If you have been spending time in Arc Raiders lately, you have probably seen the big argument over free loadouts kicking off again. It has been hanging around for a while, but since Stella Montis dropped, it has blown up. The community feels split on what should happen. Some yell for heavy nerfs, some say scrap them, and a few even push the idea of making these players spawn late as a sort of penalty for not risking gear. The thing is, none of those really crack the actual problem. The issue is way more tangled than just tweaking stats or removing something, especially when you look at how the map plays. With a fast, brutal design that keeps bumping people into each other, Stella ramps up the tension and you end up facing loads of “naked runners” rolling in with a free pistol, basic meds, and a shield — courtesy of the ARC Raiders Items system.
On paper, that kit is nothing special. But in the right hands? It can still smack down someone who has spent time and resources gearing up. And here is the real twist — when you have decent weapons and armor, you think about your moves more. You consider angles, keep distance, avoid messy fights. You have that “gear fear” in the back of your head, knowing one bad push could cost you hours of grinding. The free loadout player does not carry that weight. They are charging toward every shot they hear because if they die, no big deal. If they win, they scoop up a huge haul without ever putting anything at risk. On Stella Montis, where close-range encounters are constant, that fearless style becomes a nightmare for those trying to play smart.
Removing free kits entirely would wreck new players and anyone struggling after a bad run. You would end up in a “rich get richer” loop, bleeding out the player base fast. Tuning them down to useless would land the same way — you would choke comebacks before they even start. And the whole “late spawn” punishment idea? It just feels petty. It does not change behaviour; it just frustrates people before the match even gets going. The fundamental snag is not that free loadouts are in the game, it is that right now they reward a reckless, one-dimensional rush style that steamrolls the flow the rest of us want.
Maybe the answer is to adjust what these kits offer without killing them off. Or link them to performance over recent matches so there is still some stake in play. You could add small hurdles before grabbing a free kit, like having to complete a quick objective first. That gives low-resourced players something without letting them sprint straight into chaos. Changing incentives could shift the mindset from kamikaze runs to more varied play, which would keep fights tense but fair. And if the devs nail that balance, free kits could become a bridge for struggling players instead of a wrecking ball for everyone loaded up with ARC Raiders gear.
