ARC Raiders Is Experimenting With Larger Squad Sizes

[cryptoenthusiast]

Embark Studios Executive Producer Aleksander Grøndal has confirmed in a recent interview that the studio is experimenting with larger group sizes for ARC Raiders, which currently supports squads of up to three players. Grøndal was careful to note that nothing is official and no commitments have been made, but framed the experimentation as part of the team's ongoing effort to "create interesting challenges that invite the players to think and strategize a bit differently than they are used to." The vague but deliberate language leaves the door open to several possibilities — simple expansions to four or five player squads, a dedicated PvE raid or boss fight mode against large ARC units, or something more structurally distinct from the current extraction loop. The PvE possibility is particularly interesting given that ARC Raiders originally began development as a PvE shooter before pivoting to its current PvEvP extraction format, meaning the DNA for that kind of experience already exists within the studio's understanding of its own game.The balance question any squad size expansion raises is real. Extraction shooters are notoriously sensitive to team size dynamics, and ARC Raiders has built its player base around the three-player format's specific tension and decision-making requirements.

Grøndal acknowledged the sandbox philosophy that underpins the game — the preference for supporting multiple ways to play rather than funneling everyone into a single mode — which suggests any squad size change would more likely arrive as an optional mode alongside the existing format rather than a replacement for it. With ARC Raiders having sold 2.4 million copies and established itself as one of 2026's standout extraction shooter successes, Embark is in a position to experiment from a place of strength rather than desperation, which historically produces better creative decisions than changes made under commercial pressure.

[nihalsari]

2.4M copies sold, can experiment safely