ARC Raiders PvE Test Ends After 30 Million Raids: November Update and Return Outlook

ARC Raiders PvE is unavailable following the end of its October 13 to 20, 2026 test. If the toggle brought you back for cooperative ARC fights and scavenging without hostile player fire, the available option is now standard PvPvE. Embark has not announced a permanent PvE mode or a return date.

The studio reported more than 30 million PvE rounds during the test. Surveys begin going to a representative sample of players on October 22, with further information expected in November. That follow-up could clarify the mode's future, but it carries no promise of a November relaunch.

For returning players, the immediate decision is whether normal raids still offer enough of the experience they enjoyed. Shared-loot disputes and concerns about PvPvE also need attention before another toggle would satisfy both audiences.

PvE Availability after October 20

The Toggle Was a Temporary Test

The ARC Raiders PvE matchmaking test ended on its scheduled date. You cannot currently select the test's PvE-only queue. Continuing to raid means accepting the possibility of hostile Raiders through standard PvPvE matchmaking; there is no confirmed replacement setting that disables their damage.

During the test, PvE removed player damage while retaining ARC enemies and shared encounters. It also lowered overall loot value and excluded several major map conditions. Frigate and Redirection were among the unavailable options, so the test never offered every activity under its damage rules.

The closure does not establish that Embark rejected PvE. The announced next step is reviewing the experiment and gathering feedback. Equally, the number of rounds played does not establish that the toggle has earned a permanent place.

Confirmed Plans and Open Questions

Treat November as a communication window when deciding whether to return. There is no published date around which to plan a PvE session with friends.

What 30 Million Raids Show

Some Returning Players Found Their Mode

Post-test player accounts describe a reason for returning that ordinary content additions may not address: enjoying ARC Raiders' world while disliking the possibility of betrayal.

One creator and his wife described roughly 20 hours with PvE and wanting to continue. Another said he had played more during the test week than over the preceding six months.

These accounts explain the disappointment when the toggle disappeared. Exploring a ruined map, scavenging for ARC Raiders items, listening for machines and helping a stranger fight an ARC can be appealing without wanting a gunfight against that stranger afterward. For these players, disabling hostile player damage changes whether they want to log in.

Participation Cannot Establish a Majority

The headline figure counts rounds. A player running repeated raids contributes repeatedly, so it cannot reveal how many individuals participated or what proportion want permanent PvE.

Embark's September announcement said 51% of surveyed players expressed interest in a dedicated PvE option. That earlier survey measured interest before this test, rather than satisfaction with its results.

A useful assessment would also compare repeat participation, returning-player retention and the experience of people who stayed in PvPvE. Those are questions for evaluating the experiment, not results that Embark has published in its closing announcement.

Enthusiastic comments help identify what people enjoyed, but a creator's audience is self-selected. The same caution applies to hostile responses. Neither comment section can substitute for evidence covering the wider player population.

For an ARC Raiders PvE return, sustained interest and an acceptable experience across queues would make a stronger case than the round count alone.

The Test's Biggest Player Disputes

Shared Loot Frustrated Cooperative Players

One account describes helping a solo Raider defeat a Bully, only for other players to arrive and take materials from the wreckage. The complaint concerns the relationship between effort and reward: someone spends ammunition and healing while another Raider waits for a chance to collect the result.

With player damage disabled, the fighters cannot shoot someone who rushes the remains. That makes a shared encounter feel unfair to a player expecting cooperation, even when everyone is following the mode's damage rules. It also explains why a person can strongly favor PvE and still want substantial changes before it returns.

Individual loot could reserve ARC Raiders items for each eligible player instead of rewarding whoever arrives first. Giving every nearby Raider a full reward would also multiply materials from one kill; smaller personal allocations could control supply, but might disappoint players expecting a complete set of drops. This is a reward-design choice, not evidence that cooperative PvE cannot work.

Contribution-based rewards introduce another tradeoff. Allocating loot by damage alone could disadvantage players reviving teammates or helping with weaker equipment.

Eligibility thresholds would need to recognize support while discouraging someone from tagging an enemy once and waiting for others to finish. Neither system has been announced for ARC Raiders.

For someone whose loot was taken during the test, Embark's closing announcement offers no retrieval or compensation process for that situation. A future allocation system could prevent a repeat, but would not establish a way to recover an earlier loss. The next useful announcement would specify who earns a reward and whether another player's pickup can remove it.

Players Disagreed About the Missing Tension

Other players enjoy the uncertainty of encountering someone who might cooperate, negotiate or attack. Removing hostile player damage can make those meetings less interesting for them.

Reports of large groups rapidly clearing ARC encounters also raise a separate question about whether the enemies provide enough resistance when strangers cooperate freely.

Some creators felt normal PvPvE sessions became more aggressive during the test. Another account reported no noticeable difference. These are individual observations; they do not establish a measured increase in aggression across ARC Raiders.

What the Test Leaves Unresolved

The player accounts suggest that cooperative ARC combat is worth preserving for an audience that avoids hostile Raiders. Shared-loot frustration concerns how rewards are allocated; it does not establish that PvE itself is unworkable.

Crowds overwhelming machines raise a separate encounter-balance question. Simply increasing enemy health could also make smaller groups' fights tedious, so a redesign would need to consider group size.

The effect on PvPvE requires evidence across queues: population, waiting times and encounter patterns. Individual impressions cannot settle it. Embark had already identified matchmaking and the economy as risks before the test, which was not intended to trial a harder PvE experience or new progression.

These are design questions exposed by the experiment, not published findings from Embark. Restoring the toggle would restore access; reward fairness, encounter difficulty and the experience in both queues would still need answers.

Permanent PvE Remains Unconfirmed

Three Possible Directions

Embark has not confirmed permanent PvE. The options discussed by players describe different ways of accommodating demand, with different costs. None is an official roadmap.

A permanent queue would give the returning couple dependable access. Rotating events would leave gaps for people who avoid PvPvE. A redesign could address reward frustration, but its actual rules would determine whether it preserves the experience those players enjoyed. Separate inventories and stronger ARC also remain player proposals.

November May Bring More Information

Embark described the initial response as polarizing and said its decision would prioritize the game's overall health and enjoyment. The studio has not promised that November's follow-up will settle every question.

For the next ARC Raiders PvE update, look for an availability date, reward rules and whether access is temporary or permanent.

Your Options While PvE Is Unavailable

What Matchmaking Actually Changes

ARC Raiders tracks Solo, Duo and Trio playstyles separately. Cooperative solo runs and aggressive trio sessions therefore shape separate histories. Your PvE test sessions did not change your PvPvE matchmaking rating, so that week of cooperation did not train standard matchmaking to give you peaceful raids.

The system distinguishes starting fights from self-defense and responds gradually to patterns of play. Defending yourself is not treated the same as initiating an encounter; this does not make you immune to future hostile matches. One shot or kill does not instantly change your lobby category.

Every squad member influences its profile equally. If you return with friends, agree whether the session is for quests or player fights; changing the leader will not override teammates' behavior. Similar playstyles become more likely to meet, with no guarantee that any individual Raider will cooperate.

Decide Whether PvPvE Suits You

If hostile player damage removes the reason you enjoyed the test, waiting for official news is a reasonable choice. Standard matchmaking cannot recreate the protection you want.

If you accept that risk, use the squad size and teammates that fit your intended playstyle, then continue an existing quest or research goal. Keep your investment in ARC Raiders items at a level you can replace.

Loadout value does not determine matchmaking difficulty, so spending less limits your loss without securing friendlier opponents.

Giving Useful Test Feedback

Embark has opened a dedicated PvE test feedback channel on its official Discord. Surveys will also go to a representative sample of ARC Raiders players starting October 22. Receiving one is not guaranteed; the Discord channel provides another route for feedback.

Both PvE participants and players who remained in PvPvE have relevant experiences to report. Describe a specific encounter, what worked or failed, and what would make you keep playing.

A shared-loot dispute can explain a request for protected rewards; a crowded ARC fight can explain concerns about difficulty. Separate what happened from what you want Embark to change.