Embark Studios published a complete rundown of ARC Raiders' matchmaking system today. The post confirms the game uses a continuous playstyle scale to place raiders, not a binary friendly/aggressive split. Two changes are already live: defending yourself no longer reads as starting a fight, and rounds with little activity have less weight in the profile.
Defending yourself is now distinguished from starting a fight.
There are no PvE-only lobbies. All rounds carry risk.
The matchmaking aims for fairness and enjoyment, the team writes. Squad sizes are matched when possible. The playstyle scale measures behavior over time, so no single action flips a raider into a different lobby bracket.
Changing habits gradually shifts future matchmaking, but Embark stresses that lobbies will not become PvE-only.
Raiders on the BBS parsed the announcement with a mix of relief and suspicion. Some who favor cooperation celebrated what they saw as a path toward lower-risk runs. Others pointed out that the continuous scale means aggressive players will still appear in any lobby, just with decreasing likelihood as the profile adjusts. The line about no guaranteed PvE-only lobbies drew particular attention.
