As of July 2026, ARC Raiders has sold over 16 million copies. Embark Studios has shifted to a biannual major update schedule, with the 'Frozen Trail' update planned for October 2026.
ARC Raiders, the extraction shooter from Embark Studios, has sold over 16 million copies as of July 2026. The studio announced a shift from monthly to biannual major updates, with the 'Frozen Trail' update arriving in October 2026 as the largest update yet, adding a new map, enemies, and progression systems. A 25% off Steam sale accompanied the announcement.
At NDC26, Embark's machine learning lead Martin detailed how the studio uses ML for recommendations, quest generation, and enemy behavior in both ARC Raiders and The Finals. The talk highlighted organizational challenges: a simple EASE recommendation model increased purchasers by 400% in The Finals, but the project nearly failed until an engineer physically moved to the commercial team.
In May 2026, Japanese game media outlets Game*Spark and AUTOMATON held a self-organized competition in ARC Raiders, collecting duck toys on the 'Buried City (Bird City)' map. AUTOMATON won 77 to 35. The loser had to donate high-rarity items, but a mistake left the AUTOMATON editor stranded without an extraction key, causing the items to be lost to other players. The event was not an official game mode but demonstrated emergent player-driven narratives.
Synthesized by Yomimono from the cited Yomimono stories below, each itself sourced, then editorially reviewed. Every fact links the story it came from.
Structured graph also available as JSON at /public/entities/arc-raiders.
CC BY 4.0.
Microsoft acknowledged that the August 12, 2026 Windows update (version 26100.9168/KB5121003) may cause crashes, freezes, and system restarts in some games, including ARC Raiders, The Finals, and MARVEL Tōkon: Fighting Souls. The company is investigating whether the issue is caused by Microsoft and asks users to report problems via the Feedback Hub.
Nexon announced a special dividend of about 324 billion yen, or 415 yen per share, pending board approval in September 2026. The payout follows second-quarter results that beat forecasts, with MapleStory franchise revenue up 63% year-on-year and ARC Raiders cumulative sales passing 16.3 million units.
Embark Studios announced on August 12 that ARC Raiders will receive its largest update to date, titled Frozen Trail, on October 8. The update follows a May 2026 policy shift that moved the game's major content cadence from monthly to twice a year, with Frozen Trail being the first major release under that new schedule. The update introduces a new map set in a frozen settlement at the edge of the Last Belt, featuring abandoned villages, factories, research facilities, and observatories, with greater verticality and exploration opportunities. New high-level challenges are designed for experienced Raiders, demanding meaningful choices, dynamic encounters, and cooperation. The update also adds new ARC machines, ranging from small nuisances to massive threats, plus adjustments to skill trees and the Raider deck system. Additional content includes new weapons, gadgets, cosmetic items, instruments, and improvements to matchmaking, anti-cheat, stability, and quality of life. The story will approach the origins of the ARC machines, as Raiders investigate an unidentified signal from beyond the mountains. The game is available on PC via Steam, Epic Games Store, and Microsoft Store, as well as PS5 and Xbox Series X|S.
Embark Studios is running a 25% off Steam sale for extraction shooter ARC Raiders, which has sold over 16 million copies. The studio also detailed the 'Frozen Trail' update, arriving in October 2026 as the largest update yet, following a shift from monthly to biannual major updates. The update adds a new map, enemies, and progression systems.
At NDC26, Embark Studios machine learning lead Martin detailed how the studio uses ML for recommendations, quest generation, and enemy behavior. A key takeaway was that a simple EASE recommendation model increased purchasers by 400% in The Finals, but organizational hurdles nearly killed the project until an engineer physically moved desks to the commercial team.
Japanese game media outlets Game*Spark and AUTOMATON held a collaborative event in the extraction shooter 'ARC Raiders' on May 29, 2026, that ended with a direct competition over in-game duck toys. The event followed a previous co-op session where an AUTOMATON editor betrayed a Game*Spark writer, creating a grudge. For the rematch, the two editors ran solo raids for one hour on the 'Buried City (Bird City)' map, collecting duck toys of varying rarities for points. AUTOMATON won with 77 points against Game*Spark's 35. The loser, Game*Spark's writer, had to donate high-rarity items from their stash to the winner in a subsequent raid, but a mistake left the AUTOMATON editor stranded without an extraction key, resulting in the items being lost to other players. The event was not an official game mode but a self-organized challenge.