No matter how you feel about Arc Raiders‘ use of AI for NPC voices, it’s hard to deny the game has been a massive success that’s “cracked open” the extraction shooter subgenre for casual players and even harpooned some older live service whales. Now, it’s hit a new milestone which positions it as one of the new online shooters to watch out for.
On 13th January, developer Embark Studios announced via its social channels that Arc Raiders has recruited over 12 million players to date. That means over 12 million copies of the game sold, as the studio made a “premium entry” bet which has paid off big time. GamesMarkt shared a more specific number: 12.4 million copies sold in just 10 weeks. Moreover, the game reached “960,000 concurrent players on all platforms in January 2026.”
For Embark Studios, the most important fact might be that player retention has been notable, with the game holding its ground against Battlefield 6’s massive success and capturing much of the attention that normally would’ve gone towards Call of Duty after Black Ops 7 was a disappointment that many longtime fans feared.
To celebrate, Embark Studios is gifting everyone “who logged in since launch till 23:59 CET, 13th Jan” a Gilded Pickaxe Raider Tool that will be added to their inventory upon logging into the game. The update is rolling out today.
We could also argue Arc Raiders is partially responsible for Steam setting a new concurrent users record earlier this month as it’s managed to comfortably sit among olden heavy hitters like Counter-Strike 2, DOTA 2, and PUBG: Battlegrounds. That’s no small feat.
With PlayStation and Bungie’s Marathon seeking to capture at least part of the same crowd’s attention come March, more players being into PvPvE shooters after Arc Raiders could be a surprise blessing for the beleaguered game.
So, what’s the next stop for this newborn franchise? A movie, probably.
