Embark Studios has announced that all future Arc Raiders Expeditions have been delayed until early 2027 as it aims to "return with major improvements" following community feedback.
The developer behind the early 2026 extraction shooter hit announced the change in its post-launch schedule in an update on the Arc Raiders website today. It came with confirmation that Expedition 5 will launch when the window opens September 8 and close September 29, but after that, the Rust Belt will be quieter than normal.
"We have been carefully reviewing your feedback on Expeditions," Embark's post said, "and while we've made ongoing improvements along the way, we've come to realize that some of the issues you've raised, like the tight departure windows, the reward structure, and accessibility for new players, need more than incremental fixes. They call for bigger changes."
"In order to address those concerns, we need to pause the Expeditions for a while. The fifth Expedition will be the last one until early 2027, when Expeditions will return with major improvements, tackling some of the biggest player pain points. So, if you’ve been on the fence about departing - now is the time! We will share more details on what those changes will look like in September."
Expeditions are a late-game mechanic that allow players to effectively reset their Raiders and start over from scratch, minus a few goodies that carry over. It's a prestige system that has kept Arc Raiders players coming back since it launched in October 2025, encouraging even the most experienced individuals to work their way through the skill trees once more. Without Expeditions, you'll have to sit at the level cap and wait.
The message signed off, assuring players that their consecutive buffs will persist during the pause between Expeditions. Those who have completed all Expeditions will receive the Zenith outfit. Partially complete Caravans "will be replaced with Ermal Vouchers of equal value which can be used to purchase Ermal offers together with ARC Parts and firearms trade, or sold for Coin."
Adding insult to injury is the news that Embark has decided to pause its weekly Trials starting September 22, 2026. They'll be on hold for two weeks until October 8.
Arc Raiders seems to have continued to enjoy a smaller-but-still-consistent group of players since its explosive launch last year, but its post-launch roadmap has not been without its speed bumps. In May, Embark confirmed it would be committing to two major updates per year, with the next, Frozen Trail, not due out until October. Although it's set to deliver a new map in what the team called its "biggest update yet," lofty promises have done little to appease those dissatisfied fans.
Many have complained that updates had already felt too few and far between, with the last new map, Riven Tides, arriving as the game's second back in April. A pause for Expeditions and Trials only has fans more upset, even if they do agree that the feature needs some serious fine-tuning.
"Removing the only progression system in the game (albeit a shallow one) is a risky choice, but if it's what has to be done to improve Expeditions so be it," one fan said. "But if it's not drastically changed in some extremely rewarding way, I'm not sure what else they can do after that."
"400+ hours topside and haven’t touched this game in months," a second player added. "You guys have one of the best games ever made and you keep dropping the ball. It’s unplayable in its current state. Hoping for a huge October surprise, but not holding my breath."
"I’m certainly not doing this upcoming expedition as it would be my first," another fan said. "I was originally planning on it, I even completed the Caravan and unlocked all Expedition vaults through Ermal. However given the October 8 update and now a pause on Expeditions until early 2027, I can wait a little longer. As someone who is this far behind, I do hope they make changes to make it easier, or at least faster, to catch up to current. I’m pleased to see that was at least mentioned in the post."
Arc Raiders reached 16 million sales in May. IGN gave the game a 9/10 review, saying, "With polished gunplay and an irresistible grind, Arc Raiders sets a new standard for extraction shooters."
Michael Cripe is a freelance writer with IGN. He's best known for his work at sites like The Pitch, The Escapist, and OnlySP. Be sure to give him a follow on Bluesky (@mikecripe.bsky.social) and Twitter (@MikeCripe).
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