Embark Studios ARC Raiders development updates

Embark Studios released update 1.42.0 for the extraction shooter ARC Raiders, which introduced the second part of the ‘Phantom Targets’ narrative event and technical improvements such as regional scheduling for map conditions.

Following this update, the studio announced a pause on the game’s Expeditions feature until early 2027. This hiatus, which begins after the fifth Expedition, is intended to facilitate a major structural overhaul of the system in response to community feedback regarding reward structures, accessibility, and departure windows. The studio noted that these issues require “bigger changes” rather than incremental fixes and plans to provide further details on the changes in September.

The fifth Expedition is scheduled to run from September 8 to September 29, 2026. This specific window will feature an extended three-week duration and an opt-in quest reset system, allowing players to choose whether to reset their progress. Rewards for this period include the Zenith Outfit, increased stash space, and additional skill points. To mitigate progress loss during the hiatus, consecutive buffs will remain active, and partially completed Caravans will be converted into Ermal Vouchers of equal value.

While the Expeditions are paused, the upcoming Frozen Trail update, set for October 8, will proceed without a concurrent Expedition window.