elements.

Rainbow Six Extraction offers a more fleshed-out and new experience than Call of Duty Zombies despite both games being more expansions to their respective franchises. Using the gameplay elements from Rainbow Six Siege, Extraction expands and improves upon them to accommodate the setting and immerse the player. The narrative of Extraction, while simple, is a far cry from Call of Duty‘s different zombie modes, from Black Ops Cold War to the recent CoD Vanguard. While Rainbow Six Extraction is far from the traditional Tom Clancy style of game, it carves its path within the established competition, flourishing where Call of DutyZombies has, in recent years, frequently faltered.

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