ARC Raiders is a cooperative third-person shooter where you and your squad of Raiders unite to resist the onslaught of ARC – a ruthless, mechanized threat descending from space.

In ARC Raiders you enter a vast and lethal world.

People have fled to the underground colony of Speranza, seeking supplies to survive, and shelter from ARC machines on the surface. Demand for resources is at an all-time high, but venturing the surface to get them is a risky job. 

You enlist as a Raider, fighting for your own survival and that of your neighborhood in the underground colony — scavenging and hunting for resources that must be extracted back safely from the surface.  Standing in your way are ARC machines — a mysterious, deadly foe — as well as other players — Raiders — who are also competing for loot and their own survival. 

To grow as a Raider, you must make it back down to the colony alive. There, you get to meet the traders of Speranza to trade your loot and valuables, embark on quests, upgrade and improve and expand your chambers, and grow your character to suit your playstyle — to become the Raider that you want to be.

Whether teaming up or going solo, it’s a game that rewards thinking ahead and carefully observing the world around you, rather than running into action guns blazing. The gameplay is tactile, visceral, and grounded, with a rich and playful sandbox of gadgets and tools, beyond just guns and ammo. 

Embark Studios announced that it will be testing a PvE matchmaking toggle in ARC Raiders for a limited time.

The test will run from October 13-20, 2026, offering players the option to choose between the classic ARC Raiders PvPvE experience or a PvE experience focused on co-op gameplay with other Raiders vs. the ARC threat.

We’re testing a PvE Toggle: here’s what it means for you

We’re excited to share that we will be testing a PvE matchmaking toggle in ARC Raiders, and it’s coming soon!

The test will run from October 13-20, 2026, giving players the option to choose between the classic ARC Raiders PvPvE experience or a PvE experience focused on co-op gameplay with other Raiders versus the ARC threat.

Before we get into the details of the test, we want to take a step back and explain how we got here, and why we’re exploring this feature now.

The Vision of ARC Raiders

When ARC Raiders was conceived seven years ago, the vision of the game was quite different. 

We originally envisioned a raid-based PvE Co-op game with looting mechanics. While the concept showed promise, we ran into significant challenges, and eventually decided to reset the game and build the high-tension PvPvE Extraction adventure that you know today. (For the full story, we recommend watching the The Evolution of ARC Raiders EP1 - Finding ARC Raiders)

But when the game launched, we were pleasantly surprised; It wasn’t just extraction shooter fans who came to the Rust Belt, but a wide array of different players finding unique ways to enjoy the world. ARC Raiders became the “Extraction (Don’t) Shooter”, reaching a vibrant and diverse audience. This is something we’re very proud of here at Embark Studios.

As with all live games, the design should be an ongoing conversation with you, the players. Our goal is to stay true to the core principles on which ARC Raiders was built, but also respecting player choice and supporting different playstyles. 

What We’re Seeing

At Embark we try to approach all key decisions from three different perspectives. What does the data indicate? What does the player feedback say? And what does our gut tell us? 

Sometimes one perspective is more important than the other, but we try to triangulate our decisions between all three. There is no exact science, but as gamers ourselves, we always try to make the best decisions for the game and players.

If we look at the overall population of players and split them by how they most like to play, it looks like this:

• 37% Friendly co-op players (this player group has grown consistently since launch).
• 27% Mixed players.
• 34% Pure PvP players (this player group has remained stable since launch).
• Over 70% of Friendly players and even 40% of PvP players express a desire for fewer hostile encounters and 51% of the surveyed playerbase has expressed an interest in a dedicated PvE option.
• There are clear friction points, with friendly players often attempting to avoid PvP entirely, and we hear frustration from certain groups of players around ratting and camping.

We’re seeing a large and growing group of Raiders who come to the Rust Belt for the co-op and the ARC, not fighting with other Raiders. That group has become a core part of our community, so it’s important we learn how to support them properly rather than leave them working around the game

 

To make a long story short, we’re going to be running a test with a PvE matchmaking toggle. This is how it will work:

• The test will run from October 13-20, 2026.
• During the test, you will be able to toggle between the classic ARC Raiders PvPvE experience and the PvE experience. 
• In the PvE experience there will be zero player-to-player damage, and the session is purely focused on the ARC threat and co-op social dynamics.
• PvE sessions will include Solos, Duos and Trios in the same session.
• We’re designing the system for seamless switching, play PvE for a relaxed solo session then switch back to PvPvE for a high tension match.
• Some major conditions, Night Raids, Hidden Bunker, Locked Gate and Frigate will be excluded from the PvE matchmaking test. These are designed with higher tension in mind and rely on the uncertainty of encountering a variety of players.
• Your PvPvE matchmaking rating will not be affected while playing in PvE sessions.
• It’s important to remember that this is, at least initially, a limited test. When the test ends, the toggle will be removed and matchmaking will return to normal. Your feedback and data will help to shape the future of this system.

PvE Experience

The PvE experience in this test is one where players can scavenge, complete quests and explore in relative safety from other hostile players. The intent here is not to test how we can make PvE more challenging or to try new PvE progression, rather it is an attempt to give players an alternative to PvP encounters - of course we will be listening to what you have to say after the test and what you want from the feature.

There are however a few differences in the PvE experience:

• The overall loot value is lowered to compensate for the relative safety of PvE.
• If you are downed by ARC’s, be a bit careful when crawling, they might re-acquire you as a target even when you are moving when downed. They will ignore you if you stay still. We’re trying this to maintain some tension to compensate for the lack of a PvP threat.

Risks and Balance

It’s important to mention that this is not a risk-free test. The first, unlaunched iteration of ARC Raiders was conceived as a PvE game, and we have been hesitant to return to that concept. There is a risk that introducing a PvE matchmaking toggle could reduce some of the tension that the game was built around. At the same time, we have to respect that some players want to enjoy the game in their own way, and we can’t ignore what the data is telling us. 

As creators, we design a game with an intention for how we think it should be played; but after launch, it becomes the players’ game. This is one of the unique and wonderful things about making games; we build something with a specific vision,  and then we get to see players finding their own ways to enjoy it.

Testing the PvE Matchmaking toggle is a way to respect that our players have different needs than what we first envisioned. 

There are a couple of things we will keep a close eye on:

• Player economy: Friendly players, and by extension the PvE sessions, see higher rates of extraction and more value earned. To account for this during the test, PvPvE sessions will have slightly higher baseline loot values.
• Matchmaking and queue times: In low population regions or during off hours, there might be a small increase in matchmaking times. We will monitor this closely to make sure that we’re providing good sessions for everyone. Depending on how many players try the PvE toggle, it may also might affect the quality of some of the PvPvE sessions, which we will also watch closely and adjust as needed. 

Looking Ahead

During the test and after its conclusion we will review the feedback and data we’ve collected to help determine how we move forward. Your feedback will be crucial to that process.

We want to set a few expectations for what comes next:

• It’s possible that this will not work. This test is not a promise that there will be a PvE mode in the future, but take this as an indication that we are seriously considering it.
• We don’t yet know how the potential future version of this setting might look. It’s plausible that any future version could look very different from what you experience in the beta test. We believe this is something that should evolve over time, together with you the players.

Our goal is to keep the communication open with you, and we’ll share our findings and future plans sometime after the test. We hope that you participate and share with us what you liked (and disliked!) about the PvE matchmaking test, as well as all the content we have for you in the Frozen Trail update. 

I’m very excited to meet you Topside and hear what you think!

Best,

Aleks

Executive Producer, ARC Raiders

Scavenge the ruins of the past. Wield tools and gadgets to outsmart the enemy. Use on-the-fly tactics, your surroundings, and physics to your advantage. Defeating ARC requires more than simply pointing and shooting a gun, and more than one person trying to be a hero. It’s a game that both emphasizes and rewards teamwork at every turn. If you and your squad play well together, one day the stars may again become beacons of hope, instead of omens of oblivion.

Loot your fallen foes, and scavenge the ruins of the past for tools and gadgets to outsmart the enemy. Come prepared and plan ahead, but remember that sometimes you just have to wing it.

ARC Raiders is available for PS5, Xbox Series X|S and PC (Epic Games Store, Steam, Nvidia GeForce NOW) at $40.