Arc Raiders capped off 2025 by doing something almost unheard of in today’s gaming landscape: a brand-new paid multiplayer game beat every major release on Steam during the Christmas shopping period. According to SteamDB data, Embark Studios’ extraction shooter generated more revenue than Battlefield 6, Clair Obscur: Expedition 33, and even perennial best-seller Baldur’s Gate 3 between December 23 and December 30. For a $40 multiplayer game competing against free-to-play juggernauts and massive holiday discounts, this is nothing short of extraordinary.
The Numbers That Shocked Everyone
Arc Raiders launched on October 30, 2025, and immediately defied expectations by breaking extraction shooter concurrent player records on Steam. Within the first 30 minutes, the game crossed 100,000 concurrent players. By launch weekend, that number climbed to 354,000. Then something remarkable happened: instead of declining like most multiplayer launches, the player count kept growing. By the second weekend in November, Arc Raiders peaked at 462,488 concurrent players, surpassing Helldivers 2’s all-time Steam record.
Sales figures tell an equally impressive story. The game sold 2.5 million copies in its first week according to Alinea Analytics. That number jumped to 4 million within two weeks. By November, Arc Raiders had moved 7.7 million copies across all platforms, generating over $250 million in revenue. Now, heading into 2026, industry analysts estimate lifetime sales approaching 10 million copies, making it one of the most successful new multiplayer IPs in recent memory.
How It Beat Battlefield 6
The Christmas week sales crown is particularly significant because Arc Raiders competed directly against Battlefield 6, EA’s massive shooter franchise reboot that launched to strong reviews and solid player counts. Battlefield 6 actually finished second on the best-seller chart during that week, making this less about Battlefield failing and more about Arc Raiders succeeding beyond all reasonable expectations. When you factor in that Battlefield has decades of brand recognition while Arc Raiders was a completely unknown quantity six months ago, the achievement becomes even more impressive.
The Steam Deck technically ranked second overall when including all products, but among actual games, Battlefield 6 took the runner-up position. Clair Obscur: Expedition 33, the gorgeous JRPG that won multiple Game Awards categories, finished third. Baldur’s Gate 3, EA Sports FC 26, Dispatch, Cyberpunk 2077, Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2, and Grand Theft Auto V Enhanced rounded out the top ten. It’s a murderer’s row of established hits and critically acclaimed releases, yet Arc Raiders outsold them all during gaming’s biggest sales period.
What Arc Raiders Actually Is
For those who haven’t jumped into the Rust Belt yet, Arc Raiders is a third-person extraction shooter developed by Embark Studios, the Stockholm-based team founded by former Battlefield developers. Players take on the role of Raiders scavenging for resources in a post-apocalyptic world overrun by deadly mechanized enemies called Arcs. The core gameplay loop involves dropping into hostile territory, looting supplies and equipment, completing objectives, and extracting safely before you lose everything.
What separates Arc Raiders from other extraction shooters like Escape from Tarkov or The Cycle: Frontier is its emphasis on PvE combat and cooperative gameplay over constant PvP tension. Sure, you can fight other player teams if you want, but the game doesn’t force aggressive encounters. Many players report successfully completing raids without ever firing a shot at another human. The Arcs themselves provide enough challenge that cooperation often makes more sense than betrayal, creating a more approachable extraction experience for players intimidated by hardcore shooters.
The game features five distinct maps as of December 2025, each with unique environments, weather conditions, and Arc variants. Stella Montis introduced verticality and mountain terrain. The Blue Gate map added deadly weather events and night raids. A toxic map condition forces players to adapt their strategies and loadouts. Mysterious bunkers scattered across maps hide powerful loot and terrifying encounters. Embark has maintained a steady content cadence since launch, releasing weekly patches initially and transitioning to larger seasonal updates as the game stabilized.
Why It Succeeded When Others Failed
Arc Raiders’ success is especially remarkable given how many paid multiplayer games have crashed and burned in recent years. The conventional wisdom in 2025 held that new multiplayer games needed to launch free-to-play to build critical mass. Charging $40 upfront for a game with no single-player content seemed like commercial suicide. Yet Arc Raiders thrived by doing several crucial things right that other multiplayer launches botched.
First, the game actually worked at launch. Server stability was solid despite massive player counts. Performance on PC held steady across various hardware configurations. Major bugs were patched quickly rather than festering for weeks. This baseline competence feels like it shouldn’t be noteworthy, but compare Arc Raiders’ smooth launch to the disaster that was The Day Before or the technical mess that plagued Redfall. Simply functioning properly put Embark ahead of numerous competitors.
Second, Embark communicated transparently and implemented player feedback rapidly. When the community complained about the lack of duos mode, the developers acknowledged it and added duos within weeks. Desync issues that plagued early matches were addressed through multiple patches. The studio maintained active presence on social media and community forums, creating goodwill that translated into player retention. According to Steam data, Arc Raiders retained 86% of its players two months after launch, an almost unheard-of retention rate for new multiplayer games.
The Finals Connection
Embark’s previous game, The Finals, launched as free-to-play in December 2023 and became a sleeper hit through 2024. That experience taught the studio valuable lessons about live-service operations, community management, and maintaining player engagement. The Finals proved Embark could support a multiplayer game long-term without abandoning it after a rough launch. This track record gave early Arc Raiders adopters confidence that the game wouldn’t be dead in three months, a legitimate concern for new multiplayer titles.
The Finals also validated Embark’s approach to destructible environments and physics-based gameplay. Arc Raiders inherited some of these technical innovations, creating dynamic combat scenarios where player actions meaningfully alter the battlefield. Watching an Arc tear through a building you’re hiding in generates genuine tension that static environments can’t match. These technical accomplishments, combined with polished gunplay inherited from Embark’s Battlefield pedigree, created a shooter that simply feels good to play.
The Nexon Factor
Arc Raiders’ success represents a massive win for Nexon, the South Korean gaming giant that acquired Embark Studios starting in 2018. Nexon explicitly stated the acquisition wasn’t about expanding development capacity but securing a major new IP for the global market. That long-term bet just paid off spectacularly. Nexon’s live-service expertise combined with Embark’s development talent created the perfect conditions for a successful multiplayer launch.
Nexon’s involvement likely helped in less visible ways too. The company has decades of experience monetizing multiplayer games without making them feel exploitative. Arc Raiders’ progression system and cosmetics shop strike a reasonable balance between generating revenue and respecting players. There’s no pay-to-win garbage, no predatory loot boxes, and no aggressive FOMO mechanics that make you feel like you’re missing out if you skip a week. For a $40 premium game, that restraint is appreciated and probably contributes to the game’s positive reception.
What Happens Next
The big question facing Arc Raiders heading into 2026 is whether Embark can maintain this momentum. History is littered with multiplayer games that exploded at launch only to hemorrhage players within months. However, several factors suggest Arc Raiders might avoid that fate. The game’s second expedition phase added substantial new content that kept the community engaged. Player counts during the Christmas period actually exceeded launch numbers, with peaks reaching 439,000 concurrent users as of December 28.
Embark has already outlined an ambitious roadmap for 2026 including new maps, Arc variants, weapons, and game modes. The Cold Snap seasonal event demonstrated what the team can accomplish with live events. Most importantly, the core gameplay loop remains engaging enough that players keep returning even without major content drops. Extraction shooters thrive on emergent gameplay and player-driven stories, meaning the content partly generates itself through player interactions.
The game also won Best Multiplayer Game at The Game Awards 2025, beating Battlefield 6 and other major nominees. That kind of mainstream recognition introduces Arc Raiders to casual audiences who might not follow extraction shooter communities. Holiday sales likely benefited from the award visibility, creating a virtuous cycle of recognition driving sales driving more recognition.
Frequently Asked Questions
How much did Arc Raiders sell during Christmas week?
SteamDB data shows Arc Raiders was Steam’s best-selling game by revenue from December 23-30, 2025, though specific dollar figures weren’t disclosed. The game has sold approximately 7-10 million copies total across all platforms as of early 2026.
Is Arc Raiders free-to-play?
No. Arc Raiders costs $40 on Steam, Epic Games Store, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X/S. This made its commercial success especially surprising since most new multiplayer games launch free-to-play to build critical mass.
What type of game is Arc Raiders?
Arc Raiders is a third-person extraction shooter with heavy PvE focus. Players scavenge for resources in a post-apocalyptic world while fighting mechanized enemies called Arcs. PvP is possible but not forced, making it more cooperative than hardcore extraction shooters like Escape from Tarkov.
Who developed Arc Raiders?
Embark Studios, a Stockholm-based developer founded by former Battlefield developers. The studio is owned by Nexon, a South Korean gaming company. Embark previously released The Finals, another successful multiplayer shooter.
How many people play Arc Raiders?
Arc Raiders peaked at 462,488 concurrent players on Steam in November 2025 and maintained around 400,000+ concurrent players during Christmas 2025. The game retained 86% of its playerbase two months after launch, an exceptional retention rate.
Did Arc Raiders beat Battlefield 6?
Yes, Arc Raiders outsold Battlefield 6 on Steam during the Christmas 2025 sales period. It also won Best Multiplayer Game at The Game Awards 2025, beating Battlefield 6 in that category as well. Both games are considered successful, but Arc Raiders exceeded expectations.
Why did Arc Raiders succeed when other paid multiplayer games failed?
Arc Raiders launched with solid technical performance, responsive developers who quickly addressed player feedback, engaging core gameplay, and reasonable monetization. The game also benefited from Embark’s track record with The Finals and Nexon’s live-service expertise.
Is Arc Raiders on Game Pass or PlayStation Plus?
No, Arc Raiders is a premium purchase on all platforms. It’s not available through subscription services, which makes its sales success even more impressive given how many players prefer subscription access over direct purchases.
The Paid Multiplayer Game That Defied Gravity
Arc Raiders shouldn’t have worked. A $40 multiplayer-only game from a relatively unknown studio launching into a market saturated with free-to-play shooters should have been dead on arrival. Industry analysts would have been justified predicting another Lawbreakers or Crucible, games that charged money for multiplayer experiences and died within months because nobody wanted to pay admission to empty lobbies.
Instead, Arc Raiders became one of 2025’s biggest success stories by simply being good at what it attempts. The extraction shooter genre was proven but not oversaturated. The PvE focus differentiated it from hardcore PvP experiences. The $40 price point filtered out trolls and cheaters while still being accessible. Embark’s development pedigree created trust that the game wouldn’t be abandoned. Nexon’s backing provided resources and expertise. All these factors aligned at the right moment to create something special.
More importantly, Arc Raiders proved that gamers will absolutely pay for multiplayer experiences if those experiences deliver value. The free-to-play model dominates for good reasons, but it’s not the only path to success. Quality, communication, and respect for your playerbase can overcome the barrier of an upfront cost. As the industry continues grappling with unsustainable live-service models and failing free-to-play launches, Arc Raiders stands as evidence that maybe we’ve been thinking about multiplayer monetization wrong. Sometimes charging a fair price upfront, delivering a complete experience, and treating your community well is actually the better business model. Who knew.