What’s the deal with Arc Raiders AI?

Embark says it won’t stop using AI in game development

Arc Raiders’ development has kept AI tools at the center of its production conversation, and the studio’s leadership is signaling that this approach is continuing.

Embark Studios—owner Nexon as part of the project’s broader backing—has described using AI tools as a way to speed up creation. In the context of Arc Raiders, the studio’s boss has characterized the process as saving time on work like coding, while freeing more effort for innovation. That message is aimed at reframing AI from “replacement” to “productivity,” at least internally.

The controversy comes from the fact that Arc Raiders’ use of AI was visible enough to draw criticism from players. More than one story in the pool indicates that AI usage for development and/or content creation became a talking point, leading to additional scrutiny after the game’s launch.

What the leadership claims the AI is doing

• Reducing time spent writing code
• Shifting effort toward innovation
• Continuing the workflow rather than turning it off

Arc Raiders also remains the example used for how Embark is operationally applying AI: they’re not positioning it as a temporary experiment.

This matters because it’s part of a broader industry shift. If major studios keep using AI as a standard production aid, it will affect expectations around development timelines, staffing, and how tools are integrated into pipelines. For players, it also influences how future games may incorporate automation and generated assets.

Bottom line: Arc Raiders’ leadership is publicly defending ongoing AI usage as a cost and time saver, even as players remain sensitive to where that line is drawn between acceptable automation and content authorship.