ARC Raiders - the free-to-play PvPvE extraction shooter from The Finals developer Embark Studios - has resurfaced following an extended period of retooling, and is now launching as a premium title for PC, Xbox Series X/S, and PlayStation 5 next year.

If you're struggling to remember much about ARC Raiders, that might be because few details have been shared since its announcement back in 2021. It was originally set to release in 2022, but its launch has continued to slip since then - first into 2023 so Embark could focus on The Finals, and latterly while the studio continued to tinker with the title following a genre change.

But it turns out its switch from co-operative third-person shooter to PvPvE extraction shooter (its original form "wasn't really fun", Embark admitted during a recent press event) wasn't to be ARC Raiders' only notable change. It's now been re-announced as a $40 USD premium title, jettisoning its previous free-to-play form, albeit while still remaining a live-service game.

Read more

Developer Embark Studios has announced that extraction shooter ARC Raiders will be coming to PC, PS5 and Xbox Series X/S in 2025, and will be priced at $39.99. Announcing the release window is a new trailer, which you can check out below.

The studio has also announced that playtesting for the PC version of ARC Raiders is slated to kick off on October 24, going on until October 27. The studio also notes that, while ARC Raiders was originally announced as a free-to-play game, it will instead be sold as a premium game.

“There are many reasons for this change, and they all boil down to our conviction that a premium business model is a better fit for the type of game we’re building,” said the studio. “A premium model allows us to create a more focused, balanced, and engaging action-survival experience.”

ARC Raiders will have players setting off out of the safety of their underground colony in order to scavenge and hunt for resources. Along the way, players will have to deal with ARC machines, as well as other players, who will also be competing for the loot.

The decision to turn ARC Raiders into a survival extraction shooter from its original vision as a third-person co-op shooter was announced back in May 2023.

Arc Raiders was announced back in 2021 as a free-to-play co-op third-person shooter, and has been delayed several times since. That's partly because Embark Studios' other in-development game, The Finals, progressed faster than planned and stole its momentum. It's also because it was re-tooled at some point as a PvPvE extraction shooter.

Now it's back again, aiming for release next year, and it's been re-tooled a little more: it's no longer free-to-play.

Read more

Arc Raiders was announced back in 2021 as a free-to-play co-op third-person shooter, and has been delayed several times since. That's partly because Embark Studios' other in-development game, The Finals, progressed faster than planned and stole its momentum. It's also because it was re-tooled at some point as a PvPvE extraction shooter.

Now it's back again, aiming for release next year, and it's been re-tooled a little more: it's no longer free-to-play.

Read more

The Finals is a multiplayer first-person shooter about stealing cash and demolishing buildings in a virtual reality game show. Why does it need to be set in a virtual reality game show? So it can do things like transport players to Kyoto in the year 1568, which is what will happen when season three arrives on June 13th.

Read more

Destruction-focused free-to-play shooter The Finals has seen "lower than expected" performance according to publisher Nexon, contributing to a shortfall in its forecast revenue.

The Finals seemed to get off to a strong start when it surprise-launched in December last year - its 5v5 action proving popular enough that its developer, Nexon subsidiary Embark Studios, quickly found itself scrambling to deal with an influx of cheaters.

A hacker-themed second season of content arrived earlier this year, but didn't - according to Nexon - result in the expected increase in player numbers. "The launch of Season 2 in March created a short-lived increase in player metrics," it explained in its Q1 2024 earnings report, "but delivered lower-than-expected retention and revenue." It added that Embark is now working with its Korea-based Live Operations team to "understand and address the key issues."

Read more

A new game mode is coming to free-to-play shooter The Finals called Terminal Attack.

This new 5v5 mode, arriving on 2nd May, removes healing and revives to give all players just one life.

Players will be split into two teams. The attacking team must deliver the Decryption Key to a terminal and ensure a complete transfer, while the defending team must prevent them from achieving their mission.

Read more

The Finals update 1.7.0 released this past week and makes substantial changes to the destructive shooter's progression. It should make it much faster to advance through battle pass levels, if skins and cosmetics are what you're after.

Read more