After campaigning for Arc Raiders to win GOTY at The Game Awards, former FPS pro Shroud is taking a break because he's "tired of the cheaters," plus "once you have everything it loses a little bit of its fun"

Arc Raiders raider in a pilot helmet looks at the camera in a sunlit forest — (Image credit: Embark Studios)

One of the great cheerleaders for Arc Raiders is taking a little break from the extraction shooter. Michael 'Shroud' Grzesiek, former Counter-Strike: Global Offensive pro turned streamer, has decided to step away for a breather, stating he'll come back to Speranza after the next Expedition when there's more to play for.

"I'll probably play Arc Raiders again in a month," he said during a recent livestream, as posted by Jake Lucky on Twitter. "That's looking like a good time to play, with the Expedition resetting. My favorite part of Arc is the beginning, once you have everything it loses a little bit of its fun."

The Expedition lets players do a soft reset on their progress by sending their current characters off in a caravan to the great yonder. Though expensive and time-consuming, taking part unlocks certain rewards, including extra skill points, giving incentive for players who’ve rinsed all other aspects of the game.

"My favorite part of ARC is the beginning, then once you have everything it loses a bit of it's fun... I honestly got a little tired of the cheaters"Shroud says he will play ARC Raiders again, but not for awhile pic.twitter.com/QZETZen2YhFebruary 3, 2026

The second of two thus far is happening towards the end of this month, February, letting people enter spring on a fresh slate, so to speak. It coincides with turnover for the next map condition and more in the roadmap too, and Grzesiek specifies he's awaiting "new content" as well to liven up his experience.

He notes it's "still good" even when you're playing for kicks rather than progression, but the ever-present cheating is wearing on him as well. "I got a little tired of the cheaters," he adds. "I know they're making an initiative to fix that with Arc, so, excited for that."

Considering he launched a one-man campaign for Arc Raiders to win Game of the Year at The Game Awards, this is something of a contrast. But even the most ardent fans need a breather, and I've no doubt come March, Grzesiek will be back on Raider grind full refreshed. Maybe he'll finish Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 in the meantime.

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