ARC Raiders may be approaching an important turning point in its development. What started as a high-tension extraction shooter built around both player encounters and hostile machines is now facing a question that could shape its future: should players be allowed to choose between PvE and PvPvE?
Embark Studios CEO Patrick Söderlund has recently acknowledged that the studio can no longer ignore the growing PvE audience. Following a limited-time matchmaking test that attracted unexpectedly strong participation, the developer appears more open to the possibility of offering a dedicated PvE experience in the future.
However, this is not simply a matter of adding a new matchmaking option. ARC Raiders has built much of its identity around uncertainty. Players never know whether the next threat will come from an ARC machine or another Raider waiting nearby. Removing one of those threats could make the game more comfortable for some players, but it could also change the risk-and-reward structure that keeps every expedition exciting.
The challenge for Embark is finding a way to satisfy both players without making either experience feel incomplete.
Embark Can No Longer Ignore the PvE Players
During a recent interview with The Game Business, Söderlund discussed the growing debate surrounding PvE in ARC Raiders. His comments suggest that the studio's position has become more flexible after seeing how players responded to the experimental matchmaking option.
Embark previously hesitated to introduce a dedicated PvE experience because it believed that PvP encounters were an essential part of the game's emotional appeal. A Raider entering a dangerous location should have to consider more than the ARC enemies roaming around. Another player might cooperate, steal valuable loot, or attack when an extraction opportunity appears.
That uncertainty is a major part of what makes the extraction experience memorable.
However, the studio now has evidence that a substantial portion of its audience wants something different. Söderlund explained that adding PvE would not be particularly difficult from a technical perspective. The more important question is whether the studio can introduce another way to play without compromising the original experience.
Executive producer Aleksander Grøndal also revealed that almost 50% of the rounds played during the recent PvE test took place on PvE servers.
That is a significant result for a game originally designed around PvPvE interactions. It suggests that interest in cooperative exploration is not limited to a small group of players asking for a separate mode on social media.
Embark also discovered that player preferences were not entirely predictable. Some people who initially requested PvE changed their minds after experiencing it, feeling that the absence of hostile Raiders removed an important part of the game's identity. Others enjoyed the alternative and clearly wanted more of it.
This mixed response explains why the studio cannot simply make a decision based on one group of players.
What the PvE Test Revealed About Player Preferences
Embark's October 13–20, 2026 matchmaking test gave players the opportunity to choose between the traditional PvPvE experience and a cooperative PvE environment.
The experiment was more than a small gameplay adjustment. It allowed the developer to observe how different communities interacted with the same maps, missions, enemies, and loot systems under different conditions.
According to the studio's findings discussed in the subsequent interview, nearly half of all rounds during the test were played on PvE servers. Other reported survey figures also suggested substantial interest in cooperative gameplay and fewer hostile encounters.
The official test was designed to provide a relatively safer environment rather than introduce a completely new progression system. Players could explore locations, complete quests, collect resources, and fight ARC machines without taking damage from other Raiders.
There were also several restrictions. Night Raids, Hidden Bunker, Locked Gate, and Frigate were excluded because these conditions were designed around the tension and uncertainty of player encounters.
The test introduced some important economic adjustments as well. Since players could extract more consistently without worrying about hostile Raiders, the overall loot value in PvE sessions was reduced. PvPvE sessions received slightly higher baseline loot values to help maintain a reasonable balance between risk and reward.
This decision highlights one of the biggest challenges facing a potential permanent PvE mode: safety has an economic value.
Why PvE Could Change the Value of ARC Raiders Items
The debate becomes particularly interesting when considering the game's loot economy.
In ARC Raiders, collecting equipment is not simply about filling an inventory. Every expedition involves decisions about what to carry, what to leave behind, and whether the value of additional resources is worth the risk of staying longer.
Weapons, ammunition, healing supplies, shields, crafting materials, and other ARC Raiders items all contribute to this decision-making process.
In a traditional PvPvE session, a player carrying valuable equipment must consider several threats simultaneously. An unexpected encounter can turn a successful loot run into a complete loss. Even when a Raider has enough resources to defeat ARC machines, another player can still interrupt the expedition.
A dedicated PvE environment would change that calculation. Without hostile players, Raiders could potentially complete objectives and collect valuable materials with fewer unexpected interruptions. This would make resource gathering more predictable, especially for players who primarily want to upgrade equipment, complete quests, or prepare for more difficult encounters.
However, if PvE offers exactly the same rewards as PvPvE, players may naturally gravitate toward the safer option. That could weaken the incentive to enter more dangerous sessions and change the demand for certain ARC Raiders items. Resources that once required several risky expeditions might become easier to obtain, potentially affecting their perceived value and the overall progression pace.
Embark has already demonstrated awareness of this issue through its experimental loot adjustments. A permanent system would probably require more careful balancing. Possible approaches include maintaining different loot multipliers, adjusting extraction rewards, or introducing exclusive challenges that make each mode attractive for different reasons.
The goal should not necessarily be to make PvE less rewarding. Instead, both modes need to provide meaningful progression without making one an obvious replacement for the other.
Reddit Players Are Asking for More Than a Peaceful Mode
The discussion surrounding Söderlund's comments has also attracted considerable attention on Reddit, particularly in the ARC Raiders community.
One interesting aspect of the conversation is that players are not exclusively arguing about whether PvP should remain in the game. Many are discussing what a satisfying PvE experience would actually look like.
Some players want a straightforward cooperative option where they can explore, complete missions, and collect resources without worrying about being attacked by another Raider. For them, the appeal is having more control over the type of experience they enter.
Others believe that PvE should offer its own challenges instead of becoming an easier version of the original game.
This distinction matters. ARC machines are already dangerous opponents, but the unpredictability of human players creates a different kind of pressure. If Embark wants PvE to remain engaging over hundreds of hours, the environment itself may need to provide enough variety and difficulty.
More dangerous ARC encounters, demanding cooperative objectives, and stronger enemy combinations could help create a distinct PvE identity.
There is also concern about whether a separate PvE environment would affect the original community. Some players enjoy the tension of negotiating with strangers, forming temporary alliances, and deciding whether another Raider can be trusted. They do not want those interactions to become less meaningful because the player population has been divided.
Interestingly, these concerns do not necessarily mean that PvP-focused players oppose PvE. A well-designed separation could allow both groups to enjoy the game without constantly arguing about how everyone else should play.
The important question is whether Embark can maintain enough players in each matchmaking pool to keep sessions healthy.
Matchmaking and Progression Could Become the Biggest Obstacles
Splitting an active player base into different matchmaking environments introduces practical problems.
Queue times are an obvious concern. ARC Raiders needs enough players in each region and matchmaking category to create reliable sessions. If too many players move into PvE, some PvPvE queues could become slower, particularly during less active hours.
There is also the question of how progression should work across both modes. Should players be able to collect equipment in PvE and immediately use it in PvPvE? Should certain missions or rewards remain exclusive to the traditional experience? Would different loot values be enough to prevent safer sessions from becoming the most efficient way to build an inventory?
These decisions could influence how players approach the entire game. For example, a player might prefer to collect basic crafting materials and complete routine objectives in PvE before entering PvPvE with better equipment. That would be a reasonable way to support different playstyles, but it could also create a progression imbalance if the rewards are not carefully controlled.\
Embark must also consider the social side of the game. Cooperative PvE should not feel like an empty alternative where players simply repeat the same routes without meaningful interaction.
A separate mode could benefit from group objectives, coordinated fights against stronger ARC units, and activities that encourage Raiders to work together.
At the same time, the studio should preserve the freedom that makes the traditional extraction experience interesting.
Can Embark Keep Both Player Camps Happy?
The biggest mistake Embark could make would be treating PvE and PvP as two communities that must compete for the same experience.
They have different expectations, but those expectations are not necessarily incompatible. PvP-focused players want unpredictable encounters, meaningful risks, and the possibility that another Raider could change the outcome of an expedition. PvE-focused players may care more about exploration, cooperative combat, quest completion, and predictable progression.
A permanent PvE option could give both groups more control over their sessions. However, simply adding a toggle would not solve every problem. Embark would still need to monitor matchmaking populations, adjust loot distribution, protect progression balance, and ensure that the PvE environment has enough depth to remain interesting.
The studio's earlier decision to exclude certain high-tension conditions from the test also suggests that not every activity will necessarily translate well into a PvE environment.
Perhaps the most promising direction is to let the two experiences develop distinct identities while sharing the same overall world and progression framework.
PvPvE could remain the central experience for players who enjoy unpredictable encounters, while PvE could become a more cooperative alternative built around ARC threats and exploration. Neither needs to replace the other.
Final Thoughts
ARC Raiders is facing a design challenge that goes beyond adding another matchmaking option. Its success has brought together players with different expectations, and Embark now has to decide how much flexibility it can introduce without losing the identity that made the game stand out.
The October PvE test provided a strong reason to take the alternative seriously. Nearly half of the tested rounds taking place on PvE servers is difficult to dismiss, especially when the studio also received positive feedback from players who preferred cooperative gameplay.
Still, a permanent PvE mode has not been officially confirmed, and Embark has not announced a release date or finalized rules.
For now, the most important question is not whether ARC Raiders should become a PvE game. It is whether the developer can make room for PvE without weakening the tension, economy, and social interactions that define PvPvE.
If Embark gets that balance right, the players may not need to compete for the future of ARC Raiders at all.
