ARC Raiders, one of the most successful extraction shooters in recent years, has received another update—but this time there’s no new map or weapons. Instead, the developers chose to address what players care about most: the matchmaking system. However, Embark Studios acknowledged that improving matchmaking quality may come at the cost of longer wait times for some players.
Official: We’d Rather Wait Than Match Players Poorly!
In the latest 1.38.0 update, Embark further optimized the matchmaking algorithm, making the system prioritize player behavior and match quality over fast queue times. The company stated that the new mechanism helps players face more suitable opponents and teammates, while also noting that wait times may increase during certain periods.
This isn’t the first time ARC Raiders has tweaked matchmaking. Over the past few months, the developers have been iterating based on player feedback, such as splitting the matchmaking pool into Solo, Duo, and Trio queues, hoping to reduce the frustration of solo players being matched against full squads.
Better Matches, But Does It Mean Fewer Players?
Embark hasn’t directly acknowledged a player decline, but when the company started warning that “players may need to wait longer to find matches,” it got many players wondering whether the current online player base is enough to support quick matchmaking. For multiplayer games, this is a real challenge. On one hand, they want players to get into matches faster; on the other, they need to ensure match quality. Embark has clearly chosen the latter—accepting longer wait times to make each match feel fairer and more enjoyable.