ARC Raiders earns its tension from a precise formula: third-person extraction shooting set on a ravaged future Earth where deadly mechanized AI (the ARC) patrol the surface alongside other Raiders who may help or hunt you. Every run is a calculated gamble—load in, scavenge valuable resources, survive machine ambushes, and extract before rival Raiders strip you of everything. The PvPvE loop, atmospheric desolation, and risk-of-losing-your-loot are the game's true DNA.
When players ask for "games like ARC Raiders," they're really chasing a specific cocktail: extraction-shooter tension, a hostile machine-enemy faction that forces constant alertness, and the social threat of other human players turning any moment from ally to predator. The games below are ranked by how closely they deliver that specific mix.
Top pick:Hunt: Showdown is the single closest match—its PvPvE bounty-extraction structure, the tension of tracking AI threats while enemy squads close in, and the catastrophic cost of dying at the exit all map directly onto what makes ARC Raiders compelling, making it the essential play while you wait for more ARC content.
Some store buttons are affiliate links — we may earn a commission at no extra cost to you.
Escape from Tarkov is the genre-defining extraction shooter that ARC Raiders draws direct inspiration from: loot the map, survive AI threats and other players, reach the extraction point or lose everything you found. The high-stakes tension loop is nearly identical.
Key difference: First-person, hyper-realistic ballistics; far steeper learning curve.
Best for: Players who want maximum extraction tension and no mercy.
Skip if: You dislike hardcore punishment and long skill ramps.
Hunt: Showdown is perhaps the closest spiritual sibling to ARC Raiders: squads hunt AI monster bosses in a gothic open zone, then must extract while enemy teams try to steal the bounty. The PvPvE structure, positional tension, and risk-of-losing-everything loop are nearly identical.
The Division 2 plants you in a post-collapse open world where you scavenge gear, fight AI factions, and enter contested Dark Zone areas where other players can turn hostile—mirroring ARC Raiders' PvPvE dynamic closely. The cover-based third-person gunplay and loot loop are strong parallels.
Key difference: Persistent open world rather than session-based extraction runs.
Best for: Fans who want a polished looter-shooter with strong PvE content.
Skip if: You only care about the pure extraction format.
Dark and Darker strips extraction down to its most tense form: venture into a dungeon, fight AI monsters, collect loot, then race to the extraction portal while other players hunt you. The high-stakes risk-reward loop mirrors ARC Raiders almost beat for beat.
Key difference: Medieval fantasy dungeon setting; no guns or sci-fi machines.
Best for: Players who want extraction tension with a dungeon-crawl twist.
Skip if: You need modern gunplay and a sci-fi atmosphere.
Gray Zone Warfare is a realistic tactical extraction shooter in a faction-based PMC conflict, demanding the same scavenge-loot-survive-extract loop as ARC Raiders with heavy emphasis on squad coordination and the threat of hostile players.
Key difference: Modern military realism; no sci-fi or machine-enemy faction.
Best for: Players who want extraction shooter depth with a mil-sim edge.
Skip if: You prefer accessible controls and sci-fi atmosphere.
Rust forces you to scavenge a hostile open world, craft gear, and survive both deadly environments and predatory players—the same risk/reward tension ARC Raiders builds around the surface runs. The threat of being ambushed while looting is central to both.
Key difference: Fully persistent world, heavy base-building, no discrete extraction runs.
Best for: Players who enjoy emergent player-vs-player social tension.
Skip if: You dislike the grind of losing everything repeatedly.
Deep Rock Galactic sends a squad of miners into alien-infested cave systems to extract resources while waves of machine-like creatures hunt you down—structurally similar to ARC Raiders' co-op surface dives against relentless mechanical threats. Tight co-op synergy and atmospheric dread are shared pillars.
Key difference: No PvP whatsoever; cheerful tone contrasts ARC's grim atmosphere.
Best for: Players who want satisfying co-op shooting without player-vs-player risk.
Skip if: You need the PvPvE threat of enemy Raiders to feel tension.
Marauders is a dieselpunk space extraction shooter where squads breach derelict ships, loot, and fight both AI guards and rival crews before escaping—sharing ARC Raiders' PvPvE tension in a gritty sci-fi shell.
Key difference: Space-station boarding focus rather than open planetary surface runs.
Best for: Players who want sci-fi extraction with strong atmosphere.
Skip if: You dislike slow-burn tactics and prefer fast-paced encounters.
Remnant: From the Ashes drops you into a post-apocalyptic world overrun by interdimensional machine and creature threats, with third-person shooting and cooperative play at its core. Scavenging ruins while powerful enemies stalk you echoes ARC Raiders' surface-run feel.
Key difference: No PvP; structured dungeon-style progression rather than free extraction.
Best for: Solo or co-op players wanting shooter-soulslike challenge vs machines.
Skip if: You require open-ended looting and real PvPvE stakes.
The Finals is a squad-based multiplayer shooter built around contested objectives in destructible arenas—the competitive scavenging of cash and the threat of enemy squads create a tension loop that parallels ARC Raiders' Raider-on-Raider conflict. The third-person-adjacent gunfeel and class variety are comparable.
Key difference: Pure PvP arena format; no AI enemy faction or extraction mechanic.
Best for: Players who love competitive shooter tension without PvE complexity.
Skip if: You need machine enemies and atmospheric post-apoc setting.
Prey (2017) puts you inside a space station overrun by shape-shifting alien machines, demanding scavenging, resource management, and adaptive shooting under constant threat. The atmospheric tension and sci-fi machine-enemy premise closely mirror ARC Raiders' surface-world dread.
Key difference: Single-player immersive sim; no co-op or PvP whatsoever.
Best for: Players who want atmospheric sci-fi machine-threat exploration solo.
Skip if: You need multiplayer extraction for your fix.
Warframe is a free-to-play third-person sci-fi shooter where squads infiltrate enemy-controlled zones, loot resources, and extract—a direct structural ancestor of modern extraction shooters. The sci-fi machine-versus-human setting and squad co-op feel share DNA with ARC Raiders.
Key difference: Session missions are largely PvE; no persistent loot-loss stakes.
Best for: Players who want extensive sci-fi co-op shooting with zero entry cost.
Skip if: You need genuine PvPvE risk-of-loss to stay engaged.
Horizon Zero Dawn's world of mechanical creatures reclaiming a ruined Earth is the thematic twin of ARC Raiders—scavenging the surface, studying machine patrol patterns, and surviving encounters with robot predators. The tone, aesthetic, and world-design feel directly related.
Key difference: Single-player open-world RPG; no extraction or PvP systems.
Best for: Players drawn to ARC Raiders for its machine-threat world-building.
Skip if: You came for the extraction multiplayer loop.
Horizon Forbidden West expands the machine-ravaged earth setting with more machine variety, denser ruins to explore, and refined third-person combat. The atmosphere of navigating dangerous terrain stalked by robotic predators strongly echoes the feel of ARC Raiders' world.
Key difference: Story-driven single-player RPG with no extraction or multiplayer.
Best for: Fans who loved ARC Raiders' lore and machine-enemy design.
Skip if: You only care about multiplayer and extraction tension.
Far Cry 3's open-world survival shooter loop—scavenging resources in hostile territory while ambushes can come from any direction—shares the surface-tension DNA of ARC Raiders at a more casual level. Crafting from loot and managing risk in a desolate environment are common threads.
Key difference: Single-player open world; no extraction sessions or AI machine enemies.
Best for: Players who want the scavenging tension in a polished solo package.
Skip if: You require multiplayer and structured extraction runs.
Fallout 4 covers post-apocalyptic scavenging and survival shooting in a ruined future earth with mechanical threats (Synths, robots) and a crafting loop built around looting dangerous areas. It captures ARC Raiders' world-feel if not the multiplayer structure.
Key difference: Single-player RPG; no PvP, no extraction runs, story-driven.
Best for: Players drawn to post-apoc atmosphere and scavenging over multiplayer.
Skip if: You want session-based extraction with real player stakes.
First-person, hyper-realistic ballistics; far steeper learning curve.
PC
Hunt: Showdown 1896
91%
Shooter, Action
19th-century gothic horror setting instead of sci-fi future Earth.
Xbox, PlayStation, PC
Tom Clancy's The Division 2
78%
Shooter, Action
Persistent open world rather than session-based extraction runs.
Xbox, PlayStation, PC
Dark and Darker
76%
Shooter, Action
Medieval fantasy dungeon setting; no guns or sci-fi machines.
PC
Gray Zone Warfare
70%
Shooter, Action
Modern military realism; no sci-fi or machine-enemy faction.
PC
Rust
68%
Shooter, Action
Fully persistent world, heavy base-building, no discrete extraction runs.
PC
Deep Rock Galactic
65%
Shooter, Action
No PvP whatsoever; cheerful tone contrasts ARC's grim atmosphere.
Xbox, PlayStation, PC
Marauders
65%
Shooter, Action
Space-station boarding focus rather than open planetary surface runs.
PC
Remnant: From the Ashes
63%
Shooter, Action
No PvP; structured dungeon-style progression rather than free extraction.
Xbox, PlayStation, PC, Nintendo
The Finals
58%
Shooter, Action
Pure PvP arena format; no AI enemy faction or extraction mechanic.
Xbox, PlayStation, PC
Prey
55%
Shooter, Action
Single-player immersive sim; no co-op or PvP whatsoever.
PlayStation, PC, Xbox
Warframe
52%
Shooter, Action
Session missions are largely PvE; no persistent loot-loss stakes.
Xbox, PlayStation, Nintendo, Mobile, PC
Horizon Zero Dawn
48%
Shooter, Action
Single-player open-world RPG; no extraction or PvP systems.
PlayStation, PC
Horizon Forbidden West
46%
Action, Science fiction
Story-driven single-player RPG with no extraction or multiplayer.
PlayStation, PC
Far Cry 3
40%
Shooter, Action
Single-player open world; no extraction sessions or AI machine enemies.
PlayStation, PC, Xbox
What makes a game truly feel like ARC Raiders?
The defining characteristic isn't just "post-apocalyptic shooter"—it's the PvPvE extraction loop: enter a contested zone, face AI enemies that patrol independently of other players, collect loot that you permanently lose on death, and reach an extraction point under compounding pressure. Escape from Tarkov invented this formula in its modern form and remains the most mechanically faithful equivalent, while Hunt: Showdown distills it into the most elegant and atmospheric package available.
The machine-enemy threat specifically—autonomous, patrol-based, scale-able danger from non-human AI—is what separates ARC Raiders from pure PvP shooters. Remnant: From the Ashes and Warframe both build around fighting machine-adjacent threats cooperatively, capturing that aspect even if they lack the extraction stakes.
If you want the PvPvE tension without the steep learning curve
The Division 2 is the most accessible entry point for players new to PvPvE design. Its Dark Zone areas recreate the exact feeling of looting a dangerous space while watching other players for signs of hostility—but the wider game provides a cushion of PvE content and a forgiving progression system that Tarkov emphatically does not. Deep Rock Galactic takes the opposite approach: pure co-op with no PvP risk, letting you enjoy the machine-hunting and extraction fantasy in a cheerful but mechanically tight package.
Best picks for the sci-fi machine-threat atmosphere
If the visual and tonal world of ARC Raiders—rusted ruins, mechanical predators, a ravaged Earth—is what you're really after, Horizon Zero Dawn and its sequel Horizon Forbidden West are essential. Both games build deeply around the fantasy of navigating a world reclaimed by machine wildlife, studying robot patrol patterns, and scavenging ancient ruins, even though they're single-player RPGs. For something leaner, Prey (2017) captures the claustrophobic tension of being hunted by intelligent machines in a sci-fi environment and rewards exactly the cautious, observant playstyle that ARC Raiders punishes you for abandoning.
Is there a game exactly like ARC Raiders but already fully released?
Hunt: Showdown is the closest released equivalent—it shares the PvPvE extraction structure, the AI monster threat, and the high-stakes loot-loss mechanic almost beat for beat. Escape from Tarkov is the genre godfather and more mechanically demanding. Both are worth playing while ARC Raiders develops.
What extraction shooters are similar to ARC Raiders for beginners?
The Division 2's Dark Zone mode is the most beginner-friendly PvPvE extraction experience. It has matchmaking, a polished UI, and a forgiving progression system. Dark and Darker is free to try and teaches extraction fundamentals in a compact format.
Are there any games like ARC Raiders with machines as the main enemy?
Yes—Horizon Zero Dawn and Horizon Forbidden West center on robotic creatures reclaiming a ruined Earth, which is thematically very close to ARC Raiders' premise. Remnant: From the Ashes features machine and creature bosses in post-apocalyptic settings. Prey (2017) pits you against shapeshifting alien machines on a space station.
What's the best co-op game similar to ARC Raiders?
Deep Rock Galactic is the best pure co-op pick—squads penetrate alien-infested cave systems, complete objectives, and extract under pressure from swarming enemies. Remnant: From the Ashes also shines in co-op, blending third-person shooting with challenging machine-boss encounters in a post-apocalyptic world.
How does ARC Raiders compare to Escape from Tarkov?
ARC Raiders is third-person with a more approachable design philosophy, a sci-fi machine-enemy faction (ARC) as the primary environmental threat, and a somewhat less punishing death system. Tarkov is first-person, hyper-realistic, and brutally unforgiving—it's the genre's most demanding game and ARC Raiders' most direct mechanical ancestor.
93%
