Search, strike, retreat; search, strike, retreat; search, strike, retreat again—I’m sure many readers have already been bombarded with these three hypnotic words until they’ve been brainwashed.
But there’s no denying that it’s both fun and a huge hit. Just as *Escape from Yakov* set a new record for domestic indie games, another smash hit—*ARC Raiders*—has burst onto the scene on Steam. Shortly after its official launch a few days ago, *ARC Raiders*, developed by Nexon’s Embark Studios, surged to the top of Steam’s global best-seller list, with its peak concurrent players rising for several consecutive days to reach 330,000.On Twitch, excluding *League of Legends*, which is currently hosting its World Championship, *ARC Raiders* ranks first in viewership among all games.
With the battle royale genre now reaching a fever pitch, many players are wondering whether there’s still room for innovation in this genre. ARC Raiders provides a resounding “yes”—it’s all about delivering a unique experience. This approach is a continuation of the path Embark Studios took with its previous hit, The Finals: focusing on expression, innovation, and even a touch of “artistry.”
Although in this era of pursuing long-term success, the success or failure of a product ultimately depends on its long-term performance, I still believe that *ARC Raiders* is worth paying attention to. This is because many of the design elements it introduces offer valuable insights into the critical challenges currently facing the entire looter-shooter genre, such as long-term economic systems and PvP social dynamics.
01
Souda Che's "Slow Life in Another World"
So, what exactly is the gameplay like in *ARC Raiders*? In terms of the overall framework, it’s actually quite similar to other Tarkov-style games—you enter the map to fight monsters and enemies, loot as much as possible within the half-hour time limit, and then evacuate. Afterward, you can either use the loot to upgrade your dungeon (hideout) or invest in better gear to start the next round.Characters don’t have a skill system, but they do have talent trees across three branches—Survival, Mobility, and Enhancement—for players to unlock. These designs aren’t exactly groundbreaking.
What sets it apart from similar products is the real-time flow feedback provided during gameplay.
My first impression upon playing was that it felt “slow”—in *ARC Raiders*, character movement and turning feel somewhat sluggish, and actions like using health items or prying open containers with a crowbar are accompanied by lengthy animations and noticeable lag. With the basic firearms you pick up early on, just raising the scope to aim takes two seconds, and once the magazine is empty, you have to reload one bullet at a time.
After playing for a while, you’ll realize that this slowness is intentional in *ARC Raiders* and actually aligns well with its gameplay. In his book *Thinking, Fast and Slow*, Daniel Kahneman argues that humans have two major thinking systems: System 1 is fast, intuitive, and emotional; System 2 is slower, more deliberate, and relies more on logic.Fast-paced arcade-style shooters (such as Call of Duty) tend to rely on the former, while *ARC Raiders* chooses to engage the latter. This choice establishes the game’s unique tone.
For example, compared to other similar games that emphasize combat, the individual maps in *ARC Raiders* are quite vast. You don’t have to constantly worry about being ambushed by other players, and you’ll have time to admire the beautiful scenery of Speranza as you explore—despite its post-apocalyptic setting, *ARC Raiders* doesn’t follow the conventional approach of creating a despairing, oppressive atmosphere; instead, it boldly presents a world that feels open, bright, and visually appealing.
As you wander through the map, Speranza sometimes evokes a sense of hope reminiscent of *Death Stranding*—a hope born from rebuilding amidst ruins. Yet when you enter dangerous zones where fierce battles rage, the sky fills with smoke and swirling ash, heightening the sense of urgency. The presence of hostile ARC machines further blends retro-futuristic elements, establishing an aesthetic system that feels comforting.This is the source of many players’ description of *ARC Raiders* as a “work of art,” and many also consider it a highly suitable “retirement game.”
“ARC” deserves a separate discussion. Unlike similar shoot-and-run games, which almost always feature hostile AI units, “ARC” stands out for its extremely detailed behavior programming. Various mechanical designs—such as the “Rocket Man,” capable of firing lasers and projectiles, and the highly mobile “Queen,” which is extremely difficult for a single player to take on alone—will pose significant challenges to players in the early stages of the game.However, in “Slow Think” mode, players will naturally and gradually learn how to counter these threats. Through careful early-game equipment planning and meticulous strategies—such as exploiting weaknesses and managing positioning—they can regain the upper hand.
In its official description, Embark Studios has coined a new genre term for *ARC Raiders*: "evacuation adventure game." This description is quite accurate: you’ll find that, within the PVPVE framework, the PVE elements in *ARC Raiders* are relatively prominent. This is partly because *ARC Raiders* was initially unveiled as a PVE title, with PVP elements added later on.
On the other hand, regarding the recently much-discussed topic of PVP in "Search, Attack, and Retreat," Embark Studios has proposed solutions that differ from those of similar products.
02
Friend or foe?
As is well known, with FPS games entering the "search, shoot, and retreat" era, players' social behavior within the game is quietly shifting.
From the early days of 2v2 bomb defusal matches, to battle royale games, and now to the "search, fight, and retreat" gameplay of today, "rewards" have gradually replaced "victory" as the core objective of first-person shooters, causing the element of "combat" to fade into the background.As Nikita, the producer of *Escape from Tarkov*, mentioned in a previous interview, PVE and PVP players each account for roughly 50% of the player base; David Fifield, General Manager of *Hunt: Showdown*, went even further, stating that 40% of players have never killed a single person in the game.
Even though these two games already heavily encourage PvP combat, players still tend to "turn enemies into friends," discovering spontaneous ways to cooperate within the game and forming new social structures.
With the massive popularity of *ARC Raiders*, what’s been making the biggest splash lately isn’t the high-octane highlight reels of player kills, but rather the hilarious moments created by players using in-game features like voice chat and emojis. Compared to other games in the same genre, *ARC Raiders* fosters an even more harmonious atmosphere of cooperation during matches.
For example, you might run into another player and, based on their accent, strike up a conversation as fellow countrymen to ask them not to shoot, or you could round up a few teams of over ten people to take on the "Queen" together—there’s strength in numbers. Or you could just do nothing at all, with seven or eight of you standing around in the game chatting idly…
This harmony is the result of several factors working together.
First, the game’s “slow-paced” nature—as mentioned earlier—combined with the relatively long time-to-kill (TTK) of some weapons, means that “heated back-and-forth exchanges” are relatively rare in *ARC Raiders*. Once the shooting starts, even the eventual winner may end up with their energy shield damaged. This reduces the rewards of PvP while increasing the risks. As a result, making gestures or using the local chat to “talk things out” and call a truce has become a more cost-effective option.
Second, in terms of official marketing and promotion, *ARC Raiders* has consistently and deliberately downplayed the competitive aspect between players, even going so far as to encourage them to work together to achieve common goals. In a real-world post-apocalyptic setting, humans often need to join forces to overcome challenges. Of course, players bear full responsibility for the consequences of their actions—after all, “backstabbing” is a high-risk, high-reward strategy.
Third, Embark Studios has directly incorporated cooperation and conflict into the game mechanics as hard constraints, making a particular effort to prevent unfair confrontations arising from information asymmetry within the game.
For example, according to a previous interview with the development team, *ARC Raiders* does not feature a prone movement mechanic, as the team aims to prevent an influx of "cheaters";Additionally, to prevent “back-to-wall” confrontations, the Embark development team has consistently refused to disclose information such as the number of players per match, the number of teams, or spawn locations, and has promised that in-game progression tasks will not involve killing other players, effectively allowing players to adopt a “pure PVE” playstyle… and so on.
At the same time, *ARC Raiders* introduces social features such as nearby chat and voice gestures, allowing nearby players to communicate directly with one another. The game also offers a unique feature that lets players use healing items on other players, making it easier to form teams—for example, you can knock down a player you don’t trust, confirm via voice chat that they mean no harm, and then revive them. This is a gameplay style that’s currently very popular.
Whether it’s the game’s mechanics or the community dynamics that have emerged around in-game collaboration, I feel that *ARC Raiders* has taken another step forward in the realm of search-and-escape PvP: it has further shed the competitive mindset typical of traditional FPS games and embraced a new form of “cyber-socializing,” allowing more players to find their own sense of warmth within the game—and this is undoubtedly a positive direction.
03
The First Step in a Decade-Long "Journey"
To wrap up this article, I’d like to discuss the “Expedition Plan” for *ARC Raiders*—an operational strategy that has previously drawn significant attention. With this move, Embark Studios is directly addressing the Achilles’ heel of current gacha games: the “server reset.”
Over the past year or two, almost every new mobile game has been asked: "Will there be a data wipe?" To put it simply, the mandatory seasonal progress reset used by the genre’s pioneer, *Escape from Tarkov*, imposes severe penalties on players and is only suitable for a hardcore audience.Non-wipe systems, however, come with their own set of potential problems. As vast amounts of in-game assets and currency enter the economy, inflation is almost inevitable. To curb rising prices, the operations team may resort to unbalanced adjustments in other areas, which can trigger widespread player dissatisfaction and ultimately damage the game’s reputation and longevity.
When it comes to whether players should wipe their progress in *Arc Raiders*, different players may have completely different answers. Some don’t want their hard work to go to waste, while others hope for a better gaming environment. Through its “Expedition Plan,” *Arc Raiders* has introduced a rather clever “voluntary wipe” concept.
Simply put, the Expedition Plan refers to a series of in-game missions that typically last eight weeks and are divided into four phases. Players must donate a set of materials within the specified timeframe to build an expedition fleet, and upon completion of the mission, decide whether to send their characters on the expedition.
After embarking on an expedition, players will lose a range of account progress, including their level, skill points, inventory items, and hideout progress. However, they will also gain skin items, buffs that increase experience and material acquisition rates, and additional skill points, among other rewards.
Previously, Virgil Watkins, the producer of *ARC Raiders*, stated that Nexon internally views the game as a “ten-year project.” The game’s long-term viability will inevitably depend on the ultimate success of the Expedition Plan.
According to reports, the first phase of the Expedition Plan is set to launch in December. Virgil believes that hardcore players will enjoy the thrill of revisiting the early days of the game. However, he also admits that they remain very cautious about this plan and hope to continue monitoring data to find the right balance in player motivation.
The project team has already established certain guidelines, such as ensuring that rewards earned through expeditions do not give players a combat advantage. Therefore, rewards will focus on cosmetic items and other status symbols.
In my view, the theory of using incentives to drive server resets could theoretically form a self-sustaining cycle. However, given the “cost” associated with server resets and the effort players must invest to complete expedition missions, the rewards players ultimately receive must be substantial (such as the highest-tier skin exclusive to that season); otherwise, it will be difficult to achieve a lasting motivational effect. But doing so could potentially impact the commercial sales of other skins.
This is especially true for long-time "hoarders": the longer they hoard items, the higher the cost of participating in a server reset becomes, making it increasingly difficult for them to do so. How to encourage players to develop the habit of voluntarily participating in server resets during their very first expedition cycle after joining the game is undoubtedly a critical and challenging issue that will require extensive exploration over time.
In any case, the solution proposed by *ARC Raiders* offers a new approach to the challenges currently facing search-and-rescue operations.
Conclusion
Few would have expected that, amidst the flurry of FPS titles released in 2025, *ARC Raiders*—which burst onto the scene out of nowhere—would emerge as a major contender in what has been dubbed the “Year of the Shooter.” Even more surprising is that this game has brought a wealth of fresh, eye-catching content to a genre that seemed to have been thoroughly exhausted.
Both *The Finals* and *ARC Raiders*, two titles from Embark, have achieved strong launches, which serves as compelling proof that high-quality, stylized storytelling still has a place in today’s commercial gaming landscape.
Just recently, the Chinese version of *The Finals*, titled *Ultimate Showdown*, announced its official launch date of November 18. I previously had an in-depth conversation with the lead developers of the Chinese version. I am quite eager to see whether these two titles from the same studio can navigate the long and winding road together and achieve lasting success.
原创文章，作者：游茶妹儿，禁止转载：https://youxichaguan.com/en/archives/194624
