Yesterday, Embark Studios finally ended the intense community speculation. The developer officially explained the ARC Raiders matchmaking system. For months, fans debated how lobbies grouped players. Furthermore, they wondered if specific playstyles influenced match balance. Now, the studio has published a detailed breakdown to set the record straight.

The developers want to balance two main goals:

Therefore, they prioritize equal squad sizes and group players with similar playstyles. This approach reduces friction. It also prevents dedicated PvP players from constantly steamrolling cautious raiders.

A Continuous Spectrum, Not Binary Choices

ARC Raiders evaluates your playstyle over time. Most importantly, playstyles are not a simple binary choice between “friendly” or “aggressive”. Instead, the system places players on a continuous spectrum. According to the studio’s telemetry graph, the scale ranges from -1.00 (Cooperative) to 1.00 (PvP-Focused), with 0.00 representing Mixed players.

The game tracks your behavior across previous rounds. Subsequently, it attempts to match you with players sitting close to you on this scale. This creates a “Likely Lobby Range”. Conversely, the system actively avoids pairing players from extreme opposite ends, categorizing those as an “Unlikely Match”. However, similarity is not a hard guarantee. The developers intentionally maintain some unpredictability to keep the Topside experience dynamic.

Busting Common ARC Raiders Community Myths

Embark Studios also debunked several massive misconceptions surrounding the game. The developer clarified exactly what the matchmaking system does not do:

• No Binary Lobbies: There are no strictly “friendly” or “aggressive” lobbies.
• No Instant PvP Jails: Firing one shot or securing one kill does not instantly lock you into PvP-heavy matches.
• No PvE-Only Safe Zones: Topside always carries risk. You will never find a server entirely free of hostile raiders.
• Loadouts Do Not Matter: Your equipped kit and its overall cost never scale lobby difficulty.
• Surveys and Looting Bear No Weight: End-of-round feedback and looting knocked-out players do not alter your profile. The game only tracks how you engage in combat.
• Squad Leaders Hold No Special Power: The system evaluates the entire squad’s profile, not just the leader’s history.
• Patches Do Not Reset Progress: Your historical playstyle carries over seamlessly after every game update.

Recent Tweaks to Self-Defense & Low Activity

Finally, the developer highlighted two major system updates based on recent community feedback. Previously, the game punished cautious players by treating self-defense the same as starting a firefight. Now, the system actively differentiates between an instigator and a player simply defending themselves.

In addition, Embark reduced the matchmaking weight of low-activity rounds. If a player spawns and quickly surrenders, that round will no longer heavily impact their estimated playstyle. These changes are live right now. Ultimately, your gradual, long-term behavior will dictate the raiders you encounter.