Arc Raiders publisher deploys AI anti-cheat stack with permanent bans and license blacklisting

Cheating continues to degrade the multiplayer experience in Arc Raiders, prompting Embark Studios to deploy a comprehensive AI-driven anti-cheat stack. This shift matters because the studio is moving away from temporary suspensions to permanent bans that lock players out of the game indefinitely. Buyers and active players should care because the enforcement is now immediate and irreversible, removing any opportunity to appeal or return to the lobby.

Embark Studios enforces zero-second-chance permabans and blacklists game licenses

The new system combines three distinct layers of protection to identify and remove cheaters. Embark Studios uses kernel-level protection from Denuvo to secure the game client at a deep system level. The studio also integrates detections from Anybrain, an AI service specialized in spotting suspicious in-game behavior. Finally, the developer employs a growing set of in-house machine learning models to analyze data patterns that standard tools might miss.

Aleks, the Executive Producer at Embark Studios, explained that these systems work together to build confidence before taking action. He stated that the goal is to identify suspicious behavior while allowing the detection models to improve as new cheats emerge. The studio confirmed that cheating will never fully go away, but the new stack aims to make it significantly harder to operate undetected.

Enforcement has become much stricter under the new policy. Permanent bans are now the standard sanction for cheating, with no warnings or second chances provided to offenders. Game licenses are blacklisted, meaning any accounts linked to a banned license are also permabanned. This ensures that cheaters cannot simply create new accounts to continue playing on the same software keys.

Embark Studios is also developing hardware bans to prevent repeat offenders from returning with new accounts. The studio plans to implement this solution later this year, though the exact date remains unconfirmed. This move risks affecting innocent buyers who purchase used hardware that has been previously flagged, a concern highlighted by similar incidents in other games like Valorant.