ARC Raiders has a huge amount of depth, both in terms of its gameplay loop and the individual mechanics themselves. Many players will jump into a match and focus solely on the intense gunplay, but movement plays an equally important role in dictating how many fights are won and whether or not you make it out alive. The game does an okay job of explaining some fundamentals to the player, like the ability to roll, slide, and climb, yet beneath the surface, these mechanics become all the more complex and important to master, with even simple traversal being turned into a minigame of opportunities and creativity.
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Movement in ARC Raiders can be broken into two fundamental parts: combat and exploration. Some pieces of tech are more important when moving around the map, especially in situations with a lot of verticality, while others can be used to great effect during fights, completely changing the flow of engagements with just a few extra button inputs. Regardless of the use case, these extra movement tricks are vital parts of any successful Raider's arsenal. It doesn't matter if the player is just starting out or entering their 100th run: they should always keep in mind the insane potential that can be unlocked from the movement alone.
Slide-Rolls
Constantly Changing Direction
- Animation canceling on the go.
- Switching direction mid-slide to be more unpredictable.
Rolling and sliding are two of the main ways that players can avoid damage and outplay their enemies Topside. Being able to slide under bullets or roll around objects turns the player into a much trickier target to hit. Beyond the basic dodges, some extra tricks can make things even more insane. One of the best examples is slide-rolling in and out of cover, which allows the player to completely control the flow of a fight without much counterplay on the other side. The best way of pulling this trick off is to slide into a doorway and take a shot, then roll back immediately the other way, even adding an extra slide onto the end for style points.
This strategy can make fighting people indoors incredibly easy, as the player is always on the move and can choose if and when they need to be safely behind cover between shots. Once players have mastered this tech, they can then add on skills like Heroic Leap to extend the distance of their rolls, along with Slip and Slide, which actually makes their slides longer, amplifying the power of this simple yet effective trick. Also, because of how easy it is to pull off, the use cases are virtually endless, as players can quite happily enter any engagement knowing that they can probably outmaneuver the other player simply by slide-rolling in and out of view until they come out on top.
Momentum Control
Instantly Going From Stationary To Unhittable
- Jumps and slides to boost movement.
- Using ziplines to gain speed downwards.
A lot of the movement in ARC Raiders is heavily reliant on momentum and acceleration. For the most part, the physics is fairly intuitive and semi-realistic, as players will speed up while going down hills, slow down while going upwards, and come to a halt if they decide to change direction. Yet there are plenty of ways to use momentum to their benefit, like with ziplines, where players can rapidly accelerate in one direction and then quickly hop off to maintain that speed going into a run or, even better, a slide. It is also worth noting that jumps can give players a head start for virtually any movement action, particularly vertical ones, so it is definitely worth adding in a few hops when starting a vault or ziplining up a building.
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These principles also apply to combat. If a player is sliding at a high speed in one direction, then rolling in the same direction will increase the distance they cover by a whole lot. On the flip side, by inputting a movement command in the opposite direction to the way the player is running, they will still benefit from some of the momentum of their run. The reason this is important is because during fights, a single poor input can instantly kill all the player's speed. As such, it is crucial to keep in mind which actions will slow them down, like trying to slide up staircases, and which ones to use to remain a fast-moving and hard-to-kill target.
Falling Grabs
Taking A Leap Of Faith
- Removes fall damage entirely.
- Locations become easily accessible.
A lot of the physics in ARC Raiders are anything but realistic, and because of this, players can easily abuse certain mechanics to great effect in virtually any Raid. The biggest physics defiance comes from the interaction between ledge grabs and fall damage, as by simply reaching out for any surface during a fall, players can remove any and all harm that would have otherwise come their way. This also applies to more obvious objects like ziplines and ladders, where players can leap from a high place without any risk to their life, so long as they manage to actually click the right button on the way down.
Spaceport is one of the best examples of a map where this tech can be used incredibly effectively. After looting the main central tower, players can jump straight down, connecting with a handy zipline just before they bite the dust. However, even if they are in a less obvious location, there are still chances to ledge-grab during a fall, as there are basically no limits to what counts as a temporary crash mat. A lamp post, a window ledge, or even an Arc in certain situations can all be used to break falls, but more importantly, make the player look pretty damn cool during a daring escape.
Snap Hook Movement
An Extra Trick Up Your Sleeve
- Instantly scale entire buildings.
- Huge mobility options, both vertically and horizontally.
There are many different pieces of utility that players have access to, and it can be hard to know which ones to bring into a match. Some are pretty easy to access and craft, but a few are far rarer, like the Snap Hook, a legendary-tier item that is pretty hard to reliably get. When players do manage to get their hands on one, however, they are treated to a whole new world of mobility, transforming each map into a smaller scale Spider-Man game.
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The grapple is actually pretty long, letting players access hard-to-reach locations that can often hide loot that very few people check for. Also, the hook can be used on the ground, which propels the player forwards horizontally. When combined with a jump, this can send them a considerable distance without much effort. It can feel risky to take a Snap Hook into a Raid, but having one can make the player feel a lot more powerful, opening the doors for some sneaky camping spots and the chance to make a stylish getaway that no one will see coming.
Perfect Falls
Keeping Those Knees Intact
- Roll input before landing to mitigate fall damage.
- Ready to Roll increases the window.
Fall damage is never a nice thing to deal with in any game, and in ARC Raiders, gravity is actually one of the biggest killers. Many players will leap and fall to their demise without any ledges to grab or ways of avoiding the inevitable death below them. However, one way of preventing the damage, other than just being a bit more careful, is to perform a Recovery Roll, which lets players input a roll as they land to reduce, if not eliminate, all the impact.
Further down the mobility skill tree, players can unlock Ready to Roll, which makes the timing window a lot more generous when attempting to perform a Recovery Roll. It obviously won't save them from every drop, but is it a good habit to get into that can help reduce Bandage use, and in some cases, even save lives.
ARC Raiders
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OpenCritic Reviews
- Top Critic Avg: 87 /100 Critics Rec: 92%
- Released
- October 30, 2025
- ESRB
- Teen / Violence, Blood
- Developer(s)
- Embark Studios
- Publisher(s)
- Embark Studios
WHERE TO PLAY
- Genre(s)
- Extraction, Shooter, Third-Person Shooter, Survival
