Arc Raiders is becoming a "waste of time" thanks to cheaters, says former FPS pro Shroud, who's considering a break until it's fixed: "Embark has zero control over their game"

Cheating in Arc Raiders is becoming common to the point of major streamers calling it out. Michael 'Shroud' Grzesiek, former FPS pro turned streamer, is the latest figure to discuss the regularity of finding players breaking the game to win, joining an increasingly frustrated chorus.

In a recent stream, Grzesiek mentioned encountering cheaters often enough that he’s considering taking a break from the game. "Embark has zero control over their game," he says in a clip reposted on X/Twitter. "If there's no meaningful change in the next week, two weeks, what's the point in fucking playing?"

He calls Arc Raiders "a waste of time," while his streaming partner, Justin 'Just9n' Ortiz, claims "50% of each lobby is cheating." A bold claim, and likely one influenced by the effects of streaming the game at a high level, but also one the post's top response backs up.

"Most people won't get it because they don't play in these top aggressive lobbies," states another X/Twitter user. "At least half the lobby players have VAC bans/previous game bans on record, private accounts, or fresh steam accounts."

Putting a hard number on behavior like this is foolhardy and can lead to circular thinking based on overlapping bias, but normal players have also been complaining about cheating with increased frequency. The PvP-heavy map Stella Montis is developing a reputation for being difficult to play at all due to getting pummeled through the roof thanks to exploits.

Embark Studios has acknowledged the problem to an extent, with a community manager commenting on the official Discord. "All the in-game reports are looked into, but it might take some time," says CM Birdie. "I get your frustration. The team keeps actively taking action against them!"

While irritating, cheating is inevitable as a side effect of the kind of launch and growth Arc Raiders has enjoyed. Embark is no doubt working on solutions, but in the meantime, keep sending in reports to give the devs more data to use.

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