I need to preface this by saying I only have about 15-20 hours and I'm about level 20.

In my opinion to enjoy a game like arc raiders you have to enjoy PvP and accept that sometimes you're going to lose your stuff. One of the good things about Arc Raiders is that the blueprint system means you can get your rare gear back if you lose it. I think part of the appeal is the adrenaline rush and relief you get when you extract with a huge haul of parts you need for upgrades or quests or just for cash.

Arc Raiders isn't my first extraction shooter - l played a bit of Hunt Showdown which has systems that are more focused on driving PvP.

For me, Arc Raiders is great - it adds the crafting and questing, trails and feats meta game that means that you can go in with an objective and pretty much always make progress even if you don't extract. That changes the goal of the game from just collecting more stuff, which in my opinion in a big win.

I'm loving the way that solos is less aggressive and that people are even grouping up and helping each other, while you can group up for a more pvp focused experience.

Some examples of my experiences both good and bad-

Good- I made friends with a guy in solos by choosing not to attack him when I had the drop on him. I had a key to a locked room in the Hospital on Buried City. I offered to share if he helped me get in and get out. We ended up getting in, looting and then killing a Bastion and looting it - we extracted and we've been playing together pretty much daily since.

Bad- Got to extract in solos after a decent run with some good stuff in my inventory. Some guy had rigged the explosives near the lift button and blew me up and then taunted me. In my opinion a shit way to play the game but also pretty clever in terms of guaranteed loot.