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SoulframeReception and Awards
ARC Raiders scored 86 on PC on Metacritic and 87 on OpenCritic as of Oct 31, 2026, holds 81% positive Steam reviews, and won Best Multiplayer Game at The Game Awards 2025, Online Game of the Year at the D.I.C.E. Awards and Multiplayer at the BAFTA Games Awards. The main criticism concerned AI voices and cosmetic prices.
ARC Raiders reviewed well: on Oct 31, 2026 it held 86 on PC, 85 on PS5 and 88 on Xbox Series X on Metacritic and 87 on OpenCritic, with 91% of critics recommending it. It won multiplayer honors at The Game Awards, the D.I.C.E. Awards and the BAFTA Games Awards. The loudest disagreement was over its AI-generated voices, which led one major outlet to a 2/5, and over the price of cosmetics. Players on Steam were mostly favorable, at 81% positive of 204,284 English reviews, but less so lately, at 72% of the 8,865 recent ones. In the clip, Embark's developers recall how the reception felt.
Quick facts
| Metacritic | PC 86, PS5 85, Xbox Series X 88 (read Oct 31, 2026) |
| Metacritic user score | 7.3 from 1,874 ratings |
| OpenCritic | Top Critic Average 87, 91% recommend, 98 reviews, Mighty tier |
| Steam, English reviews | 81% positive of 204,284, Very Positive |
| Steam, recent English reviews | 72% of 8,865, Mostly Positive |
| Steam, all languages | 81% positive of about 433,000 (SteamDB, Oct 30, 2026) |
| Big wins | Best Multiplayer Game (The Game Awards), Online Game of the Year (D.I.C.E.), Multiplayer (BAFTA) |
Sources: Metacritic, OpenCritic and the Steam store page, all read Oct 31, 2026; GamesBeat, Oct 30, 2026.
Critics' scores
The earliest wave was higher than where it settled. GamesRadar+ reported in Nov 2025 that it was then the highest-rated multiplayer shooter on OpenCritic. Metacritic's page disagrees with itself on the review count: its main box says 57 critic reviews and its PC block 65, with no explanation.
| Outlet | Score |
|---|---|
| TechRadar Gaming | 100 |
| Game Rant | 10/10 |
| IGN | 9/10 |
| Game Informer | 9/10 |
| GameSpot | 9/10 |
| Shacknews | 90 |
| PC Gamer | 86/100 |
| GamesRadar+ | 4.5/5 |
| Eurogamer | 2/5 |
Sources: OpenCritic and Metacritic, read Oct 31, 2026.
These are launch reviews. No formal scored review of Frozen Trail, the Oct 8, 2026 update, was found as of Oct 31, 2026.
Steam reviews
Steam's overall rating is Very Positive, and the recent rating reads Mostly Positive at 72% as of Oct 31, 2026. Embark has answered specific complaints in its notes: it acknowledged that the Expedition's required stash value was too high (Feb 5, 2026), that low-tier weapons outperformed high-tier ones at far lower cost (Feb 24, 2026), and it apologized that some changes had not reached the patch notes (Feb 10, 2026). Riven Tides' weapon economy changes drew feedback that led to durability adjustments in 1.29.0, on May 19, 2026. Player numbers are on Player Count and Sales. In the clip, a developer says the 2026 updates lacked coherence and did not meet players' expectations.
Awards
| Award | Result | Date |
|---|---|---|
| The Game Awards 2025 | Won Best Multiplayer Game | Dec 2025 |
| The Steam Awards 2025 | Won Most Innovative Gameplay | Listed on the store page |
| 29th D.I.C.E. Awards | Won Online Game of the Year | Feb 12, 2026 |
| BAFTA Games Awards 2026 | Won Multiplayer | Apr 17, 2026 |
| BAFTA Games Awards 2026 | Nominated: Best Game, Audio Achievement, New IP, Technical Achievement | Apr 17, 2026 |
Sources: Sports Khan, Dec 12, 2025; Steam store page, read Oct 31, 2026; Nexon's release, Feb 13, 2026; NME, Apr 20, 2026.
Art director Robert Sammelin accepted the Game Awards trophy in Los Angeles. Embark asked players to nominate the game for Steam's Game of the Year before Dec 1, 2025. Among the sources read for this page, none records an overall game of the year win. No reliable source confirmed a Golden Joystick win, so it is left out.
The AI voice debate
Embark uses text-to-speech built from actors who license their voices, as it did in The Finals, and Stefan Strandberg confirmed the use of generative AI before launch. Opposition came quickly: Eurogamer's 2/5 review praised the PvE combat and friendly community but faulted the voice generation, and Gfinity reported in Nov 2025 that the review called the use "contemptuous" and that some players were boycotting.
The other side was stated plainly too. GamesRadar+'s headline in Nov 2025 reported Nexon saying people should assume every game company is now using AI. In Mar 2026 CEO Patrick Söderlund said real actors are paid for booth time, text-to-speech is mostly used for pings, and some lines were re-recorded after launch. PC Gamer's headline quotes him saying a real professional actor is better than AI.
Two things stay open. No Embark post read here says which lines were re-recorded; update 2.2.0 polished Cassio's and Celeste's lines, without saying how. And a search excerpt of that PC Gamer article, the only place it was seen, says Embark did not end its generative AI use, so treat that as reported rather than confirmed.
Cosmetic prices
The other launch complaint was money. GamesRadar+ reported in Nov 2025 on the backlash over expensive bundles on top of a $40 game, and little earnable premium currency. On Nov 13, 2025 Embark lowered prices and refunded tokens to earlier buyers. The system is on Raider Tokens and Reward Passes.
Frequently asked questions
What is ARC Raiders' Metacritic score? On Oct 31, 2026, ARC Raiders scored 86 on PC, 85 on PS5 and 88 on Xbox Series X on Metacritic. Its user score was 7.3 from 1,874 ratings.
Is ARC Raiders good? Critics say mostly yes: ARC Raiders has an OpenCritic Top Critic Average of 87 with 91% recommending it, and Steam reviews are 81% positive as of Oct 31, 2026. Recent Steam reviews are lower at 72%.
Did ARC Raiders win game of the year? ARC Raiders won Online Game of the Year at the D.I.C.E. Awards, Best Multiplayer Game at The Game Awards 2025 and Multiplayer at the BAFTA Games Awards. It was nominated for Best Game at BAFTA; no source read for this page records an overall game of the year win.
Does ARC Raiders use AI voices? Yes. ARC Raiders uses text-to-speech built from licensed actors' voices, which Embark's CEO said in Mar 2026 is mostly for pings, and some lines have been re-recorded with actors.
Why did Eurogamer give ARC Raiders 2/5? Eurogamer praised ARC Raiders' PvE combat and friendly community but faulted its AI voice generation, per Metacritic's summary of the review.
What is ARC Raiders' Steam review rating? ARC Raiders is rated Very Positive on Steam, at 81% positive of 204,284 English reviews on Oct 31, 2026, with recent reviews Mostly Positive at 72%.
Sources
- ARC Raiders, Metacritic, read Oct 31, 2026
- ARC Raiders, OpenCritic, read Oct 31, 2026
- ARC Raiders store page, Steam, read Oct 31, 2026
- Embark shares ARC Raiders play data after a year, GamesBeat, Oct 30, 2026
- Arc Raiders is now the highest rated multiplayer shooter on OpenCritic, GamesRadar+, Nov 2025
- Arc Raiders catches heat over expensive cosmetic bundles, GamesRadar+, Nov 2025
- Arc Raiders improves duo matchmaking and is reducing some cosmetic prices after backlash, GamesRadar+, Nov 2025
- After Arc Raiders AI voice actor controversy, owner Nexon says assume every game company is using AI, GamesRadar+, Nov 2025
- ARC Raiders Is Facing Boycotts for its Use of AI Content, Gfinity Esports, Nov 11, 2025
- Nominate ARC Raiders: Steam Awards GOTY, Embark Studios, Nov 28, 2025
- Nexon claims TGA: ARC Raiders wins, Sports Khan, Dec 12, 2025
- Preparing for your Second Expedition, Embark Studios, Feb 5, 2026
- Shared Watch - Patch Notes 1.15.0, Embark Studios, Feb 10, 2026
- ARC Raiders Wins Online Game of the Year at The DICE Awards, Nexon (GamesPress), Feb 13, 2026
- Shrouded Sky - Patch Notes 1.17.0, Embark Studios, Feb 24, 2026
- ARC Raiders Takes Steps to Address AI-Related Voice Acting, GamingBolt, Mar 14, 2026
- Embark CEO says a real professional actor is better than AI, PC Gamer, Mar 2026
- All the winners of the BAFTA Games Awards 2026, NME, Apr 20, 2026
- Patch Notes 1.29.0, Embark Studios, May 19, 2026
- Frozen Trail 2.0 Update, Embark Studios, Oct 8, 2026
- Store Update 2.2.0, Embark Studios, Oct 20, 2026
- The Evolution of ARC Raiders S2: EP1 - Updating ARC Raiders, Embark Studios, Oct 2, 2026 (video)
Moments
The Evolution of ARC Raiders S2: EP1 - Updating ARC Raiders
ARC Raiders
Related
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Bastion, Bombardier and ShredderTo kill a Bastion or Bombardier in ARC Raiders, hit the yellow leg joints to slow it, then the yellow canister or cylinder at the back. A Bombardier also relies on Spotters, so kill those first. A Shredder dies to its bottom thruster, with two Trigger Nades enough to finish one.
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See also
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Player Count and SalesARC Raiders had 81,998 people playing on Steam on Oct 31, 2026, down from an all-time Steam peak of 481,966 per SteamDB but far from dead, and Nexon reported over 16.3 million copies sold in its June quarter report. Consoles and Epic are not in Steam's count.
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Embark StudiosEmbark Studios made ARC Raiders. It is a Stockholm studio founded in November 2018 by six game industry veterans including CEO Patrick Söderlund, it is a subsidiary of Nexon, and it also makes the free-to-play shooter The Finals.
- PC Requirements and PerformanceARC Raiders needs at least a Core i5-6600K or Ryzen 5 1600, 12 GB of RAM and a GTX 1050 Ti or RX 580; Steam recommends a Core i5-9600K or Ryzen 5 3600, 16 GB and an RTX 2070 or RX 5700 XT, as read Oct 31, 2026. Press settings guides favor motion blur off, lower shadows and effects, and Reflex on.
- Platforms and CrossplayARC Raiders is on Windows through Steam and Epic, PS5, Xbox Series X|S and GeForce Now, with crossplay across them that you can turn off in the Gameplay settings. There is no Mac or native Linux version, and its anti-cheat has caused trouble on Linux and Steam Deck.