ARC Raiders $40 Price Inspired by Helldivers 2: Why Embark Left Behind Free-to-Play for 12 Million Sales Success

ARC Raiders was originally intended to be a free‑to‑play title upon release. However, the decision to move to a more traditional paid model was inspired by Helldivers 2, pushing the team away from the free‑to‑play approach.

ARC Raiders has become one of 2025’s biggest success stories, redefining the frontline for shooters - especially the extraction shooter genre. Move over, Escape from Tarkov; there’s a new player in town. ARC Raiders has taken the world by storm and attracted significant attention from the film and television industry, with Embark Studios being approached by several companies for potential transmedia adaptations.

In an interview with Dean Takahashi, more details emerged about why the team at Embark Studios shifted from a free‑to‑play model to a $40 price tag - a decision that has clearly paid off. CEO Patrick Söderlund stated that they “looked at games like Helldivers” and realized that was the space they wanted to be part of, rather than releasing a free‑to‑play title. He admitted he wasn’t entirely sure if the decision was the right one, but felt confident that the game was priced affordably.

Söderlund also discussed the game’s lack of a traditional story. If you’ve played ARC Raiders, you’ll know it doesn’t follow a narrative-driven structure. Instead, it uses mission‑based objectives that build out the lore through interactions with the Traders of Speranza. This design choice was another reason the team settled on a $40 price point, rather than the more typical $80 - or the increasingly common $90 - price tag. The goal was to make the game feel worth the cost of entry without driving players away.

Players certainly seem to agree on the value; most average around three hours of playtime per session, something the team didn’t expect. With 12 million units sold at $40 each, the numbers speak for themselves - we’d say they made the right call.

ARC Raiders currently has the Flickering Flame event going with only five days left. Let us know over in our Discord if you’re playing ARC Raiders. We’ll see you out in the Rust Belt.