Arc Raiders combines tight, skill-focused gunplay with fluid parkour movement and surreal sci-fi arenas to create a shooter that rewards precision, positioning, and movement. Whether you’re closing the gap with a dash, flanking with vertical traversal, or locking onto targets in chaotic team fights, the game emphasizes player skill and responsiveness as much as raw graphical fidelity.

Below is a deeper, more detailed guide to system requirements, tuning, troubleshooting, and getting the best possible experience from Arc Raiders — from low-end laptops to ultra 4K rigs.

Why system requirements actually matter

Hardware isn’t just a checklist. Each component plays a role:

• CPU handles AI, physics, and world simulation; in open zones, it can be the bottleneck.
• GPU renders frames and visual effects; ray tracing and high resolution scale primarily with GPU power.
• RAM keeps assets and background processes in memory; low RAM causes swapping which kills smoothness.
• Storage affects load times and streaming of assets; SSDs remove hitching caused by slow reads.
• Matching components to the experience you want (stable 60 FPS vs 120+ FPS with ray tracing at 4K) is the fastest way to avoid frustration.

Minimum System requirements

Best for players who want to run the game on modest hardware at reduced settings. Expect 720p–900p, medium to low visuals.

• OS: Windows 10 (64-bit)
• CPU: Intel i5-4460 or AMD FX-8350 (quad core-ish baseline)
• RAM: 8 GB
• GPU: NVIDIA GTX 960 or AMD R9 380
• Storage: 50 GB (SSD recommended)
• Peripherals: DirectX-compatible audio, keyboard & mouse or controller

Recommended (smooth 1080p/60)

Good balance of visuals and performance for most players. Target 1080p at 60 FPS with many settings on high.

• OS: Windows 10 / 11 (64-bit)
• CPU: Intel i7-9700K or AMD Ryzen 5 3600X
• RAM: 16 GB
• GPU: NVIDIA RTX 2060 Super or AMD RX 5600 XT
• Storage: NVMe SSD (50 GB free)

High / Competitive (high FPS 1440p/120)

For competitive players prioritizing high frame rates and reduced input latency.

• CPU: Intel i7/i9 (10th gen+) or AMD Ryzen 5/7 (Zen 2+)
• RAM: 16–32 GB
• GPU: NVIDIA RTX 3070 or AMD RX 6700 XT and up
• Storage: NVMe SSD

Ultra / Future-Proof (4K, ray tracing, high FPS)

Max visuals, ray tracing turned on, high refresh rate monitors — expensive but spectacular.

• CPU: Intel Core i9-12900K or AMD Ryzen 9 5900X (or newer equivalents)
• GPU: NVIDIA RTX 3080 Ti / 4080 class or AMD RX 6900 XT / 7900 XT and up
• RAM: 32 GB DDR4/DDR5
• Storage: 1 TB NVMe SSD

Deep dive: how each component affects Arc Raiders

CPU: Large open maps, many NPCs or physics events increase CPU load. If you observe low GPU utilization but poor FPS, the CPU is likely limiting performance.
GPU: Resolution and ray tracing scale GPU load heavily. If you want crisp visuals at 1440p+ or ray tracing on, prioritize GPU upgrades first.

RAM & Storage:

• 8 GB is tight in modern Windows setups. 16 GB is the sweet spot; 32 GB if you multitask (streaming, Discord, browser tabs).
• NVMe SSDs shorten load times and reduce pop-in; HDDs can cause in-game hitching when streaming assets.

In-game settings — practical tuning advice

Rather than blindly maxing everything, target settings that give the best visual/ performance tradeoff.

Highest-impact settings to adjust first

• Shadow Quality: large FPS gains when lowered. Shadows are expensive.
• Ambient Occlusion / Screen Space Effects: moderate cost; lowering often helps more than reducing texture quality.
• View/Draw Distance: lowers CPU and GPU load in open areas.
• Anti-Aliasing: prefer TAA/DLSS/FSR for high quality at lower cost over MSAA.
• Post-Processing: Bloom, motion blur, and depth of field are cosmetic; reduce them if you want clarity and higher FPS.

If you use DLSS/FSR/AMD upscalers:

• Use performance or balanced modes to upsample from a lower render resolution for large FPS boosts while keeping visual sharpness.

Windows and GPU control tweaks

• Power plan: set Windows to High performance (or equivalent) when gaming.
• Game Mode: enable Windows Game Mode to reduce background interruption.
• NVIDIA Control Panel / AMD Radeon Settings: set preferred GPU, turn off power saving for the GPU, set texture filtering to high performance if needed.
• Disable Fullscreen Optimizations: sometimes reduces stutter for certain games — test on and off.

Monitoring and benchmarking — tools and methodology

Use these tools to find bottlenecks and measure improvements:

• MSI Afterburner + RivaTuner: on-screen FPS, GPU/CPU usage, temps.
• HWiNFO: deep telemetry for CPU/GPU/RAM/voltages.
• CrystalDiskMark: test SSD read/write speeds.
• In-game benchmark tools (if available) or consistent, repeatable runs through the same area to compare settings.

How to benchmark properly

1. Reboot and close background apps.
2. Use a fixed scene or path (same spot in the game).
3. Run multiple passes and average the results.
4. Record 1% and 0.1% lows, not just average FPS — lows show stutters.

Troubleshooting — step-by-step

Frequent crash at launch

1. Verify game files with launcher.
2. Update GPU drivers, DirectX, and Visual C++ redistributables.
3. Run game as Administrator or try windowed mode.

Persistent low FPS

1. Check for thermal throttling (monitor temps).
2. Ensure GPU drivers are latest and no background app is hogging CPU.
3. Lower shadows/view distance and test again.

Stutter or micro-hitches

1. Ensure game files are on an SSD, not an HDD.
2. Disable unnecessary overlays (some Discord overlays can stutter).
3. Test with V-Sync off if input latency matters; enable only if screen tearing is an issue.

Thermals, airflow, and maintenance

• Regularly clean dust from fans and filters.
• Replace thermal paste every 2–4 years depending on use and temperatures.
• Good cable management improves airflow.
• Add intake/exhaust fans if case airflow is poor.
• Keep GPU and CPU temps below their thermal limits (ideally under 80–85°C under load).

Overclocking — optional and with caution

• Overclocking can buy additional FPS but increases heat and potentially reduces stability.
• Start with GPU vendor overclocking tools or MSI Afterburner; increase clocks in small steps and stress test.
• For CPUs, use BIOS or vendor software; monitor voltages closely. If you’re inexperienced, avoid aggressive overclocks.

Peripherals & network

• Low latency mice and high refresh rate monitors matter for responsiveness.
• Wired Ethernet connection reduces packet loss and latency vs Wi-Fi for competitive play.
• If streaming, ensure upload bandwidth and CPU core headroom are sufficient.

Cloud gaming — deeper look

Cloud services let you run Arc Raiders on remote high-end hardware and stream the frames to you. Good option if you lack a modern GPU.

• Pros: play on low-end devices, minimal upfront hardware cost.
• Cons: input latency, dependency on stable internet; peak quality may still be slightly behind local ultra settings.
• Connection recommendation: 25+ Mbps stable download at minimum, <50 ms ping for best experience.

Expanded benchmark table (more granular)

Tier	Example Hardware	Target Resolution	Typical Settings	Avg. FPS
Minimum	GTX 960 + i5-4460	720p	Low	30–45
Budget 1080p	GTX 1650 Super + Ryzen 5 2600	1080p	Medium	45–60
Recommended	RTX 2060 Super + i7-9700K	1080p	High	60–90
Competitive	RTX 3070 + Ryzen 7 5800X	1440p	High/RT off	90–140
Ultra 4K	RTX 3080 Ti + i9-12900K	4K	Ultra + RT	50–80

FAQs (expanded)

• Will a laptop run it? Yes, modern gaming laptops with discrete GPUs (RTX 2060/3060+) can run it, but thermals limit sustained performance compared to desktops.
• Do mods increase requirements? Heavily — texture or lighting mods can multiply GPU/VRAM demands.
• Is ray tracing necessary? No. It improves visuals but costs a lot of performance; upscalers (DLSS/FSR) help reclaim FPS.
• How often update drivers? Check monthly or when the GPU vendor releases game-specific drivers. Update immediately if a new driver solves an issue you’re facing.

Final thoughts — balancing budget vs experience

Start by defining your target: playable 1080p/60, competitive 1440p/120, or cinematic 4K/RT. Invest first in the component that moves you toward that target (GPU for higher resolution/RT, CPU for high FPS in CPU-bound scenes). Keep your system tidy, drivers current, and use the in-game settings intelligently — you’ll often get far more performance by turning down a few expensive effects than by upgrading a whole component.