Frozen Trail landed on October 8 as the biggest update ARC Raiders has had so far: a new map in Pendola Pass, the flying ARC Frigate, your own Raider Outpost and a whole new upgrade system for weapons.
Embark threw the gates open at the same time, too: ARC Raiders is free to play until October 12, new content included.
Pendola Pass: the most complex map yet
Pendola Pass is an old Italian mountain village and Exodus transport hub, frozen in icy mountain air. Embark calls it its most complex map to date, with a lot of verticality and dynamic situations like the new Flash Freeze weather condition.
Points of interest include a supermarket, the town square, an observatory and a buried train depot. The real reason you are heading up there is something else though: an ARC Emperor has fallen, and the rare tech inside is waiting for anyone clever enough to find a way in.
The ARC Frigate and three new enemies
The ARC Frigate is a colossal airborne carrier built as a high-risk, high-reward encounter for very experienced Raiders. Get on board and you will have to fight through its passageways, unlock paths and hold out against ARC old and new. Embark is deliberately keeping the rest under wraps.
New in the bestiary:
- Bully: an aggressive machine-learned enemy that gallops straight at you and gives up no ground.
- Skulker: the opposite, lurking at the edge of your vision and striking the moment you look away.
- Hydra: a three-part turret aboard the Frigate whose triple weapon setup can keep a whole squad busy.
Outposts and Weapon Amplification
Celeste is offering you a second home between the Rust Belt and the mountains: the Outpost. You can expand it with modules and furnish it, and Embark says this is only the start of a feature it wants to grow a lot further.
The centrepiece is the Research Workstation. That is where you unlock Weapon Amplification, a branching upgrade system that can completely change how a gun behaves. Embark's examples include a fully automatic Burletta, a scoped Renegade and a Rattler with incendiary rounds and a 64-round drum. Fifteen weapons support it at launch, with more planned.
New weapons, the Grapple Hook and stencils
- Stiletto: a light-ammo battle rifle that is cheap to craft, an early-game alternative to the Renegade.
- Bantam: a snub-nosed heavy-ammo revolver with its own hip-fire trick.
- Grapple Hook: climb, abseil and swing across gaps, a genuinely new way to move through the terrain.
- Weapon Stencils: your own pattern on your gun. Just remember that whoever drops you will happily take your personalised weapon home.
Reward Passes replace Raider Decks
As flagged with Update 1.45.0, Frozen Trail swaps Raider Decks for Reward Passes. The Frozen Trail Reward Pass has 60 levels:
- Free Pass: all the new base outfits, cosmetics, plus weapons, gadgets, items and up to 200 Raider Tokens.
- Premium Pass: outfit toggles and colourways, legendary stencils, hairstyles and up to 1,150 Raider Tokens. It costs 1,150 Raider Tokens, so it pays for itself when completed, and it holds no gameplay items.
Old Raider Deck rewards move into the free Legacy Reward Pass. On top of that you get a reworked Skill Tree, new questlines and the Redirection map condition.
Free to play until October 12
With the first anniversary coming up, ARC Raiders is free to play from October 8 at 11:00 CEST until October 12 at 10:00 CEST. That is the full game, Frozen Trail included. There will not be a better moment to drag your friends along for a while.
FAQ
How much does Frozen Trail cost?
Nothing, the update is free for everyone. There is an optional Frozen Trail Collector Set DLC with cosmetics, 2,400 Raider Tokens and access to the Premium Reward Pass.
When does the free weekend end?
Monday, October 12, 2026 at 10:00 CEST.
Which weapons get Weapon Amplification?
Fifteen at launch, including the Burletta, Renegade and Rattler, with more to follow.