One of the biggest leaks in ARC Raiders has surfaced: Riven Tides Update goes live on April 28th. Several exciting and significant updates are coming soon, some of which will be game-changing.
These new additions include brand-new maps and map states, two new weapons, and a new guild system. This content may be included in Riven Tides.
Below is a summary of the key information uncovered so far.
New Maps
Riven Tides
Riven Tides update next Tuesday will feature new maps including Harbour, Container Yard, Hotel, Logistics, Riverbed, Seabed, Wave Breaker Compound, Tennis Court, Hotel Complex, and Crane House. This gives us a deeper understanding of Riven Tides and may even reveal some Points of Interest (POIs) that will determine the future scale of maps.
Frozen Trail
Interestingly, another map also appears in the list, named Frozen Trail. This map lists several Points of Interest (POIs), including Central Station, Factory, Loading Platform, Observatory, Radio Tower, Rail yard, Supermarket, and Village. Based on these POIs, we can infer the size of Frozen Trail.
Map Conditions
Toxic Swamp
We actually saw a toxic swamp in the demo a few months ago, though described, it never actually implemented. This map condition is said to be caused by a geothermal fissure erupting beneath the swamp, releasing toxic gases and rare natural resources.
Acid Rain
But what really interests me is Acid Rain. It's said that a particularly acidic rain corrodes everything on the surface, harming any raiders outdoors. If you look closely at the striped tidal zones on the route map, you'll find a new map. A new large ARC area is about to appear, along with a new map condition whose icon looks like a thunderstorm, so this might be related to acid rain. Perhaps, we'll have to wait and see.
Heat Wave
Besides this, we also saw Heat Wave map status, described as: A scorching sun has been beating down on everything and everyone, making it exhausting just to get around. Stay in the shadows if you can. Therefore, it should be similar to Acid Rain, requiring us to find cover.
The Queens
This map status indicates that multiple Queens have been spotted in this area, but there don't seem to be any Harvesters nearby. So this will also be a rather crazy map status. PVE era for Queens may be arriving.
Repair Extraction
This map status indicates that most extraction points are damaged and need repair before they can be used. Including Delayed Departures and Tube Disruptions, we can speculate that raiders must repair these facilities to ensure a safe return, or hold out long enough for the backup system to activate. Therefore, this is indeed a very interesting gameplay element, where players must repair extraction points, whether it's hatches, elevators, or trains.
ARC OPERATION: Dead Reckoning
Besides this, we also discovered a Big Map condition called ARC OPERATION: Dead Reckoning. In this operation, a Frigate based on UFO that appeared in Hurricane event will travel along a specific route on the map, which players can board. And its route is quite long.
This is interesting because the official description explicitly mentions that it comes from Hurricane, but we previously speculated that Vaporizer might also originate from Hurricane. This new gameplay might bring us even more surprises.
Weapons
Two weapons are coming soon: Stanza and Malleus. Stanza appears to be another submachine gun using medium ammunition, while Malleus is clearly another heavy assault rifle. You can think of it as a Bettina, but not quite. I'm curious how these two guns will ultimately be integrated into the game. If Malleus does join Bettina's ranks, then we'll have two heavy ammunition rifles.
New T4 Augments
Raider Mk. 4 (Safekeeper) and Raider Mk. 4 (Revival) are coming soon, both sharing the same names as existing Mark III augmentations. Therefore, they are likely improvements on existing features.
For example, Safekeeper allows you to store ARC Raiders Items in your safe pocket. If you're about to die, you can put both weapons in the safe pocket to avoid losing them. Revival appears to be a self-reviving update of this augmentation. This truly provides a completely unique gameplay loop.
Clan System
This appears to be a brand new progression system where players can work together to level up. Clan rank increases are achieved by completing daily clan contracts. Newbies are members who have completed 0 to 30 clan contracts. Challengers are members who have completed 30 to 50 clan contracts. Pros are members who have completed 50 or more clan contracts. Therefore, this adds a separate progression system, and each update may offer additional rewards, which I think is fantastic.
Speranza Updates
In the shadowy Speranza, you'll be able to trade with other raiders. This is really interesting, as players have been hoping for walkable public areas similar to those in other games, and there are even two trading posts under construction.
This is a direct, one-to-one trading market within the game. This is significant for the game's economic system, and we're very much looking forward to seeing how it works.
Upcoming Gadgets
- Banjo: A playable banjo used to attract ARC's attention and impress other Raiders.
- Cowbell: A playable cowbell used to attract ARC's attention and impress other Raiders.
- Accordion: A playable accordion used to attract ARC's attention and impress other Raiders.
- Harmonica: A playable harmonica used to attract ARC's attention and impress other Raiders.
- Slide Guitar: A playable slide guitar used to attract ARC's attention and impress other Raiders.
- Tambourine: A playable tambourine drum used to attract ARC's attention and impress other Raiders.
- UDU: A playable UDU instrument used to attract ARC's attention and impress other Raiders.
- Bongo: A playable bongo drum used to attract ARC's attention and impress other Raiders.
New maps, new statuses, new weapons, and new systems greatly enhance the playability of ARC Raiders, and I hope to experience these fun new gameplay elements in Riven Tides.
