Hushed footsteps give way to the hustle and bustle of gunfire. Rockets whoosh past me, exploding close to a building I just left. ARC Raiders’ PvE test made players unafraid to draw attention. Amidst all the chaos, I catch myself wishing this is how it was all along.
At the peak of its popularity, ARC Raiders was almost unavoidable. Nearly all my gamer friend groups were playing it. I could walk into any tight-knit Discord server and watch someone stream, as if I had Speranza TV on cable. But it never really gripped me. It was easy to see the beauty in its signature retrofuturistic aesthetic, and the slow-but-deadly combat with ARCs and players alike added an extra layer of anxiety. But I never felt like I had a reason to get enthralled by it until this week’s PvE test.
A PvE-only ARC Raiders is a different experience, and that’s not an insult. Embark has been toying with the idea for a while through its aggression-based matchmaking, but this is the first time we can full-on disable hostility between raiders. It does feel like something is absent, but I can’t say I miss it.
There’s far less tension in the air. Seeing another player in the distance isn’t an Old West standoff at high noon anymore. ARCs aren’t a constant run-ender, but you can get ganked by them if you’re not careful.
I’ve never been a hardcore fan of extraction shooters, despite loving a lot of their core elements and putting hundreds of hours into DMZ. I’m a loot goblin at heart, so it’s hard to beat the high of going almost empty-handed into a map and coming back to Speranza lugging a ton of valuables. At the same time, I’ve played way too many PvP games in the past decade and a half, and I enjoy the lower-pressure environment. Two wolves and all that.
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Lately, I’ve found myself itching to get out of the underground city and roam the surface. I have quests on a litany of different maps, from Spaceport to Stella Montis. I need to go to Blue Gate because my pet rooster needs olives to level up, and there’s no way I’m letting Scrappy go without.
ARCs are fairly easy to avoid, but they can be a genuine threat solo if you’re unlucky enough to get spotted. Just staying in the open can be unnerving, especially if you see a Rocketeer nearby, and I’ve found myself yearning for the relative safety of the great indoors.
Playing alone is therapeutic. I’m a sole survivor, scavenging anything that might be remotely useful or looks remotely shiny. I can open a map, run in any direction, and I’ll find something to keep me busy. But diving in with my friends is even better: we band together to take on bigger challenges, knock out quests quickly, and come back with a hefty chunk of supplies. We’re a finely honed firing squad whenever we see a smaller ARC, and we’ve even outgunned bigger foes like Rocketeers, Leapers, and a Bully.
I’m having way more fun than I thought I would, entranced by the sweet satisfaction of shredding an ARC with a well-placed shot from my Ferro IV. I can’t help but wonder what it would be like if the game was closer to the “raid-based PvE co-op game with looting mechanics” Embark originally envisioned. I definitely wouldn’t have waited nearly a year to buy it, for starters.
That’s part of what makes the game so special. ARC Raiders can work as a cutthroat extraction shooter and as a co-op title where intrepid trailblazers reclaim the surface from the machines. Sure, you might need different rules and dials, but there seems to be more than enough room for both.
ARC Raiders released with a specific experience in mind, but it has captivated a different audience along the way. I don’t envy the decisions Embark has to make after this test, but I do respect the developer for giving it an honest shot.
,I hope the studio continues to foster PvE long after October. It’s not as simple as adding a “no hostility” toggle, but I would love to add ARC Raiders to my regular rotation. I don’t think I’ll play all day every day (at least after I’ve kitted out my Chalet Room), but I’ll always drop by whenever there’s an update, like Warframe. Until then, I’d better step up my game: my rooster needs a cat bed for some reason, and I’m happy to provide.
