Summary
Embark keeps delivering. The Escalation roadmap promises monthly updates through April, with new map conditions, ARC threats, updates to Scrappy, and a whole new (possible) beach map coming in Riven Tides.
Personally, I’m just happy I can finally buy a guitar and serenade the raiders who don’t shoot me on sight.
Arc Raiders 2026 roadmap: New maps, new Arcs and monthy updates.
Nice to see Embark keeping the pace up! A lot of players have been waiting for new stuff (not me, I’m not at end-game yet), and now they’re getting more things to do in the late game.
The newly published roadmap is, as always, subject to change, but there’s plenty to dig into. Cue speculation!
What to expect from Arc Raiders. January to April | Credit Embark Studios
January – Headwinds
The January update, Headwinds, drops today on January 27th With the 1.13.0 patch, see all patch notes here.
The minor map condition is “Bird City” for Buried City, basically an increased number of birds that are building nests and stuffing loot into chimneys and rooftops. We can expect more vertical combat on the otherwise close-combat-oriented Buried City.
They’re also adding the solo vs. squads matchmaking option for level 40+ players, which should be a proper challenge for the sweaty, PvP-loving tryhards out there.
The new player project is an ARC Trophy Display. You hunt specific ARC parts and submit them as rewards. I’m imagining a display case showing off all the big ARCs you’ve fought. A cool way to give PvE players some direction, plus you get up to 300.000 Raider tokens and a Howl emote.
Howl at the moon in night raids, anyone?
February – Shrouded Sky
February’s Shrouded Sky update is where things get more interesting. Unlike January’s “minor map condition”, February gets a “new map condition.” I can only speculate, but I’m expecting something more significant that alters the weather condition. Maybe shoruds the sky? Storms or something in the link. Cold Snap was also a “new map condition,” while the birds are a “minor map condition.”
There’s also a new “ARC threat” coming, which has me hopeful for epic PvE moments. I think “ARC threat” means some tweaking or changes to one of the existing ARCs. The icon used to illustrate this looks like a flying Arc, a wasp or hornet.
There’s another player project too, and if you look closely at the roadmap image icon, you can see a weathercock on it. No idea what that means, but maybe something related to the weather?
We’re also getting a new Raider Deck with skins and some gear. There’s also a map update, which I think means actual changes to existing maps, plus the closing of the Expedition window.
March – Flashpoint
Next update is March’s Flashpoint, and it keeps the momentum going. Another map condition is coming (the roadmap shows a lightning bolt icon, so expect something electrical or lightning-related), plus yet another new ARC threat. That’s two changes to enemies in two months—Embark is clearly committed to keeping our Arc enemies, and how we attack them, fresh.
There’s also another player project, and here’s something interesting: Scrappy is getting an update! What does it mean? Will he move around in the Raiders’ bedroom? Gather more resources per match, or something else entirely? Scrappy has been stuck at level 5 since launch, so maybe this means he’ll be more useful for resource gathering? I mean, I’d love that, but he could do more. No details yet, but fingers crossed that we can bring Scrappy topside.
April – Riven Tides
April is the big one. Riven Tides brings an entirely new map, the sixth in the game (not counting the Practice Range).
Based on the roadmap imagery and the beach umbrella icon, it looks like we’re getting a coastal environment. The world map shows what appears to be shipwrecks on a beach west of Buried City. Imagine a fighting Arc in a post-apocalyptic beach environment with destroyed, abandoned ice-cream parlors.
Some fans have been speculating about a volcanic biome, based on early Arc Raiders footage, but I think they’re saving that for later.
Will we see the King Crab Arc in Riven Tides?
The other real headline is the new large ARC. A large ARC is in the same tier as the Queen and the Matriarch, giving endgame players a third boss to hunt.
If they go to the beach and the costal theme, it would be awesome if it was amphibious (king crab?). Pure speculation, but it would be awsome. There’s also another map condition (storm cloud icon), and the third Expedition window closes out the Escalation phase.
That’s all we know. After April, Embark is keeping their plans close for now. Embark also say they committed to monthly updates for the rest of 2026.
My personal game time has been lacking lately, but I know for a fact that as of today I’m able to finally BUY a guitar! I cannot wait to go topside carrying a guitar in my safe pocket, playing my tunes for all the raiders who doesn’t kill me.
See you up there, raider.
