What Is Arc Raiders? Beginner Guide! (2025)

Hi guys, Rex here!

Arc Raiders launches on October 30th, and in this video, I’ll walk you through everything you need to know before jumping in — from setting up your Raider and how combat works, to extraction, traders, and all the key mechanics that define the game.

Arc Raiders is a third-person extraction shooter set in a retro-futuristic world under siege by mechanical invaders known as the Arc. You drop in, scavenge, complete missions, fight off both players and machines, and extract with your loot before time runs out.

Whether you’re preparing for launch or just discovering the game for the first time, this guide will cover everything you need to get started, so without further ado — let’s dive into it!

1. Getting Started – Menus, Traders & Crafting

In Arc raiders, everything is handled through the main hub, also known as Speranza. This is where you gear up your Raider, craft, buy & sell items, receive and hand in missions and upgrade your skill tree.

The Workshop acts as your “hideout”, which you’re probably familiar with from similar games like Escape from Tarkov. Here, you’ll be able to interact with your crafting stations to create new items.

Each crafting bench specializes in specific categories of items — such as weapons, consumables, tools and augments — and can be upgraded over time to unlock new crafting options and higher-tier items. Upgrading the benches requires specific components you’ll acquire through looting and completing missions.

Then there’s Scrappy the Rooster, AKA scrappy the C*ck. also found in your Workshop. Scrappy automatically gathers items that you can collect between raids by interacting with him. The amount of loot gathered by Scrappy seems to be based on games played, rather than a specific timer. This means he’ll usually have some loot for you after each round, which will help get you fit for fight again!

In the full release, you’ll be able to upgrade him, likely improving both the quality and amount of items he retrieves.

Finally, you have the Traders menu. Each trader offers a selection of items, and some even have barter trades where you can trade specific materials for other items. The traders also serve as quest givers, which brings me to the next point.

2. Missions, Free Runs, Augments & Skill Tree

Missions are acquired directly from the traders. Simply accept them, drop into a raid, complete the objectives, and return to hand them in once finished.

You can choose to enter a mission with a custom loadout, or if you’re running low, you can also choose to do free loadout runs. Just hit “Play,” then select “Free Loadout.” You’ll spawn with random, low-tier gear and an Augment Token. If you extract successfully, you can barter that token for a new augment back at the traders.

Augments are a core part of your Raider’s gear setup. They act as backpack upgrades that modify your raiders capacity— for example increasing weight limit, maximum shield power, or the number of backpack or tactical slots. They usually come with trade-offs, so experiment to find what fits your loadout and playstyle best.

When setting up your raider, make sure you equip an augment and a shield, which will protect you and decrease damage taken. Additionally, you’ll want to make sure you’re equipped with at least one weapon and a matching ammo type, as well as bandages, shield rechargers and potentially grenades or other useful utility items.

As you level up your Raider, you’ll also earn Skill Points which can be used to upgrade your Raider’s capabilities through added bonuses. There are three main skill tree directions — Conditioning, Mobility, and Survival. Through this skill tree, you can acquire and improve a wide variety of traits — such as how quietly you breach or loot, how agile your Raider is, or how much weight you can carry.

It’s a flexible system that rewards steady progression and lets you tailor your build to your preferred playstyle.

3. The Core Gameplay Loop

A typical round of Arc Raiders follows a simple but tense loop: drop in, loot, fight, and extract.

You might spawn at the start of a raid or in the middle of an ongoing one. Your objectives vary depending on your active quests or personal goals, but most runs revolve around scavenging valuable loot, fighting Arc enemies and other Raiders.

The map shows your position, named locations, and high-value areas marked as mid- or high-tier loot zones — which often means heavy PvP activity.

When you’re ready to leave, head for an extraction point marked on the map. Interact with the external console to call in the elevator, clear out nearby Arc units if needed, and hold your ground for 45 seconds until it arrives.

Once the doors open, step inside and interact with one of the two control panels to close it early, or wait — it’ll close automatically after two minutes.

Some extraction points will shut down as time passes, forcing you toward other exits.
You can also use Raider Hatches, which are special extraction points unlocked with keys purchased from traders. These usually involve less risk than the free-for-all extraction elevators.

Throughout the match, you’ll also find mini events like supply drop points or special supply depot containers that require nearby batteries to activate. They can be worth doing if you have time, as they usually yield more valuable loot or components.

4. Combat & Controls

Arc Raiders is played entirely in third person, and mastering positioning is everything.

Press X to switch shoulder view — this gives you much better control when peeking corners or fighting around cover.

Consumables such as bandages, shield rechargers, and grenades are accessed through the radial menu by holding Q, then used by pressing the LMB.

You can also ping anything using the middle mouse button — whether it’s enemies, loot, or points of interest.

If you ping an Arc, the tag follows it, showing its name and distance, making it easier to track or coordinate kills with your team.

5. ARC Enemy Types

There’s a wide range of mechanical enemies, each with unique behavior and threat levels.

Here are some of the Arcs you’ll encounter:

• Wasp: Flying scout drone that spots and shoots. Weak but dangerous in groups.
• Tick: Small spider-like bots that can leap and latch onto you. These are easy to destroy in close range using your melee weapon or by shooting them.
• Rocketeer: Flying Arc that fires rocket. Shocking, I know. These hit incredibly hard and can be dangerous to take on by yourself.
• Fireball: Rolls toward you and ignites the area. It is recommended to kill it before it detonates.
• Snitch: High-altitude drone that scans and reveals your position, often calling for backup from other Arc.
• Hornet: Stuns you and disables weapons temporarily.
• Turret: Stationary gun with limited vision, often found in buildings and is relatively easy to take out, but can mess you up if you’re not careful.
• Leaper: Massive 4-legged Arc that leaps long distances. The leaper is very tanky and dangerous to take on by yourself.
• Queen: A massive spider-like boss guarding the Harvester event. The queen is extremely tough but drops top-tier loot. She was allegedly only killed a few times during the first play test.
• There are additional arc types as well, but I didn’t encounter these during the playtest.

Pinging enemies helps your team identify which type you’re facing and plan how to engage. This can also be very useful if you’re on a mission looking for certain Arc types and you’re not sure what they look like.

6. Weapons, Ammo & Modding

Weapons range from small sidearms like the Hairpin pistol to full-auto rifles, shotguns, and hard-hitting single-shot rifles like the Ferro.

There are four main ammo types: Light, Medium, Heavy, and Shotgun ammo, each compatible with certain weapons depending on caliber, as you’d expect.

Every weapon has visible mod slots, letting you freely add or remove attachments.
These can include silencers to reduce noise, compensators for accuracy, larger magazines, or stocks for recoil control.

You can also recycle items mid-raid or in the menu to break them down into components.
This is a great way to free up space or reduce weight when your inventory starts to fill up.

7. Grenades & Consumables

Grenades come in several types suited for different situations. Here are some examples of available grenade types:

• Weak Impact Grenade: Basic AoE, good for PvE but weak in PvP.
• Heavy Fuze Grenade: Stronger blast and higher damage, ideal for PvP fights.
• Snap Blast Grenade: Attaches to surfaces and detonates after a short fuse, like the sticky bombs in Hunt: Showdown.
• Wolfpack Grenade: Epic-quality anti-Arc grenade that launches ten homing missiles upon detonation. This grenade is devastating against strong mechanical enemies, and I imagine it’s incredibly useful when facing larger enemies like the Queen.

Other tactical consumables include shield rechargers, bandages, defibrillators for faster revives, adrenaline shots for stamina regen, and landmines for defense or tactical plays.

You can manage these in the menu and access them through the inventory and radial wheel in-game.

8. Inventory, Weight & Resources

Your Raider’s carrying capacity starts at around fifty units, depending on your augment and skill upgrades. Since augments can’t be swapped mid-raid, it’s important to plan your setup before heading into a mission and bring an augment that fits your playstyle and objectives.

Once you exceed the limit, your Raider becomes over-encumbered, which slows your movement and drains stamina faster. You can still move and extract if you’re carrying too much, but combat becomes far more dangerous — so it’s usually best to manage your weight as you go.

Throughout your runs, you’ll gather components, which are used for just about everything — from crafting and upgrading workstations, weapons and items to completing quests.

Back in the menus, your storage works as a personal stash for all your gear and materials. It starts off small but can be upgraded several times using Coins, which is the main game currency. The first few upgrades are cheap, costing a few thousand, but each level becomes progressively more expensive.

9. Beginner Tips & Tricks

Here are some quick but crucial tips to help you survive your early runs:

• Always bring more ammo, shield rechargers, and bandages than you think you’ll need. You’ll run out incredibly quickly in the heat of battle.
• Don’t underestimate weaker Arc. If caught in a bad spot at a bad time, they can really mess you up.
• Clear areas before looting to avoid getting third-partied. Assuming you’re safe is one of the easiest ways to get ambushed and killed.
• After any gunfight, assume someone heard you. Be on your guard and consider repositioning to a different location.
• Use your flashlight by pressing F; it helps spot loot and enemies in dark interiors. The flashlight is always available and doesn’t need to be applied as an attachment.
• You can slide on any surface by holding C, and even turn while sliding to fire behind you. Sliding is a great way to get to cover quickly or get down a hillside faster.
• You can also slide down ladders by holding Shift, allowing you to get down much quicker.
• Vaulting works on most surfaces, and you can grab ledges mid-fall using Space. This can be incredibly useful to drop down to a floor below or to prevent fall damage in a lot of cases.
• Don’t forget the Safe Loot Slot from augments — it secures one item even if you die, which makes it perfect for quest items or rare components. They don’t actually tell you where this slot is located on your Raider… But we all know exactly where it is. Let’s just say it’s small enough to fit most components and materials you’ll come across, but not quite big enough for your assault rifle. You’ll see this slot in your character menu when it’s available. For free loadout runs, this slot is not there as you’ll be missing an augment, having just the augment token in its place – like I mentioned earlier.
• If you put away your weapon, which is bound to H by default, you’ll run faster and drain stamina slower. Make this a habit so you can move more efficiently between fights and make yourself a harder target to hit when you’re trying to escape.
• Most importantly — don’t get greedy. Extracting alive is usually better than losing everything. Especially in the early games, extracting with a bit of loot and progress can be a safer bet than risking it all for a potential small bonus.

10. Outro

And that’s everything you need to know to get started in Arc Raiders! Hopefully this guide helps you prepare for launch day — whether you’re planning to squad up or drop in solo.

If you found this video helpful, consider leaving a like, and subscribe to the channel so you don’t miss my upcoming Arc Raiders content — including weapon breakdowns, strategy guides, and full gameplay runs once the game releases.

Thank you for watching, and I’ll see you in the next one.