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Rainbow Six Siege’s new sniper rifle is already proving controversial among pros

Kali is Siege's first true sniper, and her CSRX 300 rifle looks almost too powerful.

Artwork of Kali aiming rifle in Siege Shifting Tides

Ubisoft provided the full reveal of Rainbow Six Siege’s newest operators for Year 4 Season 4 today, and the new attacker – and Indian sniper named Kali – is already sending waves around the pro player commentariat.

“Bolt action sniper rifle got me EXCITED,” tweeted G2 Siege pro Pengu. “[Kali] does seem to have A LOT of utility, she counters practically everything?” That utility is certainly there, as Jordan writes in his hands-on with Kali and Wamai, which you can read here. “[A]fter four years with Glaz’s dinky marksman rifle as the only long-range option it feels exhilarating to wield a weapon with as much stopping power as the CSRX 300,” he says.

Kali’s high degree of utility means she’s likely to completely replace Glaz, and it’s that well-roundedness combined with the one-hit lethality of her sniper rifle that makes other pros question the wisdom of her design.

“Lion wasn’t a good idea, we practically begged for him to be banned and we just had to suck it up till he was quarantined,” tweeted Susquehanna Soniqs Goddess after watching the reveal. “And now we have another game breaking OP? Who in their right mind thought Kali was okay?”

Lion was eventually banned in Pro League for the beginning of Season 9, and finally saw a rework several months later.

The Siege dev team is aware that Kali’s a strong pick, but the belief is that she’ll settle into the lineup as players learn and adapt to her role, both as a teammate and as a threat to the defending team.

In a forthcoming interview we conducted with game designer Emilien Lemet, he explained that Kali was designed to discourage the Glaz-style lone-wolfing that often typifies sniper roles in shooters. But he acknowledges that it may take a little while to get used to having her around.

“For the first few weeks, Kali is going to be a monster,” he said. “But I’m convinced that with time, it’s going to settle in.”

In the meantime, he said, the team is working on finding a dedicated and interesting role for poor old Glaz.