Hands-on — why ARC Raiders’ gameplay preview is the most fun I’ve had all year

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I’ve been really excited about ARC Raiders, scheduled for release in 2025, and it seems like a lot of other people are too. Most players who tried it out during the summer playtest thought it was excellent and have been eagerly awaiting its release. And I was lucky enough to get an early play!

I played the complete game on October 23rd, with full access to everything – all the features and even the system designed to keep players engaged long-term. While I didn’t finish it completely, I made significant progress.

For more details, you can find an explanation on the Embark Studios website. Now, let’s move on to the preview.

I was chatting with someone from Embark, and they suggested we could almost consider this hands-on time a ‘review in progress’ since it was the complete game. But because my save data was reset – which made sense, given it was a preview – I decided to approach it as just that: a first look.

After playing for about four hours during the preview, and roughly 50 more in earlier test versions, I’ve barely begun to experience everything this game has to offer.

I’m addressing concerns that the game doesn’t have enough content, a perception created by the short Server Slam test. While I’m not sure why Embark limited the test, I’ve seen many people online and heard from friends who don’t think the game is worth the $40 price tag.

The game launches with a ton of maps, offering players plenty to explore. And Embark Studios plans to keep adding even more over time, constantly improving and expanding the game’s content.

ARC Raiders features a huge amount of content, from weapons to environmental details. Even after spending six hours playing – including previews, betas, and alphas – I’ve barely begun to explore everything the game offers.

Improved gameplay that’s more challenging than before

As someone who’s spent a good amount of time with the ARC previews and the recent Server Slam, I can definitely say the enemies are significantly tougher now compared to the summer beta. They do a lot more damage, and their accuracy has improved dramatically – they’ve gone from being wildly inaccurate to incredibly precise.

This is important because our initial gameplay took place on the live and test servers. We started by leveling up basic characters through the very first quests – the ones most players have already experienced, like gathering loot or defeating the ARC enemy. These were the standard introductory missions you’d have to actively skip to avoid.

I quickly learned the importance of good ARC when I tried to sneak into an elevator that another player had already summoned. I thought I could quickly jump in before the doors closed, but it didn’t work out so well!

I was way off base; I was still a long way from the door when it shut, and I knew I was going to be in serious trouble.

There were two wasps guarding the elevator, and another player had just gotten their attention. At first, I figured I could just dash past them without worrying about it.

I realized the elevator wasn’t working and turned to leave, but I was immediately attacked. I managed to avoid a couple of blasts, but the two Wasps quickly defeated me.

This time, I tried to be a little smarter and took things slower. But as soon as I started, I heard a huge explosion to my left. Old habits die hard, I guess – instead of being cautious, I immediately ran straight towards it.

I’m a journalist who sometimes pretends to be good at video games – I’m decent, but I also need stories to write about. Thinking strategically helps me avoid embarrassing situations. That’s how I met two players who really showed me how interesting interactions can be in games.

Squadding up to survive

These two guys were incredibly eager for me to raid the massive, deactivated Mother ARC they’d just unlocked – the very thing that triggered the explosion in the first place.

I quickly gathered some of the valuable items, knowing I wouldn’t have them for long. Then, we started moving towards all the flares we spotted in the sky.

If you see flares in the distance, it means a player is in trouble. It doesn’t always mean they’re eliminated, but it’s a signal that something significant is happening nearby.

As we approached one of the signal flares, we encountered a lone man who unfortunately found himself in our path. We aggressively – and with deliberately awful Brooklyn accents – demanded he hand over a single wire, threatening him if he didn’t comply. We basically told him we were robbing the place and he needed to cooperate.

During the preview, I repeatedly encountered bizarre interactions like one where a player, despite having no apparent connection issues, immediately ran off and abandoned all their items. We tried to reassure him it was a joke and that he should come back for his stuff, but he didn’t listen. Experiences like this really highlighted to me how useful a feature like proximity chat could be – it might have prevented that whole misunderstanding.

During the later part of the group testing, several of my teammates had to leave for different reasons. It wasn’t possible for everyone to commit to the long raiding sessions during the preview event. But I’m completely obsessed with ARC Raiders, so of course, I stayed.

I teamed up with some players from SeasonedGaming, and we really clicked. We played together for a while, running maps and having a blast taking out enemies – it was one of the most fun gaming sessions I’ve had in ages.

Playing with these two was a blast! From silly mistakes to intense, non-stop action, they constantly got my adrenaline pumping. It’s that same feeling you get when you’re head-over-heels for someone and tell them you love them ‘forever and ever’ – we’ve all been there, right?

The final part of ARC Raiders really stood out to me, offering an experience unlike anything else I’ve encountered in gaming, especially in terms of its length.

Before the scheduled group play time, I usually teamed up with other solo players. It hadn’t crossed my mind that groups might also form their own teams. Then we heard about a team of six content creators who were dominating, easily defeating groups of three.

Near the finish of our fast-paced, all-out efforts, we were resting on a hill when someone spotted a zipline being set up. Immediately, someone began counting the people on it: “One, two, three, four, wow, five, hey everyone… six!”

We reacted instantly, opening fire without a second thought for our own safety. Two of us were equipped with rifles for longer distances, but our teammate had a light machine gun set for close-range, rapid fire, and he unleashed it with raw fury. We all fired immediately.

Immediately, gunfire erupted from the trees and hills around us. We couldn’t identify all the shooters, but we quickly returned fire at every position we detected.

We began climbing the hill, effectively boxing the enemy in and leaving only one small town as a potential avenue for their advance. It immediately felt like a bad idea – I had a strong feeling we were walking into an ambush, like that scene from Star Wars where Admiral Ackbar warns, “It’s a trap!”

The town was filled with various AI enemies. When players began chasing us through the area, they immediately drew the attention of all the AI. We quickly defeated them all – whether they were standard AI or Raiders – those players were no match for us.

We were laughing so hard we cried, and then almost immediately, a different group completely overwhelmed us.

ARC Raiders is a must buy if this continues into launch

To be honest, ARC Raiders is exactly the kind of game I’ve wanted to play for years. I wasn’t very impressed with the early version, but I’ve been really interested in it ever since the developers, Embark, first showed it off.

I’ve been consistently drawn back to the game since trying the beta over the summer, and through every test since then. Even knowing the progress will be reset, I always find myself wanting to play it.

I was completely absorbed in playing Dam during the Server Slam – it was probably the hundredth time – and honestly, I was enjoying it more than any other game available.

ARC Raiders might not appeal to all gamers, but it stands out as an extraction shooter that could successfully unite both casual and competitive players. It’s shaping up to be one of the most promising games of 2025.

ARC Raiders will be available on October 30, 2025, for Xbox Series X|S, Windows PC, and PlayStation 5. Players on Xbox Series X|S and Windows PC can play the game seamlessly through the Play Anywhere feature.

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2025-10-29 18:41