ARC Raiders has removed the fear from one of the most controversial shooter mechanics for more than 1 million players. Embark Studios admitted they were surprised by the turnout, and they’re promising future expeditions will be even more interesting.
Few things spark as much debate in shooters as wiping progress, whether it’s partial or total. For many players, being forced back to square one feels like punishment, especially after investing dozens of hours into better gear and stronger builds. ARC Raiders, however, has proven that rejection isn’t inevitable: during its first Grand Expedition, more than one million players willingly chose to delete their progress. Embark Studios has openly said the number caught them off guard, but they also recognize the current system isn’t free from criticism, and they’re already looking into how it can be improved.
Expeditions Remove a Major Fear for ARC Raiders Players
The milestone comes from the game’s first Expedition Project, an optional event where players could complete a chain of objectives and, if they wanted, reset their character in order to gain permanent benefits for the next cycle – continuing with a “different” raider. According to the team, participation surpassed one million players, a level they themselves admit was well beyond what they expected.
What makes it even more striking is that joining an expedition is entirely optional in Embark Studios’ game. Players must meet specific requirements to build a special caravan by collecting resources and completing multiple steps, until they reach a final point where they’re offered a full reset in exchange for rewards such as extra skill points for the next cycle.
And much like other systems in the genre – for example Call of Duty’s Prestige, where resetting your soldier forces you to unlock weapons, gadgets and perks all over again – ARC Raiders gives players clear incentives to take the wipe so they can level faster in the raider’s next “life.” That framing shifts the reset away from being seen as a penalty and turns it into something closer to long-term progression, where wiping is simply part of the journey.
Embark Studios Wants to Improve Expeditions
That doesn’t mean the event was perfect. Both developers and players have pointed out that some of the requirements tied to the best rewards were too demanding, and that certain information arrived late, creating confusion among the most dedicated users. In some cases, the final costs – especially in credits – led parts of the community to question whether the effort was truly worth it. Even so, the overall impression appears positive: the fact that more than one million players chose to wipe indicates the mechanic was understood and accepted by a significant portion of the player base. Embark Studios has confirmed they’re reviewing the event’s data in order to adjust both rewards and requirements for future expeditions. The big question now is whether this popularity can be sustained, or if interest will drop once the wipe is no longer a “new” experience.
Source: 3djuegos
