Arc Raiders’ Biggest-Ever Update Officially Looks Epic

After a rocky 2026 that saw developer Embark Studios pause its monthly content cadence in May, the extraction shooter Arc Raiders is set to make a dramatic comeback with Frozen Trail, its largest update to date, launching Thursday, Oct. 8 for PS5, Windows PC, and Xbox Series X. Polygon recently got an hour-long preview of the expansion — complete with a feature video and live Q&A — revealing a sprawling new snowy map, a colossal fallen “Emperor” boss, a high-stakes airborne endgame raid, machine-learning enemies, a weapon amplification system, and a host of new gadgets. The update arrives as the studio attempts to reverse a well-documented decline in player numbers while still maintaining a healthy, consistent community.

A New Frontier and a Colossal Boss

Longtime players have already glimpsed the Emperor, an unfathomably huge Arc enemy that patrols the outskirts of the Blue Gate map and occasionally surfaces through the storm during the tutorial. The new Pendola Pass map finally puts raiders face-to-face with one of these titans — albeit a fallen one. The colossal machine is slumped against the mountainside, and players can explore its innards up close. The scale is gargantuan, and the design is intended to make raiders feel like they are simply not supposed to be there.

As for actual threats, the Frigate is arriving across multiple maps as Arc Raiders’ version of an endgame raid. According to a press release, it is a “massive airborne carrier that presents a high-stakes challenge for experienced raiders,” and it will offer rare loot. The Frigate also introduces a strategic shift: rather than simply soaking up a deluge of damage like previous tough bosses such as the Queen and the Matriarch, players must solve puzzles and sabotage the vessel. Aboard the Frigate lurks the Hydra, a brand-new Arc foe that functions as a turret with three individual sets of guns capable of targeting multiple enemies at once. On Pendola Pass, the smaller Skulker peppers players with long-range shots, while the chunky, aggressive Bully — which shares machine-learning behaviors with the Leaper — adds another layer of unpredictability.

The grappling hook has been at the top of the wishlist for a long time.

Aleksander Grøndal, Executive Producer at Embark Studios

Weapons, Gadgets, and a Home Base

Raiders will fight these new threats with two fresh weapons — the Stiletto, a light-ammo battle rifle, and the Bantam, a snub-nosed revolver. More importantly, a new weapon amplification system lets existing weapons be completely reconfigured. Once a new workbench is crafted, the Burletta pistol can be turned fully automatic, and the Rattler can be customized to fire incendiary ammo. In total, 15 possible weapon amplifications ship with Frozen Trail.

The gadget lineup is equally ambitious. The Grappling Hook — which executive producer Aleksander Grøndal called one of the most ambitious items the team has built — lets players fire a rope at a surface to climb it, rappel down a building, swing across gaps à la Spider-Man, or even attach it to an Arc enemy to be dragged along. It is joined by the Tether Launcher, which connects two points to keep airborne enemies at bay, and the Yank Grenade, which extends ropes to nearby enemies and pulls them toward it — a potentially game-changing tool for yanking opponents out of cover mid-PvP.

Embracing the game’s signature approach, weapon skins are coming too, though most stencils must be found as loot rather than simply purchased. Two new instruments — a banjo and a harmonica — will join the collection, and an in-game camera is being added, a move that follows the growing popularity of Arc Raiders photography.

Looking Ahead

Pendola Pass also reworks the extraction formula. Instead of the familiar elevator or train, the only way out of the snowy range is via a gondola, with space limited to just three raiders at a time. A new Flash Freeze weather condition forces players to seek shelter before the cold sets in. Meanwhile, the skill tree is being overhauled: some skills are being removed, others tweaked, and new ones added, with the goal of making choices “more impactful.” Grøndal explained that players will now have to pick between a few different abilities rather than “being able to unlock everything,” encouraging build diversity alongside the new weapon amplification system.

Finally, outposts are arriving as the first step toward giving players “a home on the surface.” While these spaces cannot be walked around yet — Grøndal confirmed the team eventually wants them fully explorable — players can already display furniture, crafting stations, trinkets, and more. Frozen Trail will be delivered as a free update on Oct. 8, marking the studio’s most substantial push since pausing its update schedule.