Embark Studios announced a “pause” on Expeditions in Arc Raiders until early 2027 so it can rework the system to address longstanding issues and complaints that can’t be handled with “incremental fixes.” In a recent interview with PixelArena.io, though, Arc Raiders executive producer Aleksander Grøndal said the studio might go even further by ditching Expeditions entirely.
Expeditions are essentially Arc’s equivalent of prestiging in Call of Duty: High-level players invest time and resources into a “caravan” that ultimately—within the context of the game’s fiction—enables their character to leave the Rust Belt forever. Practically speaking, it’s a full reset of levels, skills, and inventory, in exchange for certain unique benefits conferred upon the player’s new character. It’s a major undertaking, and many Arc players haven’t been happy with the amount of grind involved for a relatively minor payoff.
Announcing the pause in August, Embark said many of the issues raised by players, “like the tight departure windows, the reward structure, and accessibility for new players, need more than incremental fixes. They call for bigger changes.” The fifth Expedition, set to depart at the end of September, will be the last until Embark has the overhaul finished—or just cans the whole thing, as the case may be.
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“Was the system perfect? No, probably not,” Grøndal told PCGN at Gamescom. “We want to make some significant changes to the Expedition system. But I think right now we’re focused on, ‘Yeah, they are what they are,’ but the intent is to have them change.
“Maybe we’ll scrap the whole system altogether. That is on the table, too. Right now, the team is trying to figure out what the next steps for Expeditions are.”
When Embark will make its final decision on the fate of Expeditions remains, well, undecided, although nothing’s going to happen until the Frozen Trails major update drops in October. But whatever happens, it seems clear that players should expect major changes.