ARC Raiders release timing sparks a fascinating debate about how games compete with each other

Today, thanks to an article from PC Gamer, I realized that ARC Raiders is releasing right between Battlefield 6 and Call of Duty: Black Ops 7, which releases next month, a situation Embark Studios CEO Patrick Söderlund may be all too familiar with. Söderlund now runs the studio that developed ARC Raiders, but he was also the Vice President at EA when Titanfall 2 was infamously released between Battlefield and Call of Duty, a move many fans consider a major factor in its failure. Thankfully, ARC Raiders is having its moment, but there is a strange debate on Reddit about whether it competes with other popular shooter games.

Does ARC Raiders compete with games like Battlefield 6 and Call of Duty?

The story was shared on the PC gaming subreddit, and a common response to the concern about ARC Raiders' release timing is that the new extraction shooter does not compete with games like Battlefield 6 and Call of Duty. The top comment on the post reads: “…This is a very different situation, both Battlefield 6 and Black Ops 7 are multiplayer-focused FPS games, and ARC Raiders is a third-person co-op extraction shooter. They’re really only similar as far as ‘they have guns in them…’” The user elaborates that Titanfall 2 falls more into the former category, which is why it was more in competition with the others. But, frankly, this seems like a very narrow view of how video games compete for player time.

Some users argue that ARC Raiders is too different to compete.Source: Reddit

Take, for example, recent comments from the head of Xbox Game Studios, Matt Booty. When asked by The New York Times why Microsoft has decided to bring Halo: Campaign Evolved to PlayStation, he said, “We are all seeking to meet people where they are. Our biggest competition isn’t another console; we are competing more and more with everything from TikTok to movies.” While there are certainly flaws in this way of thinking, and Xbox isn’t exactly crushing the console wars right now, it does drive home the point about competing for attention in today’s world.

Thankfully, other Reddit users joined the conversation as well. Another user wrote a comment similar to the top one: “ARC Raiders isn’t even competing with COD/BF, every aspect is far far far different to the other two titans…” One user responded, saying, “There are people in this thread saying that they would love to play ARC Raiders but are playing Battlefield instead. They are absolutely competing with each other…” and another user added: “…This isn’t a toaster vs fridge situation. All multiplayer games are competitors to some extent because players don’t have unlimited time, and the games need continued engagement to work.” Yes, these games are different, but they are still competing for the same audience.

There are users even in this Reddit thread that are choosing Battlefield.Source: Reddit

If my friends message me tonight after work to say they are playing ARC Raiders and want me to jump on, I will look down at my Nintendo Switch, where I’m trying to finish my playthrough of Pokémon Legends: Z-A, and have to make a decision. I would be the first to say that those two games are monumentally different, but that doesn’t mean they're not both competing for the same few hours I have to game at the end of the day. There is not an infinite amount of time to play both, and there is not an unlimited number of players to ensure both games have enough.

Earlier this year, you might remember that many developers were waiting to announce a release date until we heard from Rockstar about Grand Theft Auto 6. Then, in September, when Team Cherry finally announced the release date for Hollow Knight: Silksong, many indie developers moved their release dates. Even larger games like Hell is Us may have been impacted by the timing of that release. This isn't because all these games are too similar to the others; it’s just a matter of time and attention.

All that said, ARC Raiders is having a great launch despite its potentially awkward timing. It’s always exciting to see a new game break through the noise, especially when it’s not the same old franchises from EA and Activision. The true test will be if it keeps it up months from now, so we will have to keep an eye on that going forward.

ARC Raiders

October 30, 2025

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• Overview

• EA / Electronic Arts
• Call of Duty (franchise)
• Battlefield (franchise)
• Titanfall (franchise)
• Embark Studios