Embark seeks longevity: Arc Raiders will have 10 years of continuous history

The extraction shooter game PvPvE Arc Raiders is being built to have a narrative that expands and lasts for at least 10 years. The objective is to keep players engaged in the post-apocalyptic science fiction story, set in a futuristic Italy with a 70s aesthetic. Executive producer Aleksander Grøndal stated that Embark Studios plans to "introduce new locations and start new story arcs" to ensure the continuous evolution of the game world.

The premise of Arc Raiders is the starting point for the long-term narrative: players are raiders, citizens of the underground city of Spiranza. They risk their lives on the planet's surface, which has been dominated for generations by the Arc, a brigade of homicidal robots. Grøndal highlighted that the lack of knowledge about what happened in the world is a central mystery for players to uncover:

"What happened to this world? It's a big question, because the raiders, they don't know anymore. It's kind of lost in myth, so they're trying to piece it together."

The narrative is not limited to the surface. Grøndal pointed out that life in Spiranza is complex due to the pressure of living underground, creating "people with different agendas and conflicts happening there as well."

The story will be revealed through the Codex and missions. The Codex will be a repository of notes and information that "updates and evolves over time based on mission progression" and other triggers in the game, such as defeating a specific robot five times. However, the missions raise a critical point. The initial missions of Arc Raiders resemble "shopping lists" from MMOs (find wires, kill the first Arc), raising the question of whether the game will be able to build an engaging narrative from short objectives.

Embark plans to engage the community with events, ranging from "world-changing events to simpler events like Christmas holidays". Although Grøndal did not indicate a metanarrative as elaborate as that of Helldivers 2 from Arrowhead, the promise to introduce new arcs and locations supports the ambition of 10 years of storytelling.

The game Arc Raiders from Embark Studios is set in the underground city Spiranza and pits players (raiders) against the Arc robots on the surface. Executive producer Aleksander Grøndal promised 10 years of storytelling with new locations and narrative arcs. The plot will be unveiled through missions and a constantly evolving Codex. The critical question lies in the ability of the extraction missions to build a deep narrative.