ARC Raiders is the most accessible and fun addition to the extraction shooter genre that I've found yet. As a novice in this particular kind of game, I've tried popular titles like Escape From Tarkov, Gray Zone Warfare, Delta Force, Call of Duty DMZ, and even Marathon, and none of them have caught on with me like this one has.
ARC Raiders stands apart from the rest because it was fun and approachable enough to get its hooks in me early on, and the satisfying grind keeps me logging in for more despite my own inventory-draining failures, making it yet another triumph in gaming in 2025.
High arching potential
For those new to the extraction genre, it's all about deploying into a map (varied, beautiful locales known as "Topside" in contrast with humanity's new underground setting), looting gear and valuable items, and extracting safely while dealing with AI enemies and other players at the same time. ARC Raiders sends you out into a post-apocalyptic world with some cobbled-together weapons and objectives, and it's up to you to improve your gear and get better weapons. If you die, you lose whatever you're carrying, and so it's all about the risk vs. reward gamble.
Playable as a solo or in groups of up to three, ARC Raiders relies heavily on your interactions with other players. There's no strictly PvE mode in the game (yet), and it's one of the most-requested features so far. But if you want to join other Raiders, be ready to communicate.
I've found a lot of fun voice-chatting with other players who have common objectives, such as finding specific gear for a quest or teaming up to take down fierce ARC enemies, and I've even made a few friends along the way. This can only be done if you're willing to talk or emote, and if you get lucky enough to find a like-minded gamer and not someone who wants you dead on sight.
The lore and world of ARC Raiders, where a robot apocalypse has forced humanity underground, is awesome but drip-fed. Your character progresses via XP and a skill tree, and the story evolves through quests from vendors and the occasional cutscene, but a lot of the story discovery is up to you if you want to seek it out. And unfortunately, the majority of quests in the game are mundane item-fetching tasks as opposed to being more expositionally interesting.
This can make progression feel like a drag at times, especially considering how lethal ARC enemies are while also having to contend with other players to try and gain XP and quest-specific items. Dying and losing your higher-quality gear is devastating and demoralizing. This may turn some players off, especially those who wish for PvE only, but that's just not how this genre works…yet.
Thankfully, all of the intrigue and danger is wrapped in a third-person shooter that feels excellent and rewarding to play, regardless of how many times I have lost my entire inventory. ARC Raiders is gorgeous and runs perfectly on just about any PC rig, which may be its biggest strength in 2025. You will die and lose stuff, but it won't be because of game performance.
Looting is also a breeze thanks to a clean and easy-to-read UI, so making snap decisions in the heat of battle while looting an ARC or corpse feels easier than in the other games of the genre I've tried.
A tale of two topsides
For myself (and many others, according to online sentiment), ARC Raiders often feels like two different games. The solo experience is lauded as being cooperative and friendly, as players often look to finish quests and work together.
The situation with trios (and duos) could not feel any more different. If you queue up for a group, be ready for war. It's possible to meet other friendly players when queued as a squad, but for the most part, Raiders will be shooting on sight.
This is because Embark prioritizes team sizes when it comes to matchmaking, although there is no individual support for duos, so if you queue up as two, you will more often than not end up fighting teams of three. Coupled with the danger of ARCs and other teams in the area, it makes for a harrowing and difficult experience.
For newer players to the genre or those looking for an experience close to PvE, I'd say stick with solos and use your microphone or emote wheel to let players know you are not a threat. This doesn't mean they won't gun you down immediately or, worse, gain your trust and take you out at a more advantageous time, but that's the risk you take every time you go Topside. And it's all part of the fun.
The divide in the playerbase between those who wish for PvE and the genre veterans who expect the bloodthirst feels wide at launch, and I can see the case from both sides. ARCs are a pain to contend with, and so progressing quests can be a slow and painful grind if you keep getting targeted by other players. But that is what extraction shooters are, in the end, and everyone is free to play how they choose. Just be prepared to face the consequences.
Further catering to more casual players, however, the vaunted "server wipe" in the extraction genre, where player inventories get wiped, is replaced by a Prestige-like system where players can opt in to reset their character for special rewards. But since it's not forced, ARC Raiders further lends itself to accessibility and a potentially wider berth of players.
ARC Raiders' launch offering is just the beginning. With two months of a roadmap already available, this game will stick around with content updates for quite some time, offering new maps, weapons, and experiences to bring players back in the fold even if they venture off into other titles. But as for a base game, it's off to a very hot and promising start.
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