2025 has been a groundbreaking year for video games, showcasing a diverse range of iconic titles across both AAA and indie sectors. However, as a dedicated shooter fan, I found myself eagerly anticipating a game that would truly shift the paradigm. Surprisingly, that game wasn’t the much-anticipated Battlefield 6 or the latest Call of Duty installment—it was Arc Raiders.
During the live tech test 2, I became an instant fan. If you check out my initial impressions of Arc Raiders, you’ll see I deemed it ready for launch. Embark Studios took their time to perfect the game, and the official release does not disappoint. So, what sets Arc Raiders apart from its competitors? Here’s my comprehensive review.
The Evolution of Gameplay: From PvE to PvP
Initially conceived as a PvE experience, Arc Raiders underwent a transformation to include PvP elements. Although the developers labeled the prior model as ‘boring’, my gameplay experience tells a different story. Even when facing top-tier players, the game never feels like a mere lobby simulator, thanks to its dynamic mechanics.
Speranza: A World Where Plans Go Awry
Arc Raiders immerses players in an open-world extraction game reminiscent of other titles like Escape from Tarkov. You step into the shoes of a raider on a quest in Speranza, a subterranean refuge on a devastated Earth. Your core mission? Scavenge vital loot and gear while engaging with hordes of ARC machines. Sounds straightforward, right? But the AI-controlled ARCs are diverse and challenging, roaming freely across the map.
Encountering these formidable ARCs alone can feel like a suicide mission, especially when they attack in groups. Despite their difficulty, their challenge is well-balanced if you equip the right weapons and gadgets. Plus, there’s always the uncertainty of encountering other human raiders.
Flexible Loadouts: Curate Your Raiders’ Style
Loadouts in Arc Raiders promote adaptable playstyles rather than rigid classes, focusing on utility, stealth, and team coordination. Communication plays a key role—sometimes even words can lead to unexpected alliances or betrayals.
Proximity Chat Adds a Layer of Strategy
The game features a unique proximity voice chat system, enhancing immersion and reliance on strategic teamwork. Whether you plan to take down formidable foes together or scheme against one another, this feature adds depth to every encounter. Don’t worry, if you prefer silence, you can disable it entirely.
During intense raids, the ARCs can outsmart you and send you back to your base faster than you can react. Many times, I’ve found myself in tough situations where my friends came to my rescue after an ill-timed charge against overwhelming odds. The laughs we shared throughout made every chaotic moment worthwhile.
Challenge and Reward: Navigating the Map
Upon starting, Arc Raiders offers four diverse maps, all promoting various playstyles and tactical decisions influenced by environmental elements. The dynamic openings of different extraction points require strategic planning and quick thinking.
Each raid comes with a timer; failure to extract before it runs out results in an explosive end to your endeavors. This fascinating lore-based mechanic creates a tension that encompasses each raid.
Progression Mechanics: A Unique Reward System
Arc Raiders offers a dual-layered progression system: extracted items and player skill levels. Successfully extracting loot enables you to craft better weapons and earn Raider Coins for upgrades. Key items can be preserved in a safe pocket, minimizing the impact of sneaky deaths.
Crafting and Upgrades: An Engaging Experience
Once you’ve gathered enough materials, crafting becomes an essential component of gameplay. You can create powerful tools, healing items, and specialized workbenches at your base. Crafting feels rewarding and is significantly accelerated compared to other games.
Every weapon possesses distinct characteristics. You’re not cobbling together factory-standard guns; instead, you’re affixing sci-fi components to retro military models, creating unique firearms as you go. This personal touch makes looting feel significant.
Throughout my journey, I often faced critical decisions: is it time to extract, or should I gamble for richer loot? Each match kept me engaged, set against the backdrop of an unpredictable world.
Skill Development: Tailoring Your Raider
In Arc Raiders, you accumulate experience based on your in-game actions, allowing for new skill acquisitions. I highly recommend focusing on ‘Mobility’—being fast in a perilous environment can often spell the difference between life and death.
The Expedition Project: A New Prestige System
Intriguingly, developers incorporated the Expedition Project, addressing an ongoing issue in extraction shooters. This system allows players to engage in a voluntary prestige cycle after reaching level 20, providing hardcore players a reason to start anew while preserving casual gamers’ hard-earned progress.
This cycle culminates every eight weeks, presenting various missions and challenges that enable character resets without punishing players who wish to retain their progress. It’s a brilliant solution informed by community feedback.
Player-Centric Battle Pass Structure
Unlike traditional battle passes, Arc Raiders allows players to choose concurrent tracks focused on their preferred rewards, reducing grind fatigue significantly. This flexibility encourages active engagement without discouragement.
Matchmaking: Solo vs Squad
The matchmaking system endeavors to balance solo players with others, although it sometimes groups solos with squads, which can up the challenge. The excitement of uneven matchups fuels adrenaline, yet a dedicated solo experience could enhance player satisfaction.
Performance: Seamless and Responsive
Performance-wise, Arc Raiders excels. Whether you’re running it on high-spec machines or lower-end systems, the gameplay remains smooth. During my tests, the frame rates were impressive—around 100 FPS at epic settings without DLSS, and more than 130 FPS with it enabled.
Despite these highs, there are minor issues, like visibility on lower settings that need addressing. Still, this game’s performance showcases Embark’s prowess in optimizing a live shooter experience.
Future Prospects: Community Engagement is Key
Embark’s transparent communication fosters player trust. They actively respond to community feedback during stress tests, indicating they are genuinely invested in ongoing improvement. This openness is vital in an evolving genre.
Looking ahead, Embark plans a decade-long roadmap deploying new maps, challenges, and events, but the commitment to meaningful updates will determine the game’s longevity.
Final Thoughts: Arc Raiders’ Undeniable Charm
Arc Raiders combines chaos with enjoyment. It punishes mistakes yet encourages players to try again without discouragement. Each raid tells a story—sometimes triumphant and other times ridiculous, but always memorable. It stands out as one of the most engaging shooters in recent years, promising laughter alongside intensity.
Even while facing adversity, the game’s unpredictability and exhilaration keep you coming back for more. If the developers maintain their momentum, Arc Raiders could define the extraction shooter genre for years to come.
If you’re keen on diving deeper into gaming content, check out Moyens I/O for more insights and reviews.