Arc Raiders may eventually offer players a lasting way to enter its world without worrying about being shot by other raiders, but Embark has not committed to making a PvE mode permanent.
Patrick Söderlund, Embark’s CEO and Nexon games chief, said the studio could “frankly add PvE” and that doing so would not be particularly difficult. That is a meaningful clarification after a limited PvE-only test, yet it is not a release promise, a timetable, or confirmation of a permanent playlist. The harder question is not whether Embark can create the option, but whether it can do so without undermining the tension the team sees as central to Arc Raiders.
Arc Raiders is built as a PvPvE game: players contend with both computer-controlled threats and other human players in the same broader experience. PvE, or player-versus-environment, removes the latter conflict. In the recent test, players could opt into rounds without the risk of another raider attacking them. For players who want the setting, combat, and cooperative or survival-facing elements without surprise confrontations from other people, that distinction is enormous.
For Embark, however, player-versus-player danger is more than a toggle. It is part of the game’s “core loop” and the emotional stakes surrounding each run. The studio now appears more receptive to giving players a choice, but it is still treating that choice as a live-service design decision rather than a straightforward technical addition.
A strong test result, with an important caveat
Aleksander Grøndal, Arc Raiders’ executive producer, said that almost 50% of games played during the PvE test used the PvE option. That is a notable share of participation and a clear reason for Embark to keep examining the format. Grøndal said some players changed their minds after trying it, while others “absolutely loved it.”
That figure should not be read as a direct vote to replace Arc Raiders’ existing PvPvE structure. It records how games were played during a limited test, not a commitment from every participant about how they would play over the long term. Nor does it establish how a permanent PvE queue would interact with progression, rewards, player populations, or future events.
Still, the result matters because it demonstrates that PvE was not merely a theoretical request from a small pocket of the community. Nearly half of matches during the trial being PvE is the kind of signal that makes it difficult for a live game team to dismiss the preference entirely. Söderlund acknowledged as much, saying the size of the Arc Raiders community means the studio cannot ignore players who favor PvE.
“We’ve now since tried it and realized that it’s fun. Why not have it? You know, maybe people can choose what they like.”
Related coverage includes Embark Says Permanent Arc Raiders PvE Could Be Added as Player Demand Grows.
The language is optimistic, but deliberately conditional. “Maybe” remains important. Embark is considering the player choice case while keeping its focus on the health and identity of the overall game.
Why PvE changes more than who shoots whom
It is useful to separate implementation from design consequences. Söderlund’s comments suggest the former is manageable: the studio can add PvE. The latter has more moving parts.
In an extraction PvPvE game, the threat posed by another player affects moment-to-moment decisions. A player may hesitate before moving through an exposed area, reassess whether to engage an enemy, or decide whether continuing a run is worth the risk. Removing hostile players changes the pressure around those decisions. The environment may still be dangerous, but a major source of uncertainty is gone.
That does not make PvE a lesser format. It makes it a different one, aimed at a different appetite for risk. Some players may find the reduced stress more inviting or more compatible with how they want to spend their time. Others may consider the possibility of another player interfering the ingredient that makes successful runs feel especially tense. Embark’s challenge is to accommodate the first group without making the second feel that the game’s defining stakes have been diluted.
The team itself has framed this in terms of preserving the experience’s “integrity.” That phrase can sound abstract, but here it points to a concrete issue: whether separate modes can coexist while Arc Raiders still feels like the game Embark intends it to be.
The live-service balancing problem
Embark also has to consider the broader operations of a live game. The potential concerns identified around a lasting PvE option include economy, player population, servers, and event design.
- Economy: If PvE and PvPvE provide different levels of danger, the studio must decide how their reward structures relate. Equal outcomes could change the perceived value of taking PvP risks; unequal outcomes could make one group feel penalized for playing its preferred mode.
- Population: Separate playlists divide the active player base. The effect depends on the number of players and how each queue is structured, but it is a core consideration whenever a game adds a distinct mode.
- Servers: More ways to play can mean more matchmaking and server-management considerations, even if the underlying PvE feature itself is uncomplicated to enable.
- Events: Time-limited activities need rules that make sense for each available experience. A challenge designed around uncertainty from rival players may not translate neatly to PvE-only rounds.
None of those points proves a permanent PvE mode is impractical. Rather, they explain why “easy to add” and “easy to support well over time” are not necessarily the same thing. The team’s public position reflects that distinction: it sees a clear audience for PvE, while also wanting to avoid watering down the broader experience.
Arc Raiders’ PvE history makes the discussion sharper
The debate also lands differently because Arc Raiders began as a PvE-only project before shifting toward extraction PvP during a troubled production. That history helps explain why calls for a dedicated PvE path carry weight for some players, and why Embark has been cautious about making what it describes as a major change to the game’s emotional loop.
A permanent PvE offering would not necessarily mean a return to the project’s earlier direction. The current discussion is about whether a PvE option can sit alongside the existing PvPvE structure, not whether Arc Raiders should abandon PvP altogether. Söderlund’s comments point toward coexistence—players choosing what they like—rather than a wholesale redefinition of the game.
That distinction is likely central to any eventual decision. A mode designed as an alternative can serve players who dislike direct competition while preserving the PvPvE format for those who want it. But the details would determine whether it genuinely feels like an alternative rather than a mode that reshapes incentives or expectations across the entire game.
What players can reasonably take from Embark’s comments
There are two clear takeaways. First, the PvE test appears to have materially changed the conversation inside the studio. Embark previously worried that such a change might not be right for Arc Raiders’ emotional loop; after trying it, its leadership has said it found the mode fun and sees a reason to consider player choice.
Second, the studio has not announced a permanent PvE mode. There is no confirmed rollout date, no stated reward model, and no official explanation of how a continuing PvE option would be matched with the game’s PvPvE systems. Players should treat the remarks as evidence that the idea is under serious consideration, not as confirmation that it is coming.
The next move will therefore matter more than the headline-friendly statement that PvE can be added. If Embark proceeds, its decisions about access, incentives, and the relationship between the two experiences will reveal how it intends to balance community demand with its creative priorities.
For another recent look at PC game availability and limited-time access, see our coverage of Payday 3 and Age of Wonders 4 on PC.
For now, Arc Raiders’ PvE question remains open. The test showed substantial interest, Embark says the technical hurdle is low, and its leadership is increasingly willing to entertain an enduring option. Whether that becomes a permanent mode will hinge on the more complicated task: ensuring that the choice works for PvE fans without compromising the tension that the studio believes defines Arc Raiders.
