ARC Raiders Free Weekend: Play Free Until Oct 12 With Biggest Update Yet (2026)
The ARC Raiders free weekend is live right now. Embark Studios launched the Frozen Trail update, the extraction shooter’s biggest patch since launch, on October 8, 2026, and paired it with a free weekend running through October 12. The full game is available on Steam, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X|S, with the base game and Deluxe editions also discounted by 50 percent.
If you have been waiting for a reason to try the PvPvE extraction shooter, the ARC Raiders free weekend is it.
ARC Raiders free weekend details
The ARC Raiders free weekend runs from October 8 at 09:00 UTC until October 12 at 08:00 UTC. This is not a limited demo: players get access to the complete ARC Raiders game, including the new Frozen Trail content. Once the event ends, you will need to buy the game to keep playing.
New players joining the ARC Raiders free weekend can even jump straight into the headline new map. Embark confirmed that anyone joining during the free period can access Pendola Pass immediately by grouping with a player who has already unlocked it, so veterans can take newcomers directly into the new content.
How to join the ARC Raiders free weekend
Joining the ARC Raiders free weekend is simple. On Steam, PlayStation 5, or Xbox Series X|S, head to the ARC Raiders store page and download the game: during the event window it plays in full without purchase. The free period runs from October 8 at 09:00 UTC until October 12 at 08:00 UTC, so you have the whole weekend. If the game clicks for you, the 50 percent discount on the base game and Deluxe editions runs alongside the event.
One tip for newcomers: do not try to unlock everything solo first. Group up with an experienced player and you can step straight into Pendola Pass, the update’s headline map, without grinding through the normal unlock path.
Pendola Pass: the new map
Frozen Trail’s centerpiece is Pendola Pass, a harsh snow-covered mountain region on the northern edge of the Rust Belt. Embark calls it the game’s most ambitious map so far, built with heavy verticality, dense interiors, and new ambush routes. Points of interest include a massive fallen Emperor unit raiders can explore, an abandoned supermarket, a town square, an observatory, and a buried train depot. Sudden Flash Freezes add a new environmental threat on top of rival raiders and ARC machines.
The map also introduces Redirection, a new map condition exclusive to Pendola Pass that lets squads draw Harvester Payloads away from the Collector and toward their own position, shaking up endgame extractions.
New enemies and the Frigate
Three new ARC ground enemies arrive with the update. The Bully is a relentless close-quarters unit built to pin raiders down with heavy fire. The Skulker is a tactical ambusher that punishes bad positioning. The Hydra is a high-damage squad-focused threat tied to the Emperor and the new airborne Frigate, one of ARC’s largest vessels, which patrols the area as a major new danger.
Progression, weapons, and gadgets
Frozen Trail reworks progression in a big way. Players can now build a customizable Outpost in the Raider Den with modules, furniture, and a Research Workstation. The new Amplified Weapons system pushes 15 weapons to a fifth quality tier with branching upgrades like alternate fire modes and larger magazines.
Two new weapons join the arsenal: the Stiletto battle rifle and the Bantam revolver. New gadgets include the Grappling Hook, Tether Launcher, Yank Grenade, and a working camera, plus a weapon stencil system for cosmetics. The skill tree has been reworked, Raider Decks have been replaced by Reward Passes, and new questlines round out the patch.
Want to know which guns to chase first? Check our ARC Raiders weapons tier list before you drop in.
Why this ARC Raiders free weekend matters
Free weekends come and go, but this ARC Raiders free weekend is timed to show off the game at its best. Embark has said it is moving to fewer but larger updates roughly every six months, and Frozen Trail is the payoff: a full new map, a progression overhaul, and a gadget sandbox that changes how raids play. Player counts will tell whether the extraction shooter can pull lapsed raiders back, but for anyone on the fence, four free days with the biggest content drop since launch is the lowest-risk way to find out.
Sources
Axee Davies is the founder of AxeeTech, publishing gaming guides, codes, and Windows how-tos since March 2013. A tech enthusiast for 13+ years — starting with smartphones and Android rooting — he now runs a site that puts out a new guide every day for Roblox players, traders, and Windows users. More about AxeeTech