Ubisoft cancel Rainbow Six APAC playoffs

Ubisoft has announced a major change to the esports format of the Asia-Pacific region for Rainbow Six Siege, removing the unified playoffs that typically end each stage in the region.

Prior to the June 8 announcement, teams would have qualified for the APAC playoffs through league play in either APAC North or APAC South. These two subregions will now serve as separate entities for the Rainbow Six Siege esports scene.

Rainbow Six APAC playoffs cancelled

APAC is a quickly developing region for Rainbow Six esports, with its representatives growing stronger and stronger at each international event. However, Stage 1 of the 2022 season was plagued with issues, especially during the unified APAC League playoffs. In particular, the online event saw teams in Korea and Australia heavily impacted by latency issues.

In response to this, Ubisoft has opted to remove the APAC League playoffs from the esports circuit and instead operate the region through its two subregional leagues — APAC North and APAC South.

“Fostering and maintaining a highly competitive league that reflects the values of Rainbow Six Esports will always be one of our top priorities. Starting with Stage 2, the top 2 teams from the North Division and the top 2 teams from the South Division in the final rankings of each Stage will directly qualify to the Major.”

Functionally, this creates two separate regions that will now only formally play each other at international events. APAC North features teams exclusively from Japan and Korea, while APAC South encompasses Australia, Singapore, Thailand, Taiwan, and India.

The move greatly heightens the stakes for the APAC region. In the original format, the top four teams from each subregion progressed to the APAC League playoffs. Now, a team’s season ends following anything but a top-two finish.

New APAC format debuts June 15

The news of the format change comes one week before Stage 2 APAC play is due to begin. It’s yet another shakeup for the esports scene, following news of the delay of Operation Vector Glare, the next major update for the game.

APAC North play begins on June 15 while APAC South gets underway on June 16. Each region will host seven match days over the course of June and July. The top two teams from each region will earn a place at the Six Major August, set to begin on August 15 in an as-yet-unannounced location.

Only time will tell as to how this new format will fully affect the Rainbow Six esports scene in the APAC region.

Header: Ubisoft