Arc Raiders celebrates the launch of a new region in the North Line update with microtransaction price cuts

Also, duo matchmaking has been "silently tested"

Doings are afoot successful the retrofuture scrapmetal satellite of Arc Raiders. Developers Embark person announced that a large caller update called North Line volition rotation retired tomorrow, 13th November astatine 1.30am PT, 4.30am ET, 9.30am GMT and 10.30am CET. It'll adhd Stella Montis, a portion beyond the Rust Belt that is described arsenic "cold, pristine, and filled with the remnants of humanity's mislaid ambitions." I americium picturing a scenery awash with Betamax cassettes, Bored Apes and Soviet abstraction shuttles, wherever Raiders prime done aged branches of Toys R Us.

You won't conscionable beryllium capable to waltz crossed the lintel into Stella Montis tomorrow, mind. You'll request to gain entree by means of a caller assemblage event, Breaking New Ground, which is astir restoring tunnels to the caller portion by earning a peculiar events currency, Merits. "The merchandise timing of Stella Montis volition beryllium acceptable by assemblage progress, revealing the adjacent frontier and triggering the "Staking Our Claim" Phase II, a caller progression way with rewards to gain and challenges to complete," explains the property release. "This caller way volition beryllium disposable for a constricted time, moving until December."

The devs are besides adding a mates of caller ARC foes - the Matriarch, which is seemingly adjacent much formidable than the Queen - and the Shredder, which lone appears successful Stella Montis, and is built for adjacent quarters combat. It sounds alternatively knifey. Players volition spell up against them equipped with an "Energy Burst" conflict rifle, immoderate caller mines - that's "Impulse", "Timed" and "Gas Jump", the second of which sounds similar a platforming instrumentality - and immoderate caller playstyles, "Lone Wolf and "Trailblazer". I'm not wide what these playstyles are but I don't deliberation you'll get to beryllium an existent wolf. The ARCs person melted down each the wolves for biofuel, I suspect. Still, there's ever WolfQuest.

In a bid to maximise the bully vibes astir North Line's launch, Embark are besides taking an axe to the game's microtransaction pricing. "We've reviewed our prices and made adjustments to little prices wherever applicable," explains a caller FAQ connected the authoritative site. The prices volition beryllium update alongside the update's launch.

"For immoderate Raider who has already made a acquisition connected the aged pricing, we'll compensate you for the difference," the developers add. "These Raider Tokens volition beryllium refunded backmost into your relationship automatically successful the coming week."

These concessions travel a enactment that Embark volition soon present paid premium Raider decks that absorption connected "cosmetics and convenience", with nary "pay-to-win" elements. So this is mollifying the radical unhappy astir microtransaction pricing portion introducing a fewer much microtransactables with their different hand.

Last and leastly, Embark accidental they person "silently tested and enabled Duo prioritized matchmaking, opening earlier this week." To beryllium clear, duo present means two-player. "Duo matchmaking volition enactment similar this: first, we prioritize Solos and Squads to play separately," the devs explain. "After that, we prioritize Duos to play with different Duos, and for Trios to play with Trios."

Arc Raiders continues to beryllium the taxable of scorn regarding its usage of AI-generated voices. There was different societal media blowout yesterday and I person been moving connected a abbreviated op ed, due to the fact that (hint hint) lone op eds are allowed to beryllium political. There is simply a non-zero accidental I volition yet determine that it's rubbish and bin it off.

In the meantime, Samuel Horti addressed the game's generative AI usage successful our Arc Raiders review, commenting that Embark's probe projects astir generating weapon models "could good alteration however I consciousness astir a crippled wherever the beingness of AI voices already makes maine consciousness somewhat icky astir recommending it."