r/ArcRaiders • u/Ayy4K • 2h ago
Question Why do you still play this game?
I am wondering what keeps you playing ArcRaiders. I have 960 hours in game on PS5. I have 550 hours topside. I am a PC player turned console player. First 200 hours friendly and now I am purely PVP.
I am drawn to this game mostly for the gameplay. Shield cracks are very satisfying. Roll mechanic is fun. Guns are fun and diverse. Looting is an absolute dopamine rush. I have met many good players and actually have 30 people in a WhatsApp group chat and we play daily with different teams. These friendships are very dear to my heart and we are thinking of meeting up soon.
So for me, the gameplay and the community. I have 6000 hours in CS2 and I don’t get bored of the “repetitive nature” that others complain about. This is currently my main game and I expect this will be the case until GTA 6 launch.
What keeps you here?
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u/JimBones31 2h ago
I'm a huge fan of the variability of each trip up. Sometimes it's bum rushed by 3 fireflies and a wasp, sometimes I get to help some homies take down a rocketeer. Other times me and the boys do some gooping.
So many different things to see.
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u/Ayy4K 2h ago
Completely agree here. One raid, I’ve spawned in and died within seconds. Others I’ve accidentally spawned in naked and had a fantastic run.
No raid is the same!
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u/ididntevenwantit *** ******* 🐓 1h ago
The chaotic neutral atmosphere this game creates is one thing I love most and a big part of me coming back to play even after taking breaks.
I have had so many instances like your accidental fantastic naked run it gives the runs where I eat poop a very fleeting sense of defeat.
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u/j_reinegade 2h ago
its 100% the human interactions. especially since covid (im nearly 40) a lot of my friends have moved further away or we just dont have the chance to meet up as often. so getting in a game and chatting it up with some new folks and blasting some clankers out of the sky is a nice way to wind down at the end of the day.
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u/golddeath 2h ago
I like running around and shepherding my friends to whatever goal they set out to achieve. It's fun to be a resource while just chatting about our lives.
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u/Doobie_hunter46 2h ago
I was playing battlefield and it got boring because there’s no stakes.
I just see arc as another PvP game similar to battlefield (I know it’s very different) except that I have to put shit on the line and risk losing loot in order to gain loot.
So I don’t mind doing the same maps, shooting the same guns over and over. You do that in any modern shooter anyways.
Except instead of slowly grinding Xp in order to ‘level up,’ it’s all entirely based on my results, who I kill and what I loot off them. A much more direct reward system.
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u/Buddy_Kane_the_great 1h ago
Hopefully Wardogs will be that Battlefield but with stakes
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u/JVKExo 1h ago
Man that game looks incredible. Fingers crossed man!
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u/Buddy_Kane_the_great 48m ago
I’m stoked for it, might have to finally bite the bullet and get a pc
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u/JVKExo 41m ago
I love that we are getting downvoted for being excited for a game lol.
If you can afford I’d say go for the upgrade. PC gaming is a different experience.
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u/Buddy_Kane_the_great 35m ago
some serious reddit activity lol. I've got a PC so unfortunately I know how genuinely superior it is. Unfortunately I think mine's so old where the move is to just buy new as opposed to try and upgrade every component. It still plays Lord of the Rings Battle for Middle Earth like a champ tho so I can't complain too much
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u/StrobeWafel_404 2h ago
In the span of 2 games I went from dominating the matriarch and coming home with 4 cores and a bunch of bastion, leaper and bombardier cells to being downed by two pops and a fireball as i was trying to rescue a friendly raider from a shredder. You really never know what it's going to be.
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u/FatherDibbs 2h ago
The short answer: because I still find it fun.
The longer answer as to what I find fun…
It’s multiple things, for sure.
I like the world, the level design and the aesthetic.
I really like the PvE enemies. They are more interesting to fight than the enemies in most if not all other shooters. Every enemy is a different combat puzzle, from the Tick all the way to the Matriarch
The “game feel” is really good. Just moving the character around the world feels good. Running, jumping, sliding, catching ledges, zip lining, etc.
The social interactions with other players are some of the best I’ve ever had with randoms online. I can’t actually think of another game where I’ve had as much fun with randoms. Pre-made groups for MMO raids in WoW or Destiny and such, of course, that’s the pinnacle, but to enter a world solo and then just interact with other people in AR is really great.
The looting, crafting and meta-progression with workbenches and blueprints is very satisfying. It’s extraordinarily well tuned in this regard (at least for my playstyle).
The game allows a great sense of gradual mastery over the world. From the first time loading in and being terrified of Wasps to eventually mastering the Matriarch and more. The meta-progression after each expedition allows me to re-experience that sense of gaining mastery over the world.
It’s absurdly well designed and tuned for my preferred playstyle.
So yeah, because it’s fun :)
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u/mv55vnda 2h ago
The sounds in the game are awesome, like an nostalgic/ vintage ASMR. The crafting sounds, the weapons leveling sounds, the tracks in game are also amazing, when I'm not playing I'm listening their album on Spotify.
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u/Exe0n 2h ago
I don't, I quit 2 weeks ago.
I would still recommend the game, I got nearly 300 hours in, however I have done everything 3 times now.
While I enjoy PvP there is no point to PvPing, basically at some point you are stashed with so much loot, you don't need more loot, in CS2 you have ranks, can unlock certain things, it's competitive PVP with a system you can grind out, which is why people have thousands of hours.
I had hoped that the trader would solve this problem, but half of what you can buy, can only be bought by doing PvE, and while the PvE experience is good, killing the queen over and over again isn't engaging gameplay to me, especially when it's the only thing that matters.
Arc Raiders is still a great game, but I've exhausted my own options, I hope a future update does bring me back, but as of right now I have no more reason to play, especially with other great games out there.
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u/Ayy4K 2h ago
Completely understandable and I appreciate your views. What have you been playing instead?
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u/Exe0n 1h ago
Currently I'm playing Windrose, I'll likely get quite a bit of hours in it.
I also got several other games I've been meaning to play but haven't, mostly Single player or Co Op games, although I'm a bit burned on the huge open world RPG story games filled with points of interest.
I still need to play clair obscur expedition 33, Elden Ring, but I also have several live service games I'll go back to one day, like Space Marine 2, Darktide, Deep rock galactic, all have received substantial updates since I quit.
Arc Raiders Is my first extraction shooter, and I consider it a gem, I don't have much interest in other extraction shooters.
My only gripe with the shooter part is the TTK, which always felt too fast for me, while I have much experience with shooters, how good I am boils down to game by game.
I sucked at SC2, red orchestra 2, and thrived in Battlefield games and MW3.
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u/joek1290 2h ago
That’s what gets me although I am sick of the rinse and repeat it’s like no other game comes close I try and play BF6 but the gunplay feels too fast and weak compared to arc
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u/joek1290 2h ago
Arc gunfights feels like a sword fight but with guns imo if that makes any sense loo
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u/Gregarious_Grump 2h ago
Until you are routinely wiping lobbies with a hairpin I and no grenades or healing with no shield equipped I dont want to hear about how you've exhausted your own options
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u/Warelllo 2h ago
I don't. I plan on returning someday, but now game is very stale. Gameplay loop is just not fun.
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u/That_Is_Satisfactory 2h ago
I would like to keep playing, but I can’t. I get the AREX0001 crash every time I try to load into a raid. Tried all kinds of things to fix it.
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u/Ok-Rush-4107 1h ago
I’m a casual play and love how random each game is. I love the sounds when I’m destroying big arc equally as much as sniping wasp rotors with an anvil. Sometimes I’ll pick fruit, depending on my mood. The environment and gameplay coupled with the risk of losing your gear is addictive!
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u/EnvironmentalEbb5178 2h ago
Still baffles me maniacs expect to get more than 400 hours plus in a game ; of course it gets repetitive!
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u/BadTimeBro 2h ago
Being a rescue raider, plain and simple. Supporting my fellow raiders when I am able whether it be with shields, Bandages, or defibs.
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u/Aussie_Butt 2h ago
Except when you guys (regularly) kill raiders and loot them right? lol.
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u/BadTimeBro 2h ago
Ive never downed or knocked anyone. Only 18dmg to another raider (im bad with grenades)
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u/cusujomelado 2h ago
I don't i've quited 1 month ago
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u/usdgarrie 46m ago
Much respect, i finally quit yesterday, planning to come back and check it out in a month or so
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u/joek1290 2h ago
Purely free kit PVP and ratting
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u/UnusualFee8053 2h ago
Hey, that's part od the game. I'm not mad at you my friend
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u/joek1290 2h ago
Haha I was only joking bro I couldn’t pvp on a free kit although the pvp element is what is keeping me playing 👌👌
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u/UnusualFee8053 2h ago
Same brother. First 200 hours I was only pve, and I realized 6 months ago that the real endgame is pvp, and then I switched to it.
Probably reason behind my pve only was how bad I was in this game. And that applies to all the people here crying. But I decided to better myself, and spent a lot of time on the free kit stella path.
Now I'm even more in love with the game. I just hake embark.
Yo embark, fuck you
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u/joek1290 2h ago
Also I think having a strong PVE community and a strong PVP community mixed into a game gives a lot of variety and unique real experiences with other people I like that aspect too
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u/UnusualFee8053 1h ago
Yes. We need both to keep the tension up and to keep the game alive.
But my clarification why I hate embark is,
For months they were giving us what they think we want, not what we were asking them.
And all those nerfs.
IF SOMETHING IS UNDERPERFMING, DON'T NERF OTHER THINGS, JUST FUCKING BUFF IT.
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u/joek1290 1h ago
Yeah exactly bro I totally agree 10000% like “solos vs trios” like bro I love PVP and all but who the fuck wants that 😂😂😂
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u/joek1290 2h ago
I started playing with my pc friends who regularly play tarkov plus I regularly play FPS on console so I was naturally a PVP player.
But that’s the only way brother if you need to up your skill free kit Stella hahaha heck I even have about 5 warm up free kit Stella games before I jump into a “real raid” lol
And same brother I love the gunplay and movement and i even love the arc especially the audio I just wish embark would pull there pants up and give us some variety and maybe an endgame because at the moment my inv is stacked so I just find my self playing Stella over and over
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u/nystagmus777 2h ago
I play purely to do expeditions now..
Once requirements are completed, I wait until the reset
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u/SnooDucks8752 2h ago
I hardly do anymore after repeating/grinding the same stuff over and over. But when I do, I've been doing a lot of ratting/camping hot spots with buddies. It's really the only side of the game that i didn't grind, so the Interactions/experiences have been a bit unique and fun.
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u/f3ropeadope 2h ago
Variety. I can be a PVE quester or a PVP toxic troll. Depends on what work people drive me towards lol.
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u/MaintenanceLumpy9321 2h ago
There’s a lot to do like projects, trials, and personal challenges. Plus how you can play can be so versatile. I was running rat security for harvester players then the next game shooting on sight in Stella. So many ways to play the game
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u/harrypaul19 2h ago
I always wanted a awesome fallout style online multiplayer game. Fallout 76 failed to deliver. Arc raiders mechanics and graphics are class
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u/Daytonewheel 1h ago
I was thinking this the other day that a fallout themed extraction shooter would have worked really well years ago.
Similar to how that ring of fire mode on 76 was actually really fun but they couldn’t stop the cheating so it was removed.
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u/Incredibly_Based 1h ago
To collect as many of the free cosmetics as possible, completing the raider decks, projects, getting the highest trail rank to get the rare variants
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u/tarneilawson 1h ago
i approached the game the wrong way when i kept trying to complete every quest. most of the quests in the game, to me, are atrociously tedious. once i ignored them and just started loading in and actually playing the game, i started having fun
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u/DynamicBSdetective 1h ago
I can see people making real choices in real time, be it good or bad in our view, it's absolutely fascinating from a psyc perspective. The game allows us multiple opportunities to become heroes/heroines/villains. No one really is one sided, we are all this curious dance or mingling.
the relationships are authentic and at least one other Raider and I have exchanged contact information, regularly communicate. This game offers tension, interesting environmental challenges, beautiful scenery, quality characters, obnoxious bugs that are sometimes funny, and immense feelings of rewards from interactions or even looting.
I can solo and feel like I'm in a walking simulator with a threat and something to do. When I go outside for real, I am typically much less on alert or threatened by violence from the same species. The latter entirely dependant on location.
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u/newbrevity 1h ago
The other day I started messing around with the snap hook and the powered descender. Had a blast reaching all these new places I've never been before.
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u/Dangerous-BasilYUP 1h ago
I got the game a week ago about 23 hours. I'm a casual gamer. Of course I missed the Gold Rush where everybody was playing but the game seems kind of boring to me. Fighting Arc is cool and everything sometimes But Id like some PvP. I mean maybe I'm not in the right lobbies I usually just do solos I feel like trios is more PVP.
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u/DreIsDexter 1h ago
The adrenaline rush of having lots of good loot and trying to find an exit, not knowing if you are going to get shot in the back. Making a sweet exit with a hatch key.
I find it’s forgiving even if you die, you can catch up really quick, the lows are not that bad.
The music, the art style is very good. The encounters with strange and interesting people. The satisfying sounds, the breaking of drones being shot to pieces, plastic and metal sound breaking. The drones seemingly have their own personalities, sounding like they are hurting when they get hit with their bleeps and bloops.
Once you gain enough map knowledge, you can get good loot really quickly. You figure out a good flow, a path to the goodness and avoid the high danger areas.
The lore is great and has room to grow into something very interesting. Also with relevancy to how war is done today.
The rush of breaking a shield and winning a tight fight and reviving all your bros with some good goop. It all makes for a great small LAN weekend, which is how we started, we went in completely blind and the 3 of us absolutely lost track of time.
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u/Foreign_Reaction3170 1h ago
It’s the better choice for social interactions in games. Less toxicity and racism really. Most of the player base is really nice even the hardcore PvP players will be mostly pleasant so that’s what keeps me coming back. That and the combat is fun too
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u/JackCooper_7274 1h ago
I just love running it with my friends. We have all basically exhausted the available content in the game, with all of us being between 200-500 hours of playtime. That being said, it's just a fun gameplay loop. I love booting up with goofy loadouts and being silly in prox chat with my friends.
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u/bustafreeeee 1h ago
PvP trios is just a box of chocolates. Could be a light action game, could be medium, or could be the most insane action packed zombie hordes of people trying to kill you. Reminds me of PUBG (which is in my top 5 of all time) where just anything can happen which makes it really fun. The endless amount of cheaters has gotten annoying tho
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u/Friendly-Sky-6952 1h ago
I go in with a free kit just to harass people. I don't shoot them but I'll sure mess with them
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u/benjik4 1h ago
It might sound crazy but the new trader has created a new level of fun for me. I was honestly close to taking a long hiatus from Arc because I felt like I exhausted every way to play the game and have done the expedition all 3 times. I really enjoy the fact Ermal forces you to farm bosses for some solid rewards which has coincidently led me to be more interested in the trials because they are somewhat coproductive.
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u/milesac 1h ago
I love just exploring the maps. I could load up a map naked and just wander around till last exfil. Helping raiders, killing arc. Taking screenshots.
30 min vibe sessions.
I load up GTA online and personally drive all my cars to the shop for upgrades. Obeying all traffic signals. Idk shit like that is fun to me 😂
That fact that my character could die just keeps me in character online too.
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u/AnatomicTsunami 1h ago
The lore. I think when you play according to the game and what it gives you each side, it helps you see the bigger picture. The complaint about lack of endgame is exhausting because I think they're building towards that endgame and it plays into the lore of the game. That coupled with a gameplay loop that is always fresh. Hard to beat.
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u/Wave_Existence 1h ago
PS5 says I am at 450 hours but in-game time spent topside is about 300 hours. I play because it's fun. I like heading topside and collecting stuff, and getting as high as I can in trials. This week solo I was sitting at around 72k points but if they had the game modes I needed more frequently I am confident that I would have gotten over 100k. Going to start duoing with my brother to try and get to Cantina Legend if we can!
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u/Educational_Kick3683 1h ago
Nothing! I moved the fuck on lol. The game was addicting and somewhat fun but eventually it turned into a strange mix of stress and boredom.
If they make a fleshed out ove mode and improve the gameplay loop my wife and I would definitely come back
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u/me_irl_mods_suck_ass 1h ago
I have unfortunately been Pavlov’d by a he sight and sound of raider flares. It’s like crack for me lol.
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u/mistahj0517 1h ago
I want to be able to run a ren iv or ven iv every raid and pvp so i do what i must to maintain that ability. Really being able to run any kit I want at any time is what keeps me going.
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u/Euphoric-Lab2477 1h ago
Any game that you played for 990 hours will bore you. Try to switch things up. Im playing the finals qnd elden ring when i feel tired of arc raiders.
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u/Technical_Stock_7419 58m ago
I agree. Arcraiders has a very unique community. I was hoping for community like this when Battlefield 6 came out but I ended up being just a bunch of solo lord rather than team players.
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u/AchillesBuddy 49m ago
They are taking an extraction shooter, and bringing it one step at a time closer to a souls level pve experience.
If you go really slow and you’re very careful, you can avoid most things. If you punch it recklessly toward the loot or a fight, the NPC’s are legitimately capable of killing you against your best efforts.
I’m looking forward to seeing how the game develops. The role-playing experience of going top side into a world that’s actually dominated by machines. Being outnumbered and outgunned. But having something on the line and others to work with or against.
I think this game is just getting started for the people who plan to see it through.
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u/Edzill4 37m ago
310 hours topside here.
Pc player.
Friendly. (50ish knocked players)
I love the grind still! Farming materials for guns and mods, explosives, food for scrappy(currently working on the perfect route to farm mixed fruit while also getting loot while in buried city and blue gate!) and augments.
I enjoy playing with my bro and nephew.
I also enjoy the new need to farm for heavy arc parts ! Sure the merchant purchases aren’t the best but it’s nice to have another goal. It’s fun to load in and solo or help with the large arc and extract with something that’s meaningful.
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u/mrmo24 33m ago
I can’t think of an alternative game that has such good gun play, adventure, loot dopamine hits, and amazing graphics. So many games close to this fall so short in one or two of those categories.
I’m considering marathon or helldivers but damn the graphics are so bad in comparison…. Maybe not bad but just not the hyper-realistic vibe in AR
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u/SharkBait661 2h ago
I really don't. I jump on for maybe 3 rounds every couple weeks. I like watching streamers play and if i had a much fun playing myself I thing l think I would play a lot more but my games feel very boring.
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u/PeelMyPotatoes 2h ago
I clearly play the game wrong. The fun part isn’t really the stuff or the fighting or even most of the gameplay. It’s the prox chat. Because the player base is so diverse, there’s so many hilarious/awkward conversations I’ve had in this game. It’s the real meta 🤷♀️
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u/Wolfjacks 1h ago
I tried tarkov and the brutality made me quit (didn’t spend very long) then I heard this was tarkov lite.
I realized the game is a full on disguised slot machine, from opening containers to seeing how a PVP fight goes let alone making a mistake and getting killed by something PVE. I remember my first PVPs in this game sent my heart racing and I started to realize I gotta take a break what a rush. Cracking shields and getting that goop still feels incredible.
resetting my character changed something and based on this post about 200 hours of friendly seemed about right. Now I don’t care if I lose the fight or start shooting especially playing with someone who is a big tarkov fan learned more in one session with them than I did in 300 hours.
Last week I booted Tarkov up again and began the rabbit hole, yet found myself back in Stella this week just being an absolute chaos monkey on a free kit. Haven’t played a game this great in what feels like years to keep racking the hours up.
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u/orbiiance 1h ago
It keeps my gambling at bay..... (lol) I love the sounds from revealing epic or legendary items
Also the diversity and the sound design. No match is the same! The snap of bullets ricocheting above your head and hitting a wall is so realistic.
0
u/UnusualFee8053 2h ago
I play it regularly. With everything happening good and bad, I still play it.
I just love the game. Even tho there's a lot of cheaters, I still love it.
And I play hard PvP
0
u/Aussie_Butt 2h ago
The rush of winning team fights with friends, finding/taking loot and escaping with it, etc
Pvpve extraction games are the best genre imo, this and dark and darker take up most of my time.
0
u/simonko1 2h ago
best MP game right now without a doubt and i was playing cod religiously since covid, we switched completely after hiatus because it was unplayable same as battlefied and finnaly we as a same group of friends starting playing ARC and having a blast. You can play the game in insane amount of way. Last few days we are getting more into pvp lobbies and are little iritated but when someone kills us when we deafetead matriarch as a trio and took everything just waiting we were so pissed that next week we were just hunting rats nonstop 😃
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u/Von_Sauerkraut 2h ago
For me it’s the unpredictability of every raid, tbh the game itself is perfect, including the “ratting” aspect of it.
We just need some other studio to keep the game running and doing the necessary maintenance that a Live Service Game needs (minor updates, fixes and cheating issues) allowing Embark to really run wild with their creativity.
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u/Skelenth 2h ago
Becuse this game is fun. I like "weak spot" mechanism of Arc. I like to see how they explode. How drones have issues with flying once shot in rotors and crabs has issues with crawling once leg is shot off. I like gunplay. I like animations and music. And most importantly: A lot of people are awesome. People are selflessly helping eachother. Working towards common goal or just share a moment. Plus things like Trials are fun, weekly goal to works towards.