Arc Raiders just pulled a Helldivers 2: players spot enormous, unannounced UFOs after Shrouded Sky update goes live

Arc Raiders trailer screenshot of woman holding a rifle
(Image credit: Embark Studios)

The big Arc Raiders Shrouded Sky update arrived earlier today, and we now know developer Embark Studios very purposefully left a major addition out of the lengthy patch notes: there are UFOs zooming through the sky.

Reddit user Bewarden was among the many players whose gasts were flabbered by this discovery (thanks, PC Gamer). In the clip they shared, a huge flying ship with blue lights on its underside is seen soaring over Spaceport during the new hurricane map condition. A heavy whoosh fades out as the vessel – which is moving at quite a clip, and looks massive even at this altitude – disappears into the clouds.

What in tarnation is that? from r/ArcRaiders

All of the UFO sighting reports I've seen have come from hurricane maps (which could be anything except Stella Montis as the map condition rotates), so if you're hoping to see it for yourself, I'd start there until we learn more.

The closest analog to a live service game stealthily deploying a massive teaser like this is Helldivers 2, which has a history of not only not telling players about new enemies or vehicles entering the Galactic War, but actively lying to them about such things with gaslighting and propaganda.

Arc Raiders hasn't gone that far – and if anything, I'd expect the Speranza elite to encourage an investigation here – but Embark has been tight-lipped about these UFOs.

Are these actually ships with pilots and passengers, or just very large Arc? Is there a bigger lore bomb looming, like these UFOs being manmade? Is this a sign of things to come in future updates, like the March content drop, or does Shrouded Sky have an Act 2 in reserve? How many Anvil rounds would it take to shoot down one of these things? Many questions remain. Nothing to do but to brave the hurricane winds and keep your eyes peeled.

"A floating nightmare": Arc Raiders' big Shrouded Sky update has 2 new Arc, a big Dam Battlegrounds change, confirmed beards, and even an outfit for the friendliest players.

Austin Wood
Senior writer

Austin has been a game journalist for 12 years, having freelanced for the likes of PC Gamer, Eurogamer, IGN, Sports Illustrated, and more while finishing his journalism degree. He's been with GamesRadar+ since 2019. They've yet to realize his position is a cover for his career-spanning Destiny column, and he's kept the ruse going with a lot of news and the occasional feature, all while playing as many roguelikes as possible.

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