Many players prefer cooperation over PvP.
The new extraction shooter ARC Raiders has drawn considerable attention. Although it’s a PvPvE title, users have noticed that players sometimes avoid PvP and join forces — the reasons for this trend remain puzzling to some.
Debates have sprung up between camps for and against PvP, spilling out from ARC Raiders’ battlegrounds onto community forums.
Eurogamer reporters spoke with a sociologist to examine the academic perspective: why ARC Raiders players form these alliances and how long the anti‑PvP movement might persist.
Luke Millard said:
The more I explored the topic, the more my view evolved. I observed an increasing number of people shifting toward anti‑PvP attitudes — more players condemning PvP and even punishing those who engage in it. From a sociological perspective, I’d say this is rooted in dynamics of power and authority.
The sociologist pointed out a trend: the games industry often produces linear experiences with limited choices that deprive players of autonomy.
So when a player is offered a choice — and I think that’s a positive development — about how to play, they tend to align with other players. In this context, that alignment often means opting out of PvP.
Millard connects this behavior to a sense of camaraderie, visible in titles like Helldivers 2 and Battlefield. Yet not every game encourages such generosity:
I think what we see in these games parallels Escape from Tarkov: there you help no one, you raid, grab as much loot as possible, and leave — it’s ruthless. I’m not sure what about ARC Raiders fosters the kindness we observe; it seems it wasn’t just present at launch but has effectively become the default way to play. All weekend I watched people ‘punish’ PvP players (laughs).
The sociologist believes that, over time, PvP participation will rise and that offering a separate PvE mode isn’t an ideal solution:
I believe that if non‑PvP players don’t become a driving force in the game’s development or an integral part of its fabric, they will eventually dwindle. A separate PvE mode removes the nuance. If the non‑PvP experience is implemented inorganically — if players are effectively forced out of PvP — it robs the game of pleasure and fellowship, removes authenticity, and consequently erodes the bonds players form. Without the element of risk, those connections disappear.
Source: iXBT.games