ARC Raiders Reveals How Many Players Focus Solely on PvE vs PvP

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Embark Studios, the team behind ARC Raiders, has shared that around 30% of players focus exclusively on the game’s cooperative PvE content – everything from fighting small enemies called Ticks to battling the powerful Matriarch boss. Since the game launched in October 2025, the player base has increasingly split between those who prefer PvE and those who enjoy the player-versus-player (PvP) mode, but Embark’s data also shows a significant number of players who participate in both types of gameplay.

Originally, Embark Studios planned for ARC Raiders to be a purely cooperative game, similar to Helldivers 2. However, the team discovered during development that the game wasn’t engaging enough. To create more excitement and encourage players to return, they added player-versus-player (PvP) elements, transforming it into an extraction shooter. This wasn’t about creating a competitive game – there are no PvP leaderboards – but rather about increasing the unpredictability and stress. Now, players have to contend with both dangerous ARC enemies and other players, making each match more challenging.

Embark Says 30% of ARC Raiders Players Focus On Just PvE

Switching from a purely player-versus-environment game to one that combines both PvE and PvP was a great decision for ARC Raiders. The game has been a huge success, selling millions of copies, winning the Game Awards’ Best Multiplayer award, and earning excellent reviews from players and critics alike. While many factors contributed to this success, a key one is the game’s broad appeal. ARC Raiders attracts both players who prefer cooperative gameplay and those who enjoy competitive battles. According to Embark Studios (as reported by The Guardian), the player base is fairly evenly split: around 30% focus solely on PvE, 30% are dedicated to PvP, and the remaining 40% enjoy a combination of both.

As a big fan of ARC Raiders, I found something really cool in a recent interview with the producer, Aleksander Grøndal. He said almost everyone – like 95% of players – uses the in-game proximity chat to talk to each other! It makes sense, but it’s awesome to hear. He also pointed out something I’ve definitely noticed while playing: solo players tend to be way more friendly. If you’re running with a Duo or Trio, though, people get a lot more competitive. Honestly, if you’re playing solo, being nice is pretty much the unspoken rule unless you’re actively trying to get matched with aggressive players.

The way ARC Raiders connects players can separate those who prefer playing against enemies (PvE) from those who enjoy player-versus-player combat (PvP). While the developers initially claimed there weren’t any safe, non-competitive lobbies, many players have discovered that avoiding attacks on others for a while will put you into lobbies where PvP is rare. This is because the game’s matchmaking system groups players based on how aggressively they play. It’s a complex system, but it allows players who just want to focus on the game’s bosses, like the Queen or Matriarch, to do so without constantly being attacked by others.

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Embark, the studio behind ARC Raiders, has been pleased with how players have worked together, like during the recent Shared Watch event where players were rewarded for defeating enemies as a team. However, they were surprised by the scale of cooperation when players started tackling the game’s biggest bosses. Entire server communities are teaming up to defeat enemies like the Queen and Matriarch, and Embark admits players are completing these large-scale encounters much faster than they anticipated.

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2026-04-16 15:34