Weapons will break faster in Arc Raiders as the devs push PvP in a huge update that aims to fix the 'chronic state of weapon accumulation'

Arc Raiders' latest big update, Riven Tides, is finally upon us and it doesn't just bring beach holidays and ice cream cone arcs—there's also a bunch of updates in the patch notes, but the biggest change is coming for your guns.

Weapon durability is getting dropped and high-level spawns are being moved closer to the epicentre of the map. This is both to try to combat gun stockpiling and to turn up the heat: "We're reducing weapon spawn around the outskirts of the maps to increase value and tension of high tier areas and locked rooms."

A raider checking traps by the seaside. — (Image credit: Embark Studios)

"The weapon economy has increasingly started looking more and more unbalanced," the patch notes read. "Where players engaging in heavy PvP have to make a lot of difficult decisions around their weapons, the most friendly players have ended up in a chronic state of weapon accumulation. We want to balance this out so that all players are challenged by weapon attrition, as well as introducing new ways to combat it."

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Now the durability of weapons you find on the outskirts of the map could be as low as 15, while weapons found in the centre, especially high-level ones in locked rooms, will be around 60, with the average durability on spawned weapons sitting around 30. But weapons won't just have a lower durability off the bat, they'll also lose it faster per shot:

Common weapons: +75% durability loss on shot.
Uncommon weapons: +50% durability loss on shot.
Rare weapons: +35% durability loss on shot.
Epic weapons: -5% durability loss on shot.
Legendary weapons: -10% durability loss on shot.

This is an excellent way to make more common weapons less valuable while also making rarer guns more reliable: "We've heard clear frustration that maintaining high-tier weapons is very expensive compared to the lower-tier ones. We want high-tier weapons to have more longevity compared to low-tier weapons."

But it's not all bad news—there are also some weapon changes that'll come in clutch, especially for those who engage in PvP. First off, upgrading a weapon will now repair 25% of the weapon's max durability" to make upgrades less expensive and give players more of an incentive to boost low durability weapons.

Overlooking sandy beaches. — (Image credit: Embark Studios)

Secondly, a weapon's durability loss after a player is knocked out is being dropped from -30% durability to just -15% durability. "We want heavy PvP to be a viable way to play Arc Raiders," the patch notes explain.

All in all, the weapon changes may seem like a big deal but in practice all it does is bring everything closer to the centre. There's even less incentive for PvP'ers to be precious over low-level guns now, while those in friendly lobbies will likely engage in some more unfriendly games as everyone who wants better guns will be pushed together into a smaller area.

I've actually got a ridiculous stack of weapons right now. So this update will be a fantastic excuse for me to burn through some of the more common guns and actually free up some space in my stash.

Elie is a news writer with an unhealthy love of horror games—even though their greatest fear is being chased. When they're not screaming or hiding, there's a good chance you'll find them testing their metal in metroidvanias or just admiring their Pokemon TCG collection. Elie has previously worked at TechRadar Gaming as a staff writer and studied at JOMEC in International Journalism and Documentaries – spending their free time filming short docs about Smash Bros. or any indie game that crossed their path.