Anti-Cheat Is Only the Beginning: Arc Raiders’ Next Weapon Puts Cheaters on Notice
Embark Studios storms out of the gate as ARC Raiders surges past 264,000 concurrent players on Steam and potentially 500,000 across platforms — and the team is already cracking down on cheaters with a hard-line approach.
ARC Raiders just launched big, but the real story might be how Embark is dealing with cheaters. Not just bans. Not just vague promises. Actual compensation when a cheater ruins your run. Yes, you get your stuff back. Wild.
The twist: you get your loot back if a cheater ruined your run
Players started spotting this in-game and posting about it on Reddit (shoutout to u/TejoY for surfacing it early). Embark has a system that flags when a cheater takes you out and then restores the items you lost. Not a token apology. Actual items returned to your stash. Here is the in-game message players are getting:
Your items were lost due to unfair play, but we managed to get them back for you! They're now available for you to claim and take with you on your next journey Topside.
We're committed to building an environment where gameplay is about skill, teamwork, and fun, not unfair advantages. Thank you for being part of this mission! Together, we're building ARC Raiders into a fair and fun experience for everyone.
Players are calling the approach "genius," and honestly, it is. One comment that stuck: "That's kinda crazy they are able to see every item lost because of a cheater, what are other devs even doing?" from u/artosispylon. It's the kind of behind-the-scenes system that feels obvious once you see it, but almost no one builds.
Why this matters
Cheaters are not a niche problem. A recent PlaySafe ID report (via GamesIndustry.biz) says 80% of gamers in the U.S. and U.K. have run into cheaters, and more than 40% have quit a game because of them. Studios bleed trust and money when this stuff goes unchecked. Embark's move is a straight-up quality-of-life fix that targets the part players actually feel: the loss.
Launch numbers and vibes
The numbers are no joke. ARC Raiders hit a 264,673 peak concurrent on Steam at launch, topping Embark's previous hit, The Finals, and sliding into Steam's top 60 games of all time by concurrent count. If you roll in console and Epic, reasonable estimates put day-one players north of half a million.
Streamer MoiDawg flagged the spike on October 31, 2025, and joked that about half of those players extracted with a random raider. Gaming is healing, etc.
On Steam, it's sitting at a Very Positive rating, with 90% of reviews recommending it. People seem dialed in on the tense firefights, the tactical decision-making, and the delightful chaos that comes with extraction shooters.
What's next
Embark posted a 2025 roadmap with two chunky updates still to come:
- November: a new map called Stella Montis, new ARC machines, and community events.
- December: a festive Snowfall condition, a new expedition, and a new Raider deck.
The bigger picture
If ARC Raiders can keep this momentum, Embark might set a new baseline for how online games treat players when bad actors show up. Detect the cheaters, sure, but also fix the damage they cause. More of that, please.
Have you been in yet? Did the compensation system hit for you? I'm curious how it feels in the wild.