ARC Raiders announces free-to-play weekend beginning this Thursday

Following what was an explosive few months upon its initial release, Embark Studios’ ARC Raiders has fallen out of favour somewhat with fans. That said, the team are hoping to revive the extraction shooter with their latest and greatest ‘Frozen Trail’ update. Officially going live on the 8th of October, Embark have announced that in alignment with the update, ARC Raiders will be going free-to-play for a limited time.

Taking to their blog to make the announcement, the team at Embark Studios wrote:

“From October 8 (09.00 UTC) to October 12 (08.00 UTC), 2026, ARC Raiders will be free to play across Steam, Xbox, and Playstation,” adding that “Free play will grant access to the full ARC Raiders game, so you can try out the award-winning extraction adventure before you buy! It’s the perfect chance to invite your friends to team up against the ARC, scavenge what you can, and extract to safety.”

As mentioned, this free-to-play period arrives in alignment with the game’s ‘Frozen Trail’ update. Described as “our biggest update since launch” Frozen Trail will introduce a great deal of new additions, including but not limited to:

• New Map: Pendola Pass
• Three new Arc enemies (Bully; Skulker and Hydra)
• A customisable outpost
• New weapons and gadgets (including a grapple hook)
• Updated progression system
• Much more…

While not the first time that those interested in ARC Raiders have been able to try before they buy, this does represent the best opportunity for those who haven’t played the game since its pre-launch server slam to check out all the additions brought forth over the past year – especially with the Frozen Trail update going live at the exact same time.

Full details on Frozen Trail can be found HERE.

KitGuru says: Are you looking forward to the Frozen Trail update? Will you be hopping in this weekend? Should the free weekend have also featured the upcoming PvE test? Let us know down below.

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