ARC Raiders Confirms 1 Feature is Likely Never Coming to the Game, and It’s Splitting the Community in Half

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I’ve been playing ARC Raiders since it came out, and it’s a really fun extraction shooter. It’s always been a bit tricky though, balancing the player-versus-player and player-versus-environment stuff. A lot of us started playing because it was easy to pick up, but there’s a big disagreement in the community about whether PvP should even be in the game – some of us just want to focus on working together against the environment. Because of this, the developers added a system that tries to match aggressive players with each other, and it looks like another feature we were hoping for might never actually happen.

With ARC Raiders evolving, expect ongoing adjustments to keep both player-versus-player (PvP) and player-versus-environment (PvE) gameplay balanced. The upcoming reduction in power for the Stitcher weapon is a recent example of the developers slowing down the pace of PvP. Adding to the disappointment for PvP enthusiasts, the developers have stated that a leaderboard won’t be added to the game, further dividing the player base between those who prefer PvP and those who prefer PvE.

ARC Raiders Will Likely Never Get a Leaderboard, Embark CEO Confirms

Embark CEO Patrik Söderlund recently told GamesBeat’s Dean Takahashi that he’s hesitant to add a player kill leaderboard to ARC Raiders. He believes it would push the game too much towards player-versus-player (PvP) combat, potentially disrupting the game’s carefully designed balance. While Söderlund shared his concerns, the community has had a varied response, with strong arguments on both sides of the issue.

Image via Embark Studios

The Pros of Having a Leaderboard in ARC Raiders

  • Other extraction shooters have this feature
  • Encourages players to keep coming back to improve their standing
  • Compliments the existing leaderboard for Trials

Tracking player kills isn’t new for games where you collect loot and fight others, like Hunt: Showdown, which already ranks players based on things like kill streaks and bounties. While ARC Raiders doesn’t currently have a bounty system, it could add similar ways to track PvP performance, such as total kills or kill streaks, to create more exciting moments during matches. Since ARC Raiders already pairs aggressive players together, a leaderboard focused on PvP wouldn’t bother players who prefer to focus on the environment and cooperate with others.

ARC Raiders Trials currently shows a leaderboard for players competing in the weekly PvE challenges. Adding a similar leaderboard for player-versus-player (PvP) matches would be a great addition for those who enjoy the competitive side of the game.

Image via Embark Studios

The Cons of Having a Leaderboard in ARC Raiders

  • Encourages an overemphasis on PvP
  • Likely to have cheaters fill the top spots

However, there are downsides to having a player-versus-player (PvP) leaderboard, and ARC Raiders is smart to avoid it. While a leaderboard would likely increase PvP activity, it clashes with the game’s goal of balancing that with player-versus-environment (PvE) content. More importantly, leaderboards often attract cheaters who unfairly dominate the top rankings with impossible scores.

Image via Embark Studios

Players can already track their kills in ARC Raiders through the in-game Codex. Adding a leaderboard could create unwanted competition in player-versus-player combat, which the game’s matchmaking system might struggle to manage. While a leaderboard isn’t a terrible idea overall, it’s not essential for a game where players are already split on whether they prefer player-versus-environment or player-versus-player experiences. Embark probably made the right call by leaving PvP leaderboards out of the game for now, but they could potentially add a simpler version of the feature later to satisfy players who enjoy PvP.

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2026-01-08 05:04