Arc Raiders Shrouded Sky brings hurricanes, new Arc threats and a weapons reset

The arc raiders shrouded sky update goes live Feb. 24 and bundles a new hurricane map condition, two Arc threats, a free Raider Deck and a broad weapons overhaul that aims to restore intended firing cadence after an unintended "shadow buff. "

Arc Raiders Shrouded Sky patch 1. 17. 0 arrives Feb. 24

Patch Notes 1. 17. 0 for ARC Raiders lays out the Shrouded Sky changes and confirms the update goes live on Feb. 24. The patch adds a hurricane topside condition — violent hurricanes that bring low-visibility combat, powerful gales and hurtling debris — and a new project that tasks players with working with Shani to collect materials to build a better weather-monitoring system.

Two lethal Arc threats: Firefly and The Comet

The update introduces two new Arc types spotted by scouts in the Rust Belt. The Firefly is described as a drone with flamethrower capabilities and called "a floating nightmare; " it will burn Raiders "to a crisp" if they fail to find cover or other means to escape its jet of flames. The Comet is a ground-bound sphere that patrols the surface of the Rust Belt, locks onto Raiders who venture too close and then explodes, causing serious damage.

Weapons overhaul: 1. 13, 1. 13. 1 and the shadow buff

Developers traced recent combat oddities back through a sequence of fixes. An optimization in 1. 13 lowered the total fire-rate of semi-automatic weapons. The 1. 13. 1 update reverted that optimization but introduced an unintended side effect: many players reported a "shadow buff. " Investigation found 1. 13. 1 had impacted weapon input buffers so that, instead of timing inputs to a weapon's intended cadence, players could spam-click to bypass that cadence.

To find a middle ground, the team added more levers to control weapon input buffering on a gun-to-gun basis and adjusted semi-automatic weapons accordingly. The notes say weapons will remain more responsive to spam-clicking, but players who pace their shots should now see better results.

Specific weapon tuning and PvP balance

The patch targets perceived imbalances between low-tier and high-tier arms. Designers noted community concerns that some low-tier weapons outperform higher-tier options at lower cost. To address that, the update reduces overall time-to-kill for the Stitcher and the Kettle, increases maneuverability for the Aphelion and the Jupiter, and takes "a second stab" at the Venator, which the notes say still seems to be dominating PvP encounters.

Dev notes break out the Stitcher and Kettle changes: the Stitcher will have reduced full-spray accuracy and a lowered headshot multiplier to bring headshot TTK closer to body-shot TTK because its fast TTK at very close range was producing situations where players were ambushed and killed before they had much time to react. The Kettle's base damage is being reduced to discourage its current close-quarters SMG-style use, while keeping a high headshot multiplier to encourage more headshots.

Since the last nerfs to the Venator in 1. 3. 0, we've kept an eye on our data to unclear in the provided context

Cosmetics, The Surgeon Raider Deck and extras

Shrouded Sky also adds a free Raider Deck called The Surgeon. The Surgeon cosmetic is gradually unlocked by completing the Raider Deck; players can choose between Dr. Jekyll or Mr. Hyde personas and the update copy urges players to "scrub up, take your oath, and head topside to heal… or wreak havoc. " Facial-hair options ship with the patch: the Stubble cosmetic will be instantly available to all players on release, the Full Beard is an unlockable feature of The Surgeon Raider Deck, and two additional styles — the Stubble Beard and Thick Moustache — will be available to purchase in the in-game store starting Feb. 24. The developer quipped, "Don't worry if it feels weird at first… it grows on you. "

An unrelated aside included in the provided context reads as a short, stout line: "Short and stout, this is my handle, this is my spout. "

Players can expect the hurricane map condition, the new Arc threats, The Surgeon Raider Deck and the weapon adjustments to arrive together when the Shrouded Sky update patch goes live on Feb. 24.