The Riven Tides update is shaping up to be the biggest content drop ARC Raiders has seen since launch. A brand-new map with a sweeping coastal setting, new enemies, and fresh weapons are all on the table, and the community has been counting down the days since Embark Studios first teased the location. Here's everything confirmed so far and what you can reasonably expect when the update goes live.
When Does the Riven Tides Map Release?
Embark Studios has not confirmed an exact date, but the pattern from previous updates makes April 28 the strongest candidate. Every monthly ARC Raiders update since launch has dropped on the final Tuesday of its respective month, without exception.
Three consecutive updates, all on the final Tuesday. That's a reliable enough cadence to plan around. Mark April 28 on your calendar and expect a maintenance window sometime that morning before the servers come back up with the new content live.
Riven Tides map selection screen
What Do We Know About the New Map?
The community has been calling it Riven Tides, though Embark has not officially confirmed that as the map's final name. What Embark has confirmed through promotional images is that the environment is built around a coastal theme, and it looks significantly larger than anything currently in the rotation.
Based on the released images, the map spans both land and open water, with notable verticality built into the terrain. That elevation difference opens up sightlines that don't exist on flatter maps like the Buried City or the Blue Gate, which means long-range builds and sniper-oriented loadouts could become considerably more viable here than they are elsewhere.
Embark has been seeding hints about Riven Tides for several weeks before the official reveal, suggesting the studio has been planning this addition for some time.
Coastal elevation and water zones
How Does Riven Tides Compare to Existing Maps?
Players who have spent serious time in the Dam Battlegrounds, Spaceport, Stella Montis, and the other current locations will notice the shift immediately. The existing maps lean heavily on industrial and urban environments. Riven Tides breaks from that pattern entirely with open water, shoreline structures, and what appear to be multi-level coastal installations.
That change in biome does more than just alter the visual setting. Water-adjacent terrain typically creates natural chokepoints at bridges and docks, forces players to think vertically when approaching elevated positions, and changes how ARC enemies patrol and pursue. Adapting your loadout before you drop into a new map is always worth the time.
warning
Don't assume your current go-to loadout will translate directly to Riven Tides. The verticality and open sightlines suggest mid-to-long range builds will outperform close-quarters setups in many areas of the map.
What Other Content Comes With Riven Tides?
According to Forbes' coverage of the Escalation update series, Riven Tides is the final update in the Escalation arc, and Embark has described it as promising a new Large Arc enemy, likely comparable in scale to the Queens and Matriarch-tier threats already in the game. New weapons are also expected alongside the map, continuing the pattern set by Headwinds, Shrouded Sky, and Flashpoint, each of which added at least one new gun to the loot pool.
For more ARC Raiders coverage and guides on every update as it lands, browse the latest guides at GAMES.GG.