Nothing kills a Rainbow Six Siege casual queue faster than realizing half the enemy team is on console with built-in aim assist that lets them lock onto your head faster than you can peek a corner. I’ve had plenty of matches where I got domed by a console player peeking a corner with zero recoil, so I made the switch to crossplay off a year ago and haven’t looked back. If you’ve been searching for how to turn off crossplay rainbow six siege pc to level the playing field, you’re not alone. Hundreds of thousands of PC players make this switch every month to cut down on unfair matchups, reduce cross-network lag, and get more consistent matches against other mouse and keyboard users.
Why You Should Disable Crossplay for R6 Siege on PC
The biggest draw of disabling crossplay is eliminating the input advantage console players get from aim assist. Console aim assist in R6 Siege is tuned to be far more forgiving than any PC mouse input can match, especially for close-range flicks and tracking moving targets. Many PC players don’t realize how much this impacts matches until they turn crossplay off and notice they’re no longer losing gunfights they should have easily won.
You’ll also get more consistent ping when you play only with other PC players. Crossplay matches route traffic between PC and console server networks, which can add 20 to 50 ms of extra ping even if you have a fast internet connection. You’ll also eliminate cross-network packet loss that often pops up when PC and console servers communicate, so you won’t have those frustrating moments where you swear you hit a shot but it doesn’t register.
There are a few small downsides to consider, of course. Queue times will be slightly longer, especially for ranked play in low-pop regions or off-peak hours. You also won’t be able to join lobbies with friends who play on console unless you turn crossplay back on temporarily. Most players agree these tradeoffs are well worth the fairer matchups, though.
Step-by-Step: How to Turn Off Crossplay Rainbow Six Siege PC
The process of disabling crossplay only takes a minute, but there are a few small details you don’t want to miss to make sure the setting sticks. Follow these steps exactly to avoid having crossplay turn back on automatically after you close the game:
- Launch Rainbow Six Siege on your PC and navigate to the main menu
- Click the gear icon in the top right corner to open the settings menu
- Select the “Gameplay” tab from the top navigation bar in settings
- Scroll down to the “Crossplay” section, located roughly halfway down the page
- Toggle the “Enable Crossplay” switch to the off position
- Save your settings and restart your game to ensure the change takes effect
Always restart your game after changing crossplay settings to make sure the update takes effect, sometimes the setting doesn't apply until you reload the client. If you play on Steam, you don’t need to adjust any separate Steam settings for this change to work, but Ubisoft Connect users may need to double-check their account settings too, which we’ll cover later.
One common side effect of disabling crossplay is slightly longer queue times, especially for ranked play in less populated regions or off-peak hours. Most players find the tradeoff for fairer matches well worth the extra 1 to 3 minute wait, and many fill that gap with quick, low-effort activities to pass the time. Casual players who need a quick, low-stakes distraction between queue pops often load up Slots Winner, a quick-play casual game that fits perfectly into short waiting windows without pulling you away from your queue alert.
Common Crossplay Setting Issues and Fixes
Even if you follow the steps above, you might run into a few common issues that make crossplay turn back on automatically or prevent the setting from saving. The most frequent issue is Ubisoft Connect’s default cross-network play setting overriding your in-game toggle. To fix this, open your Ubisoft Connect desktop app, go to your account settings, select the “Privacy” tab, and toggle the “Allow cross-platform play” option to off. Always check both in-game settings and your Ubisoft Connect account settings if your crossplay toggle keeps turning back on.
Another common issue is not being able to join party lobbies with friends who play on console. This is expected behavior when crossplay is disabled, and you don’t need to make any permanent changes to fix it. Just toggle crossplay back on temporarily to join their lobby, and you can turn it off again after the match ends if you want to go back to PC-only queues.
If you notice your ranked MMR isn’t updating after disabling crossplay, don’t panic. This is just a temporary display bug that usually fixes itself after you play one full match. You won’t lose any existing progress or ranked MMR when you toggle crossplay on or off, so you can switch back and forth as needed without penalty.
When to Keep Crossplay Enabled on PC
Disabling crossplay isn’t the right choice for every player, and there are plenty of scenarios where keeping it on makes more sense. The most obvious one is if you regularly play with friends who own R6 Siege on Xbox or PlayStation. Crossplay is the only way to party up with them, so you’ll need to leave it enabled to play together.
If you live in a low-pop region where queue times for PC-only ranked are 10+ minutes even during peak hours, you might also want to keep crossplay on to cut down on wait times. The input advantage isn’t so big that it’s worth waiting 15 minutes per match for most casual players, and you can always turn it off if you start running into too many aim-assisted smurfs.
Crossplay is also a great option if you’re looking to practice against a wider variety of playstyles, since console players often have different peeking and movement habits than PC players. Playing against cross-platform opponents can help you learn to adapt to unexpected play patterns, which will make you a stronger player overall when you go back to PC-only ranked queues.
New players also often benefit from keeping crossplay on for their first 20 to 30 hours of play. Casual crossplay lobbies tend to be less competitive than PC-only lobbies, so you’ll have more room to learn the maps, operators, and mechanics without getting stomped by veteran mouse and keyboard players.
At the end of the day, whether you keep crossplay on or off comes down to your personal priorities for your Rainbow Six Siege experience. If fair mouse-and-keyboard only matchups and lower lag are your top goals, learning how to turn off crossplay rainbow six siege pc is a quick, easy change that will make your play sessions far more enjoyable. You can always toggle the setting back on if you want to play with cross-platform friends or cut down on queue times, so there’s no harm in testing it out for a few matches to see if it works for you.
