Not only is Rainbow Six Siege free to play for the next week, it's also just $4 to keep if you like it

 Siege amaru.
Siege amaru.

We are already two days into a free week for Rainbow Six Siege, Ubisoft's long-running multiplayer take on its even longer-running tactical shooter series. The free week runs until Thursday, March 21, while you can get the game for keeps for just $4 (85% off) until Wednesday.

We are on year nine of this shooter⁠—a methuselah in live service terms⁠—but to hear PCG's multiplayer FPS expert, Morgan Park, tell it, Siege has never been better. Changes to favor disadvantaged attackers, tastefully nerf environmental destruction to limit defenders peeking through bullet holes, and streamline a still quite complicated weapon attachment system all contribute to a version of the game that's still lean, exciting, and surprisingly unique all these years after launch.

It also seems like Siege is here to stay for some time yet: its director recently threw some shade on competing multiplayer FPSes while shooting down speculation about a "Siege 2" or some other form of sequel: "I'm not going to name names, but you see games go through sequels and just completely drop the ball." Now I assumed Alexander Karpazis was referring to Overwatch 2 here, but others on the team immediately leapt to Counter-Strike 2⁠—maybe this quote is some kind of FPS liker's Rorschach test?

So a $4 investment in Rainbow Six Siege seems like it could pay dividends for some time yet⁠—assuming you enjoy yourself during the free week, that is. You have until Wednesday, March 20 to take advantage of the sale price, while the free week will last for one more day after that. You can check out Ubisoft's website for details on how to access Rainbow Six Siege for free.