• Notice regarding image hosts and attachments. See here.

Arc Raiders

The 5th Expedition​

August 21, 2026

The fifth Expedition window is fast approaching, and with it come a few changes. Based on your feedback, in upcoming Expeditions you’ll be able to opt out of resetting your quest progress, the departure window will be extended by one week, and there won’t be the last call feature this time around.
Additionally, we will be pausing Expeditions for a short while to dig deeper into the core systems and make them feel more rewarding and fun!

TIMING​

Expedition Window opens on September 8, 1pm CEST/11am UTC/4am PT, and closes September 29 10am CEST/8am UTC/1am PT.

As with all previous Expeditions, completing your Caravan does not count as signing up for the Expedition, you still have to sign up during the window and this time around there is no ‘last call’ feature.

Expeditions are a personal progression that players complete in order. The Caravan can be completed in between Expedition windows but finishing the Expedition can only be done during the scheduled Expedition window.

HOW TO DO THE EXPEDITION​

  1. Complete the Caravan
    The option to contribute to the Caravan starts as soon as you complete the previous Expedition and if this is your first Expedition, you can start contributing right away.
  2. Wait for the Expedition Window
    The next window opens on September 8, 1pm CEST/11am UTC/4am PT, and closes on September 29, 10am CEST/8am UTC/1am PT.
  3. Sign Up
    Once the Expedition window opens, you need to sign up.
  4. Complete the Challenge
    In order to get the rewards, players will need to complete a challenge within the Expedition Window (more details below).
  5. Catch Up
    Catch up on missed skill points (max 5 per Expedition) for players on their second, third or fourth Expedition (more details below).
  6. Depart
    Everyone that signed up departs on September 29.
  7. No Last Call
    Make sure to sign up for departure during the window.

WHAT’S NEW​

  • Opt-in Quest reset
    • We have seen your feedback about the quest line feeling repetitive after every Expedition. To address this, we want to give you the option not to reset your quests and keep your progress so you can continue from where you left off. Since the Hullcracker Blueprint can only be obtained through the quest line, we will give you other ways to get it.
  • No Last Call
    • Make sure to sign up during the departure window so you don’t miss out on the Expedition.
  • The expedition window is extended from two to three weeks.
a635bda4-86ba-ARCRaiders_Expeditions%20Infographic_05-Approved-1024x576.png

REWARDS​

  • The complete Zenith Outfit
  • Mystery Rewards
  • +12 stash space, maxed out at 60
  • Skill points:
    • The bonus skill points from Expeditions cap at 15. Players can still catch-up on previously missed skill points and it’s still tied to stash value. Catch-up for skill points becomes available with your second Expedition and once you get all the maximum 15 skill points, the catch-up is no longer available.
  • Consecutive buffs:
    • The XP boost, Scrappy materials boost and repair value increase capped at three levels.

Trials​

The season currently ongoing will end on September 22, and after that Trials will be on pause for two weeks until October 8.

FUTURE EXPEDITIONS​

We have been carefully reviewing your feedback on Expeditions, and while we've made ongoing improvements along the way, we've come to realize that some of the issues you've raised, like the tight departure windows, the reward structure, and accessibility for new players, need more than incremental fixes. They call for bigger changes.

In order to address those concerns, we need to pause the Expeditions for a while. The fifth Expedition will be the last one until early 2027, when Expeditions will return with major improvements, tackling some of the biggest player pain points. So, if you’ve been on the fence about departing - now is the time! We will share more details on what those changes will look like in September.

During the pause period, any of the consecutive buffs you have earned will persist so no progress is lost. If you have completed all five Expeditions, the Zenith Outfit will be fully unlocked. Also, since Caravans will be reset, any partially completed Caravans will be replaced with Ermal Vouchers of equal value which can be used to purchase Ermal offers together with ARC Parts and firearms trade, or sold for Coin.

As always, keep the feedback coming. Let us know what you think, and we will continue to make improvements.

The ARC Raiders Team
 
Depends on time of day, on Steam it's anywhere between 38-48k players peak and off peak around 15-20k. That doesn't include xbox/playstation*.

Put it this way, every lobby I go into is full of players (although my settings are region - automatic and crossplay enabled). Waiting times have dropped lately and always getting a fresh raid.

It'll peak in October when all the streamers play it again for 5 minutes then abandon it for the next trending game, like they do.

(*Apparently the console players make up 17% of the overall player base.)
 
I've just got back in recently after a summer hiatus. I do still love it. Seems to take quite a while to find a server on evenings lately.
 
I said it on day one and i still believe if they had or even add a pve only mode it would retain players.
The pvp crowd always move on.
Look at pve games like Helldivers 2,space marine 2, darktide, deep rock galactic to name a few all still doing really well long after launch.
I know they said it felt boring to them as pve only as planned but surely make things more dynamic like the games ive mentioned and it would work.
 
Pretty much every game I do is PVE only anyway, since I can't compete with sweats I don't shoot players. Still love it, just pick hard maps with ton's of Arc. I find it more enjoyable teaming up with other players to take out bigger Arc enemies.
But they could easily add a PVE only map if they wanted to.
 
Still really enjoying this, I just love being in the round and taking on Arc, and even though my lobbies are pretty friendly I always like that there is still that unknown element in terms of what players will do or say. Fun to help people out as well, kept a guy who got Rocketeered alive all the way to a hatch the other night and had a good chat the whole way :cry: I've read a lot about player numbers lately but don't ever seem to have trouble getting a game, certainly not solo anyway. Have a couple of mates who play too and if we're a trio sometimes it can take a minute or so, but largely not a problem.

Hoping for some decent content to get added in the October update, especially if it requires multiple players to group up to take something down.
 
Started replaying recently.

The game is massively let down by two different servers. We decided to go pvp and whilst insane fun, it's also basically zero pve because you can't risk it without wipping the whole map out. Games lifeless because everyone's sneaking about or it's pve then extract.

Would be much more fun if it was just one big server with random intentions.
 
I hear that a lot on socials, but every lobby I play there's plenty going on and loads of friendly players. The Asia servers are very quiet, but have since been populated with the strange epidemic of AFK players at spawn points. Loads of players in them now if only to see what's going on there.

There will be a lot of interest with the upcoming major update due next month, new map, new enemies, new weapons and loot etc. Last expedition too until early next year when that will be overhauled as will the skill tree.

I personally still really enjoy it, yep there are cheaters in the trios PvPing, that needs addressing. I've not come across anything suss in the solo lobbies, maybe I've just gotten lucky, but then I rarely get 'ratted' or jumped on, one in fifty matches approx.

Speaking of rats, I was accused of being one a few weeks back, did make me laugh but when you don't see the full picture... I was doing a naked run on Blue Gate farming the survivor BP. As I was breaching the room in Reinforced Reception a guy came up behind me and started beating me with his raider tool, I turned around to defend myself and the coward ran off, so I gave chase swinging away at him, when another player came in and see me chasing and swinging so he opened fire and down I went.. "******* rat piece of ****" I just surrended, no point trying to defend myself on comms over that one. Dusted myself off went back in and bagged the survivor BP!
 
Raiders!


Update 1.45.0 is going live right now and with it a number of fixes, a new Raider Project, the start of the fifth Expedition, the Hornet Hunter Set and changes coming to Cred. Make sure to restart the game to get the download.

This will be our last Live Update before October 8, but we won't be going quiet in the meantime, a smaller update is still planned before then!

HIGHLIGHTS​

  • Raider Project: Ascending the Mountain
  • The Hornet Hunter Set
  • Cred Expiration
  • Expedition 5
  • Community Rubber Ducks


Forging the Way North​

Raider efforts have revealed clues to the mystery of phantom ARC signals that have Shani concerned. Unfortunately, these signals lead ARC to a place we can’t follow - the mountain range just beyond the reach of our Tube system. Rumor has it Apollo’s working on an experimental solution, and he’s requested assistance from Raiders who understand schematics, and can keep their heads down.

334f29118412049c39bd33558da3ccdc71df7dce.jpg


Cred Expiration​

As we look ahead to Frozen Trail and a rework to Raider Decks, we’ll be making changes to the Cred currency. It will remain usable until October 8, so be sure to use any remaining Cred before then.

We are retiring Cred as a currency, as we’ll be introducing a more expansive reward system launching with the Frozen Trail Update. All existing Raider Deck rewards will also be available in the new system. You will keep any rewards you have already claimed at the time of the update.

Any Cred remaining on your account will expire with the Frozen Trail update, so please be sure to spend your Cred with Shani or on any remaining Raider Deck rewards.

Community Rubber Ducks​

The community designed duckies that you have selected have finally made their way into the game! Head on over to Bird City and display them proudly in your Raider Den!

Again, huge congratulations to the designers: gekko.rar, im_AshCheeks and nassguhl!

2ecf91b33a3bff35e7f656cce35c7c525a317afd.jpg


Content and Bug Fixes​

ARC​

  • Snitch Scanners will now spawn ARC similarly to the regular Snitch, but with a lower chance for stronger ARC.

Audio​

  • Fixed an issue where the Equalizer could play its firing sound effect when holstering.
  • Fixed an issue where voice chat did not work when Raider Voice was enabled.

Customization​

  • Fixed an issue where the Rawhide headgear would stay on with the toggle set to off.
  • The Boonie outfit will be available from September 15th.

Gameplay​

  • Landing on moving surfaces will now make you follow that surface when landing, not while still in the air.
  • You can now rebind quick item cycling separately from the quick-use wheel (or disable cycling), and you may bind both to the same key. This helps prevent unintended item swaps after closing the wheel.
  • Fixed an issue where ARC Turbine mines could not be pinged.
  • Reduced weapon sway for Aphelion to improve aiming stability.
  • Starting an Expedition no longer resets your quests by default; you can now choose whether to reset them when departing.
  • Fixed an issue where the Matriarch’s stomp could damage players through tall cover or when standing on top of the Matriarch.
  • Added a new severe over-encumbrance tier when carrying well above your loadout weight limit: movement is restricted to walking, and sprinting and jumping are disabled.

Stability​

  • Fixed a crash on PS5 that could occur shortly after starting a session.
  • Fixed a crash that could occur when rapidly pressing certain keys during gameplay.
  • Fixed cases where a squad could become stuck after a squadmate signed out and rejoined, blocking ready-up and preventing matchmaking from starting.

Performance​

  • Upgraded Unreal Engine from 5.3 to 5.7.

UI​

  • The UI indicator showing the current weight of your loadout is now updated directly when dropping parts of a stack.
  • Added visual tweaks to selected nodes in the Skill Tree.
  • Fixed an issue where some distance based map markers didn't appear correctly.
  • The pick up prompt will now show “loadout full” while trying to pick up an item with a full inventory.
  • Improved matchmaking error messaging: you’ll now see clearer explanations if you go offline while queuing or if your crossplay settings are incompatible, helping diagnose failed matchmaking attempts.
5585508ec3eb4b1065ec8b36e8f364c61936e2bb.jpg


KNOWN ISSUES​

  • The second part of the Phantom Targets project could not be started for some players. We will be sending out compensation in a future update.
  • There are multiple stability improvements targeting Xbox Series S crashes. Please report any persistent issues to help guide further fixes.
  • We’re aware of issues with crashing on PC, related to Windows Update KB5121003. Please consult our workaround shared here while we work on a fix.
  • Players on Epic may experience a sudden loss of keyboard input.
    • While we look into this, we recommend disabling any Overlay you may have active. Additionally, you can try alt-tabbing out and back into the game.
  • The throw animation may sometimes fail to play when attempting to detonate a Trigger ‘Nade immediately after throwing it.
  • The weapon swap animation may appear broken if weapon swapping right after vaulting.
  • Player animations may appear broken when interrupting a search of the Baron Husk.
  • Shredders float to the ceiling in some rooms of the Hidden Bunker.
  • Leapers can jump through the ARC Turbine.
  • Shots taken while riding ARC may not register correctly.
  • Some doors may allow player flashlights’ beams to pass through instead of blocking the emitted light.
  • We are aware of some clipping issues with the Triumph, Reaver and Azimuth outfits.

See you Topside,

//Ossen
 
upgraded unreal engine... does that mean it's better or worse performance?

Did a google

CPU & GPU Boosts: UE 5.7 delivers up to a 25% increase in GPU performance and a 35% to 50% boost in CPU performance depending on the scene, aided by a memory API redesign on consoles and better hardware utilization compared to older branches
 
Last edited:
I did a quick mission last night, it seems smoother/faster. Not enough for me to want to up any settings but there's definitely been a little bump.

I now get a warning about a program not working from highrez.co.uk every time I load the game up though!
 
Last edited:
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom