While Embark seems to have struck gold with free-to-play shooter The Finals, the studio’s ambition doesn’t end there, as the developers just released ARC Raiders, an extraction shooter, which was the first project announced by the studio.
Years later, does it live up to the hype? Can this brand-new IP stand toe-to-toe with other multiplayer shooters? At this point, we can safely say yes, and this seems to be the second game of what appears to be a powerhouse studio in the making.
ARC Raiders is the latest extraction shooter, and not only is it going up against Battlefield 6 and Call of Duty: Black Ops 7 for your holiday gaming time, but it even has the audacity to be a premium (read: paid) title. Sometimes, there’s one game that disrupts the entire status quo,and ARC Raiders seems to be that game.
Don’t Shoot!
I want to get something out of the way before I dive deeper into my review of ARC Raiders. It’s more to set expectations for what ARC Raiders really is, because I’ve seen some misconceptions about the game. ARC Raiders is first and foremost an extraction shooter that blends PvP (player-versus-player) and PvE (player-versus-environment) into a seamless experience, making it a PvPvE game. It’s essential to point this out because far too many players have criticized the game, or more specifically, some of the players who run around and shoot others, despite their friendly approach to these hostile players.
As someone who, up until this point, has never been a fan of the extraction genre, my approach to ARC Raiders has been more pacifist, trying to team up with every player and take out any ARCs (robotic machines) we encounter. I play the game like it’s a PvE game, but make no mistake, that’s not what this game is. Don’t try to get coerced by others into thinking this is some game along the lines of, say, Helldivers 2, because it’s not. I’ll say it again, ARC Raiders is first and foremost an extraction shooter built on PvPvE interactions, and no matter how you want to play it, each element equally dominates the experience.
Sure, I would have loved to play a full-fledged PvE experience given what I have played so far, but at the same time, this game, this complete experience, wouldn’t be what it is if it didn’t make that move from being a co-op game to an extraction. What I am trying to say is, I wouldn’t change ARC Raiders to be something other than what it is now, and I have, begrudgingly at first, come to respect and even embrace the studio’s vision for this specific blend of risk and reward. They’ve crafted this massive world, filled with high stakes, where every topside visit results in a brand-new story—a story that you shape, as well as the other Raiders.
The beauty of ARC Raiders, though, is how welcoming the experience is to newcomers and to those who could never get into the extraction genre. With a short, yet simple introduction to the game’s world, ARC Raiders sets the mood of things in a way that so many other extraction shooters have failed to do. You understand that the world is one of high stakes, where one wrong move or one wrong encounter could mean losing all of your loot. Yet despite that, the world is so inviting in such a way that it feels accessible and utterly compelling, and you can’t help but want to go back into it.
You can see that with other players, too, in the game, at least in solo play. There seems to be a big understanding amongst a vast majority of solo players that no one really wants to fight each other. Probably because we all know we’re one person, and the threat of going after another solo player could pose a big one. Alerting other raiders of your hostility, as well as getting the attention of the ARCs. Not to mention, the risk of losing all of your loot, which the other player is thinking about too. This might be where all the talk about it being a PvE game is coming from, and why people are so angry and ask for change whenever another player becomes unfairly hostile towards someone who was being friendly. I’ve had it happen to me countless times. Run into a Raider, help them out a bit, then suddenly get shot right in the back, and have all my loot stolen. Do I get pissed off? You’re damn right I do, but I also fully understand that’s the kind of game that this is, and I wouldn’t change it if I could.
I don’t use voice chat in the game that often because I’m generally antisocial, which is a funny thing to say, since ARC Raiders is very much a social-driven game. Extraction shooters generally are, but I’ll say encounters have usually been more on the shit talking side of things. Here? Most people are open to teaming up and sticking together during the solo experience. Even when you don’t use a mic, you can select quick comms like “don’t shoot” or “What to team up?” that go a long way at forming some short-term bond with another player.
And I love all those player interactions, good or bad. Every time I step topside, I feel like I’m starting a new story, one that I never know where it’ll end up. In one match, I ended up teaming up with another player who ran out of ammo as swarms of ARCs started pushing up on them. I came in, saved them, then left them some ammo, and we parted ways, thanking each other for not turning on one another.
In another instance, I wanted to farm for some fruits to level up Scrappy, the rooster that greets you every time you come back from topside. Knowing that other players would be around, I brought some extra resources and left them there while they exchanged some of their findings. In this encounter, it began with one player, then another joined, followed by two more, and we eventually had a full lobby of players all working towards the same goal. Suddenly, a Leaper appeared, and without even speaking a word, we all decided to team up to take it down and share the look equally among ourselves. Then we started roaming around the map, destroying all the high-level ARCs we could find, and safely extracted.
I’ve even encountered one of those extraction point campers, where they camp the extraction point and kill any raider who tries to extract. I saw one of them gun down a player, warned the person who was following me, and we went in and took them out. Not only did we both extract safely, but we also managed to extract the player they just gunned down.
The game’s general loop is straightforward: you enter, find loot, and extract it. But it’s how things go down in these matches where all the magic ends up happening, and it’s something I haven’t felt other extraction shooters have captured quite right. A lot of them, in general, have a heavier focus on the PvP side of things, so you’re always hostile in every encounter—a sweat-fest, which is fine. And again, I don’t want to say that ARC Raiders is a PvE-focused game, because you always have to be wary of who you’re traveling with and your surroundings. However, it certainly plants this idea in a natural way, suggesting that there are choices you can make in this world with high risks and high rewards. I think it brings out a side of players that wouldn’t exist weren’t it for the PvP nature of the game.
Funny enough, if you decide you’re going to play this with friends, the experience is drastically different. In a match with three players, there’s a general understanding that strength in numbers matters. Even with random players, the general rule is that everyone is hostile outside your group. In a lot of ways, solo play feels more like the preparation for what ARC Raiders really is. That’s probably why so many are friendly there, because everyone’s working towards getting gear for the PvP interactions, which happen more often in three-player queues. Stealth play and being more careful when traversing the map play a significantly bigger role here, where solo, you sort of just run around without a care for the most part. Anytime you do see a player, it’s almost a shoot-on-sight kind of interaction, with it being far rarer to see squads teaming up.
It certainly is a lot more competitive here, and I think it really highlights just how fun the gameplay of ARC Raiders truly is. In many ways, it feels like I am playing Naughty Dog’s The Last of Us, collecting materials to craft new items, being careful not to be spotted, and planning things that closely resemble the game’s survival aspects. We’d stalk teams around a map to find out if they really were friendly, or not, sometimes teaming up with them during firefights, and other times setting up ambushes after they’d cleaned out a building.
The PvE side of things is even more deadly here, too (especially in Night Raids), since they can be used to your advantage, luring in a swarm of ARCs to where another group is, and letting the ARCs take care of them for you. It’s not to say that you can’t do these things in solo play, but knowing someone else might be watching could be enough to convince you otherwise. That’s not the case in three-player squads, because even if someone is watching you, chances are, they’re going to be hostile anyway. Everyone is out for gear here, and they’ll get it by any means possible.
It’s just pure fun, and whether I win an encounter or get knocked out, I always have a good time.
But overall, what I think Embark Studios does best with ARC Raiders is how it has synergized PvPvE into a cohesive experience. PvPvE isn’t new to the extraction genre. In fact, it’s practically a staple of them. But how many out there really spotlight both aspects and don’t lean more toward one or the other? There are some, but I’d argue that ARC Raiders has struck the perfect balance, making both players and AI enemies feel like genuine threats. The latter, especially, since they apparently use machine learning that constantly adapts their tactics. They don’t feel completely mindless and just there for easy kills. They’ll alert other ARCs, find ways to get you into their line of sight, instead of endlessly shooting at you. They think, and they adapt to the situation.
Other players understand that too, and while it’s equally rewarding to take down a leaper and other massive ARCs alone, knowing just how dangerous they are naturally creates an experience where players want to team up with one another. To achieve that without telling the players is quite an impressive feat. and shows how well the game’s design is. There are some more obvious situations, such as launching a map and having the announcer reveal that a Queen (a massive, spider-like machine) is in the area. You can go at it alone and try to secure the loot she’s protecting, or join in with other players, in which case it almost turns into a raid boss of sorts.
Never knowing what’s going to happen next is both fun and terrifying.
Questing, Progression, and Events
Beyond the general loop and role-playing, ARC Raiders also has a fully fleshed progression system that you can work towards to help you with runs. Players can level up and earn skill points, which can be used to unlock some passive buffs and features. It’s a nice way to add character progress beyond the scope of gear rarity, though I do wish it had a way to be able to reset the skill tree without taking on the Expedition Project.
Expeditions are essentially a form of prestiging, and in the game’s lore, what it does is it sends your current raider out beyond the Rust Belt forever. So you lose almost everything you earned outside paid items, along with a few other things. This is essentially a “wipe’ that extraction shooters have become known for, but rather than forcing it on the players, it’s completely optional. You don’t have to participate if you don’t want to, and as someone who works a 40+ hour-a-week job, this is such a welcome feature. It means I can keep progressing at my own pace, without having to deal with the fear of missing out (FOMO) because of a reset coming in a few days.
The one thing that I would maybe change about Projects is the loss of blueprints. It’s probably the only thing that’s stopping me from wanting to do it, because there are so many of them to collect. To have to lose them all feels like a much more tedious task than it should be. I understand the why, but I would like to see another solution introduced, be that still locking them and tying them to a point system of some kind, or anything really that doesn’t involve you having to recollect them all, while also keeping it fair play.
Beyond this, there are some questlines that are a bit more “narrative” driven. Not in the scope of a full-fledged single-player campaign, but they do extend beyond the normal daily activities at times. These are given by many in Speranza. Some of them are as simple as taking out a few ARCs, while others follow a chain of activities that have you repairing relays and learning about some of the more not-so-obvious mechanics of the game. I would like to see way more of these added to the game, but I do like that they expand the universe’s lore through text and audio.
Players can also participate in weekly trials, which have a ranking system and rewards tied to it. The trail itself doesn’t seem all that difficult, which, considering it’s based on performance in a match rather than cumulatively, makes sense.
Then there’s your Decks, which is essentially this game’s Battle Pass. It functions like the one seen in Helldivers 2, where you have pages of things to unlock, but you can do it in any order on that specific page, before moving on to the next. Progressing through Decks typically rewards some minor resources, real currency to use in the shop, and cosmetics. Speaking of cosmetics, I think this is one of the game’s weakest things. The character creator is pretty barebones, but besides that, while I dig the outfits that you can unlock, there’s no mixing and matching anything. Perhaps there’s a really cool helmet in one outfit that I’d love to use on another? Well, you can’t. It’s a missed opportunity, especially given the game’s theme of us being raiders and scavenging for parts and such. I want my character to be able to reflect that better, and not with some pre-made outfit. Hopefully that’ll change down the road.
The final big activity players have is Night Raids and weather events. These are different variations of the available maps in the game, which are typically at a higher difficulty. ARCs are more aware and have larger numbers, with maps having fewer points to extract, making PvP encounters even more likely. For weather events, you’ll get low visibility, rain, and even lightning strikes that can hit ARCs and even players. The maps are more dangerous to traverse, but that comes with the added effect of increased loot. More loot means more material you can craft, and a higher chance that you’ll find epic gear.
Visuals and Sound Design Are Pure Cinematic
Visually, ARC Raiders is a very beautiful game. I don’t mean this solely from a graphical standpoint, where it looks “real” and something you would expect from a next-gen title. I mean, it does have that feeling too, but artistically, the game has a gorgeous direction.
I wouldn’t really call it NASA Punk, but it definitely captures that vibe with all the space suits, retro-futuristic items, and such. I get more of Star Wars from it, if anything, and I’m talking about the original trilogy. It’s not super futuristic, despite having all these machines. There’s a level of gritty, lived-in realism and functional simplicity to the design that makes the world feel authentic and grounded, despite the colossal threats.
Nothing looks sterile; there’s aging, wear, and tear in the environment, with large structures that are clearly not of our era, yet they appear to have been there forever. It’s this unknowingly lore-rich environment that constantly encourages curiosity and exploration. Despite the Raiders wearing colorful attire, it all fits the aesthetics of the world because their clothing and weaponry have been repurposed for scavenging. It’s easy to get drawn into the life of the raider because of how much the art direction tells a story, even if nothing is being spoken. It’s like stepping on the set of a low-fi sci-fi movie.
I can understand why the studio opted for a third-person perspective in the game. That’s not to say you can’t appreciate the visuals from a first-person perspective, but being able to see your character and how they traverse the environments —I don’t know, I find that to be far more immersive in some cases than first-person. Seeing your raider stumble through rubble, climb over walls, duck behind cover, and salvage weapons and other materials really adds to that scavenger-and-survival fantasy that the art style establishes.
There’s a visual uniqueness that Embark has nailed down with ARC Raiders. It, of course, helps that the game is stupendously polished on all platforms and runs really well, so you’re able to take in the visuals without focusing on the annoyances of a broken game. For an Unreal Engine 5 game, it’s hard to tell it was built in Unreal Engine 5, with performance so near stutter-free on PC.
But what I find equally impressive is the game’s sound design. Given that the studio is filled with ex-DICE developers (from the Battlefield franchise), I’m not surprised to see the sound design excel, thereby elevating immersion and atmosphere. The world of ARC Raiders is a pretty desolate one, with maps devoid of most human life. Yet, despite the desolation, you never once truly feel alone in the world. Be that the many beeps and screeches that patroling ARCs make, or just the environment itself, with natural ambient sounds like howling wind, weather effects, and the creaking of ruined structures providing constant, subtle audio reminders that you are but a small piece of this grand, struggling world.
There’s beauty to take in, visually and audibly, that I can’t help but stop to appreciate.
But that’s just one spectrum of the sound and visual design. A desolate world that seems to be at peace with itself. It’s the calm before the storm, with the storm being those encounters with other raiders and ARCs. Suddenly, all those ambient noises and creaks you were hearing get drowned out by a relentless wave of high-impact noises. The loud bang of firing your weapon off, with its echoing bouncing off the metallic hallways. The sound of spinning propellers flying in, as a wave of Hornets and Wasps (types of ARCs) survey the area. Large, thumping sounds as a machine marches past you, with you trying everything you can to stay hidden. Bullets whizzing and ricocheting past you.
The transition from quiet scavenging to desperate combat is a visual and auditory shock. When the ARC machines descend, the sky is choked with dust, and the air fills with the noise of laser-fire and the sounds of moving machinery. In an instant, it feels like I’m transported to a world that’s closer to the post-apocalyptic world of the Terminator franchise. The ARCs themselves—cold, angular, and terrifyingly efficient—are the perfect aesthetic descendants of Skynet’s relentless hunter-killers. They can’t be reasoned with, they can’t be bargained with. They feel no pity or remorse or fear, and they won’t stop until you’re dead.
It’s that tonal shift in visuals and sound design that really sells the experience. Honestly, it might just be some of the best sound design I’ve seen in a game so far. It’s high up there with some of the best, and major props to the sound and visual team.
A Bright Future
I’ve kept tabs on ARC Raiders ever since it was first announced at The Game Awards back in 2021. I knew from the very first moment that Embark Studios was going to create something truly special with it, although that was before it shifted to an extraction shooter. To be honest, I did end up losing a lot of my interest, as it felt like a move to chase after a soon-to-be oversaturated trend. But seeing what the team did with The Finals, it eventually popped back on my radar, at least to the point of, I’ll give it a try.
I’m glad I decided to give this game a chance, and I am happy that Embark Studios managed to carve out this new vision. What I’ve come to realize is that they didn’t just chase a trend; they perfected one. ARC Raiders feels like the definitive evolution of the extraction genre—a niche space that, despite being less mainstream than Battle Royale titles, Embark has now pushed firmly into the spotlight. Whether or not the game has the staying power of some of the other big extraction shooters will all depend on how well the studio supports it. Though based on The Finals, I think it’s in safe hands.
But the biggest shock for me has to be the fact that I never pictured myself ever thinking that an extraction shooter could be my multiplayer game of the year. Yes, I am crowning ARC Raiders as the best multiplayer game that I’ve played all year. It’s a hard recommendation to those looking for a new extraction shooter, and especially those looking to get into the genre. It’s such a fresh and, dare I say, innovative take on the genre. It’s something you see happen to a genre only once in a while, something that changes the landscape entirely. I really think ARC Raiders is THE extraction shooter the genre has been waiting for, and I am excited to see how it influences extraction games in the years to come.
Score: 10/10
Pros
- Fantastic gunplay.,
- Perfect balance of PvP and PvE.,
- Tense and adrenaline pumping when it needs to be.,
- Smart AI system that learns from the player and adapts.,
- An “easy” to get into extraction shooter.,
- Gorgeous Visuals, highly polished, and runs smooth across all platforms.,
- Amazing sound design
Cons
- Limited character customization
- End Game is pretty light, but that won’t be an issue for long with all the planned content dropping soon.
ARC Raiders review code was provided by the publisher. You can read MP1st’s review and scoring policy right here.
