Tom Clancy 's Rainbow Six - wikipedia Tom Clancy 's Rainbow Six This article is about the franchise. For the first video game in the franchise, see Tom Clancy 's Rainbow Six ( video game ). For the novel with the same name, see Rainbow Six ( novel ). Tom Clancy 's Rainbow Six Genres Tactical shooter Developer ( s ) Ubisoft Montreal Ubisoft Milan Red Storm Entertainment Publisher ( s ) Ubisoft Platform of origin Microsoft Windows First release Rainbow Six August 21, 1998 Latest release Rainbow Six Siege December 1, 2015 Tom Clancy 's Rainbow Six is a media franchise created by American author Tom Clancy about a fictional international counter-terrorist unit called `` Rainbow ''. The franchise began with Clancy 's novel Rainbow Six, which was adapted into a series of tactical first - person shooter video games. Contents 1 Team Rainbow 2 Novel 3 Video games 3.1 List of games 4 References 5 External links Team Rainbow Rainbow Six describes Rainbow as an international counter-terrorism operation hosted by NATO and funded by money funneled through the U.S. Department of the Interior. The base of operations for Rainbow is located in Hereford, England ( at the time, home to the SAS ), due to the United Kingdom being one of the most accessible countries in the world and having one of the world 's foremost special forces units. Most of the characters in Rainbow Six are U.S. or British, though the NATO countries of France, Germany, Italy, Spain, Canada, and the non-NATO ally of Israel have at least one representative each. Clancy describes the structure of Rainbow as having one Director, who oversees the entire operation, and one Deputy Director, who is second in command. Rainbow is portrayed as the `` blacker than black '' operations, and it works off its very own intelligence service which has intelligence contacts all over the world. In the book, when Rainbow is called upon for help from another country 's government to deal with a terrorist situation, usually only one of the two teams will be sent, but in some situations both will be sent. Both teams have an officer ( O - 4 or equivalent ) as team leader and a senior NCO ( E-9 or equivalent ) as second in command. Not including the team leader, each team is made up of ten men. Rainbow also has a standard - issue weapons kit. Each team has two snipers. In the video games, Rainbow is portrayed differently. John Clark is still the leader for most of the series, but is supported by a set of other key staff and advisers who vary from game to game. As of Rogue Spear, the unit has 30 operatives, including members from NATO countries and from non-NATO countries. For each mission in the first three games, a maximum eight operatives can be deployed and can be split into a maximum of four teams. Weapons, uniforms, and equipment are less standardized, and are instead chosen to suit the operative and the mission. Novel Main article : Rainbow Six ( novel ) The novel, Rainbow Six, was written by Tom Clancy and published in 1998. The novel focuses on John Clark, Ding Chavez, and a fictional multinational counter-terrorist organization named Rainbow. Video games The first game was developed by Red Storm Entertainment, while the novel was being written. The game later spawned a number of sequels and expansion packs. Red Storm was later acquired by Ubisoft, who currently develops and publishes the games. Mobile phone versions of the game are developed and published by Gameloft. Rainbow Six and its sequels defined the tactical shooter genre, forcing players to focus more time and effort on stealth, teamwork, and tactics rather than on sheer firepower. With some of the more recent releases however, the game has taken on more of a `` mainstream '' first - person shooter approach in an attempt to appeal to a wider audience. The cancelled game Rainbow 6 : Patriots changed the word Six to 6. The latest game, Siege, has changed the series title back to Rainbow Six. List of games Overview of released games Title Windows release Console versions Mobile versions Comments Rainbow Six 1998 1999 ! N64, PS1 ( 1999 ) ; DC ( 2000 ) 2000 ! GBC ( 2000 ) Rainbow Six Mission Pack : Eagle Watch 1999 2000 ! DC ( 2000 ) N / A expansion pack Rainbow Six : Rogue Spear 1999 2000 ! DC ( 2000 ) ; PS1 ( 2001 ) 2002 ! GBA ( 2002 ) Rainbow Six : Rogue Spear Mission Pack Urban Operations 2000 2000 ! DC ( 2000 ) N / A expansion pack Rainbow Six : Rogue Spear Covert Ops Essentials 2000 N / A N / A expansion pack ( stand - alone ) Rainbow Six : Take - Down -- Missions in Korea 2001 N / A N / A Not released outside of South Korea ( stand - alone ) Rainbow Six : Rogue Spear Black Thorn 2001 N / A N / A expansion pack ( stand - alone ) Rainbow Six : Lone Wolf N / A 2002 ! PS1 ( 2002 ) N / A Rainbow Six 3 : Raven Shield 2003 2003 ! Xbox ( 2003 ) ; PS2, GameCube ( 2004 ) 2004 ! Mobile game ( 2004 ) Rainbow Six 3 : Athena Sword N / A N / A expansion pack Rainbow Six 3 : Black Arrow N / A 2004 ! Xbox ( 2004 ) N / A Rainbow Six 3 : Iron Wrath 2005 N / A N / A expansion pack ( DLC ) Rainbow Six : Lockdown 2005 2005 ! PS2, Xbox, GameCube ( 2005 ) N / A Rainbow Six : Critical Hour N / A 2006 ! Xbox ( 2006 ) N / A Rainbow Six : Vegas 2006 2006 ! X360 ( 2006 ) ; PS3 ( 2007 ) 2007 ! PSP ( 2007 ), Mobile game Rainbow Six : Vegas 2 2008 2008 ! PS3, X360 ( 2008 ) N / A Rainbow Six : Shadow Vanguard N / A N / A 2011 ! iOS, Android ( 2011 ) Based on the original Rainbow 6 : Patriots N / A 9999 ! PS4, XONE N / A Cancelled Rainbow Six Siege 2015 2014 ! PS4, XONE N / A A South Korean - only PC game called Tom Clancy 's Rainbow Six : Take - Down -- Missions in Korea was created for the South Korean market by KAMA Digital Entertainment. The game boasted South Korean Rainbow operatives and weapons with a different story and interface. It was not sold outside South Korea. References Jump up ^ Crecente, Brian ( June 23, 2011 ). `` New Rainbow Six Might Be the Most Innovative Shooter in Years ''. Kotaku. Archived from the original on December 20, 2013. Retrieved December 2, 2013. Jump up ^ Crecente, Brian ( June 2, 2011 ). `` Rainbow Six Set to Invade New York With Home - Grown Terrorism ''. Kotaku. Archived from the original on December 3, 2013. Retrieved December 2, 2013. External links Ubisoft Website Tom Clancy 's video games Rainbow Six series Rainbow Six Rogue Spear Take - Down -- Missions in Korea 3 : Raven Shield Lockdown Critical Hour Vegas Vegas 2 Shadow Vanguard Patriots ( cancelled ) Siege Ghost Recon series Ghost Recon Desert Siege Island Thunder Jungle Storm Ghost Recon 2 Summit Strike Advanced Warfighter Advanced Warfighter 2 Predator Wii Shadow Wars Future Soldier Phantoms Wildlands Splinter Cell series Splinter Cell Pandora Tomorrow Chaos Theory Essentials Double Agent Conviction Blacklist Jack Ryan series The Hunt for Red October ( 1987 ) The Hunt for Red October ( 1990 ) The Hunt for Red October ( 1991 ) The Sum of All Fears H.A.W.X series H.A.W.X H.A.W.X 2 Other games Red Storm Rising SSN Politika ruthless.com Shadow Watch EndWar The Division ShadowBreak Ubisoft Franchises Anno Assassin 's Creed Brothers in Arms Call of Juarez The Crew CSI Driver Far Cry Imagine Just Dance Might and Magic Myst Petz Prince of Persia Rayman Raving Rabbids Red Steel The Settlers Silent Hunter Tom Clancy 's Ghost Recon Rainbow Six Splinter Cell Watch Dogs List of Ubisoft games Subsidiaries Blue Byte Ivory Tower Ketchapp Leamington Massive Entertainment Montpellier Montreal Motion Pictures Nadeo Quazal Quebec RedLynx Red Storm Entertainment Reflections Singapore Toronto List of Ubisoft subsidiaries Technology AnvilNext Jade LyN Snowdrop UbiArt Framework Uplay Works by Tom Clancy Jack Ryan novels The Hunt for Red October ( 1984 ) Patriot Games ( 1987 ) The Cardinal of the Kremlin ( 1988 ) Clear and Present Danger ( 1989 ) The Sum of All Fears ( 1991 ) Without Remorse ( 1993 ) Debt of Honor ( 1994 ) Executive Orders ( 1996 ) Rainbow Six ( 1998 ) The Bear and the Dragon ( 2000 ) Red Rabbit ( 2002 ) The Teeth of the Tiger ( 2003 ) Dead or Alive ( 2010 ) Locked On ( 2011 ) Threat Vector ( 2012 ) Command Authority ( 2013 ) Other novels Red Storm Rising ( 1986 ) SSN ( 1996 ) Against All Enemies ( 2011 ) Search and Destroy ( 2012, publication cancelled ) Non-fiction Submarine ( 1993 ) Armored Cavalry ( 1994 ) Fighter Wing ( 1995 ) Marine ( 1996 ) Into the Storm ( 1997 ) Airborne ( 1997 ) Carrier ( 1999 ) Every Man a Tiger ( 1999 ) Special Forces ( 2001 ) Shadow Warriors ( 2002 ) Battle Ready ( 2004 ) Media franchises developed by Tom Clancy Jack Ryan Rainbow Six Ghost Recon Splinter Cell Power Plays Op - Center Net Force Net Force Explorers Retrieved from `` https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Tom_Clancy%27s_Rainbow_Six&oldid=842497746 '' Categories : Tom Clancy 's Rainbow Six Terrorism in fiction Tom Clancy Video game franchises Tom Clancy games G.P. 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Question: where does the name rainbow six come from
Answer: Clancy's novel Rainbow Six