ARC Raiders Adds Hurricane Map Condition in Shrouded Sky Update on February 24 2026

Embark Studios is dialing up the environmental pressure in ARC Raiders with a new hurricane map condition arriving next week as part of the Shrouded Sky update, landing on February 24 2026. The reveal comes with a short teaser that sets the tone for how disruptive the storms will be, even without showing direct gameplay.

Embark also published a detailed breakdown on the official ARC Raiders site that clarifies this is not just cosmetic weather. The studio is positioning hurricanes as a full gameplay modifier that reshapes movement, combat decision making, visibility, and even how you approach your loadout before going Topside.

The lore framing is clear and ominous. The climate is damaged and unpredictable, and violent weather events are becoming the new normal across the surface. Southern Italy is now set to become the next proving ground for Raiders willing to gamble on chaos. In practical terms, the hurricane condition impacts core fundamentals that players usually take for granted.

Movement becomes a stamina tax. Running against the wind slows you down and drains stamina quickly, which means rotations, escapes, and last second pushes become more expensive. The storm also forces you to rethink throwables. Grenades and other thrown items can be pulled off course by the wind if you do not compensate, and the same applies to gas and smoke grenades, where shifting winds can undermine the cover or area denial you expected to create.

Then there is the physical danger. Flying debris is a major threat, ranging from smaller particles to larger objects that can hit hard. Your shield can take damage from debris, and that damage creates a visibility tradeoff, since the constant flash of your shield can make you easier to spot. Embark also highlights an interesting risk choice here. If you go Topside without a shield, you lose protection, but you also gain a layer of camouflage because you are not broadcasting your position through shield visibility.

Visibility overall is reduced during hurricanes, meaning awareness becomes a premium skill. Limited sightlines increase the chance of being surprised by other Raiders or ARC, and the storm becomes both a threat and an opportunity depending on how you manage noise, movement, and angles.

With that much downside, the natural question is why anyone would opt into the hurricane condition. Embark’s answer is loot. Hurricanes can expose valuable Raider caches, specifically First Wave caches tied to ARC Raiders lore, implying higher value rewards than standard cache runs. The studio is essentially creating a high risk, high reward loop where the storm itself becomes the gatekeeper to premium loot, and the best route is not always the safest one.

If Shrouded Sky delivers as described, hurricanes could become a meaningful meta shift. Not just a new effect, but a condition that rewards players who adapt their loadouts, trajectories, and engagement timing to the storm rather than fighting it. On February 24 2026, we will see what First Wave cache rewards actually look like and whether the risk to go Topside during a hurricane is worth the payout.

When hurricanes go live on February 24 2026, are you planning to farm First Wave caches immediately, or will you wait until the community figures out the safest storm routes and loadouts?