Embark Studios is busy preparing for ARC Raiders’ big balance pass. Design lead Virgil Watkins confirmed that the Kettle rifle and Trigger Nades will be among the major priorities for the next patch. After heavy wintry weather conditions were introduced to the map, thus altering visibility and audio cues, the team will then switch to fine-tuning the sandbox as the community is already starting to raise questions about the current meta.
In their latest discussion on state-of-play affairs, Watkins mentioned that the Kettle rifle happens to be a topic of debate because it excels overly well in mid-to-long-range combat. The expected changes are targeting reducing the power ceiling of the weapon overall, likely through an added effect of increased recoil or damage fall-off, so that it doesn’t redact the viability of other ballistic options. This is a clear indication that Embark would not play blindly with the player data to allow a stagnant loadout culture to set in during this prime early period in the life of the game.
Trigger Nades are also on the proverbial chopping block as the studio wants to limit their present-say dominance in the close-quarters skirmishes. Players increasingly resort to these explosives with promises of instant, high-impact area denials, leaving usually little space for counter-play. Changes planned will realign these gadgets with the rest of the utility kit and advocate tactical placing over the “spam-and-forget” attitude seen in recent weeks.
Apart from those particular weapon nerfs, the update embodies a much wider commitment by Embark Studios toward maintaining a fluid and responsive development. The new wintry map conditions provided another environmental challenge to tackle, but it seems that the team under Watkins is more concerned with the somewhat isolated feel of combat, ensuring that no single tool can be an absolute requirement for survival. Such changes serve greatly during the ongoing evolution of ARC Raiders to signal the player base that developers will listen and may make the needed sometimes hard cuts to sustain the competitive ecosystem’s long-term health within the game.
