TheRetroArcade
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Posts: 2,117
Joined: Feb 2026
Joined: Feb 2026
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Every Friday
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This lapsed Arc Raiders player was not ready for the Flashpoint update. I hopped into a Blue Gate match with the new Scrutiny condition aiming to have a firsthand encounter with the Vaporizer, the fresh ARC drone unleashed topside.
Mistake! The first thing I witnessed upon emerging from spawn was the crimson glow of a raider flare. Just below the flare was a pair of Vaporizers, sized similarly to the Rocketeer, melting its next victim with blue laser beams. Another flare. These things live up to their names.
At least four other raiders in my friendly solo lobby had to come together to take it down while another went for revives. I would say the Vaporizer is basically a Rocketeer that shoots lasers, but this would disrespect its seemingly relentless armor, Matriarch energy shield, superior agility, and ability to melt multiple targets at once. The Vaporizer does not gradually hunt from a distance like its explosive predecessor, but darts across the sky, flanking at any opportunity.
Early encounters indicate the Vaporizer has two main moves. From a distance, there's a ranged laser blast that instantly vaporizes a light shield (ask me how I know this), eats a big chunk of health, and sets you and the ground on fire. Get enough to really earn its attention, and it'll use the sustained laser beam guaranteed to kill unless you can break line of sight. Much like all of the big baddies, your only real chance against one solo is to to hug a piece of cover with a generous overhang and tear down its armor piece by piece.
During the Scrutiny event, the Vaporizers can spawn in packs of three around the Assessors, unique loot opportunities that drop from the sky every few minutes. My coworkers who play a lot more Arc Raiders than I do say you should pack like you're fighting a Queen: Wolfpacks, Hullcrackers, and way more healing items than you think you'll need. Even with all that in mind, I've never seen more PvE death and destruction than with Scrutiny. I definitely should have brought more than one stack of defibrillators.
While I wasn't aching for more bots capable of killing me faster than I can react, my und...Read more: Full article on www.pcgamer.com
What do you think about this?
When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission. Here’s how it works.
Keep up to date with the most important stories and the best deals, as picked by the PC Gamer team.
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Every Friday
GamesRadar+
Your weekly update on everything you could ever want to know about the games you already love, games we know you're going to love in the near future, and tales from the communities that surround them.
Every Thursday
GTA 6 O'clock
Our special GTA 6 newsletter, with breaking news, insider info, and rumor analysis from the award-winning GTA 6 O'clock experts.
Every Friday
Knowledge
From the creators of Edge: A weekly videogame industry newsletter with analysis from expert writers, guidance from professionals, and insight into what's on the horizon.
Every Thursday
The Setup
Hardware nerds unite, sign up to our free tech newsletter for a weekly digest of the hottest new tech, the latest gadgets on the test bench, and much more.
Every Wednesday
Switch 2 Spotlight
Sign up to our new Switch 2 newsletter, where we bring you the latest talking points on Nintendo's new console each week, bring you up to date on the news, and recommend what games to play.
Every Saturday
The Watchlist
Subscribe for a weekly digest of the movie and TV news that matters, direct to your inbox. From first-look trailers, interviews, reviews and explainers, we've got you covered.
Once a month
SFX
Get sneak previews, exclusive competitions and details of special events each month!
Join the club
Get full access to premium articles, exclusive features and a growing list of member rewards.
This lapsed Arc Raiders player was not ready for the Flashpoint update. I hopped into a Blue Gate match with the new Scrutiny condition aiming to have a firsthand encounter with the Vaporizer, the fresh ARC drone unleashed topside.
Mistake! The first thing I witnessed upon emerging from spawn was the crimson glow of a raider flare. Just below the flare was a pair of Vaporizers, sized similarly to the Rocketeer, melting its next victim with blue laser beams. Another flare. These things live up to their names.
At least four other raiders in my friendly solo lobby had to come together to take it down while another went for revives. I would say the Vaporizer is basically a Rocketeer that shoots lasers, but this would disrespect its seemingly relentless armor, Matriarch energy shield, superior agility, and ability to melt multiple targets at once. The Vaporizer does not gradually hunt from a distance like its explosive predecessor, but darts across the sky, flanking at any opportunity.
Early encounters indicate the Vaporizer has two main moves. From a distance, there's a ranged laser blast that instantly vaporizes a light shield (ask me how I know this), eats a big chunk of health, and sets you and the ground on fire. Get enough to really earn its attention, and it'll use the sustained laser beam guaranteed to kill unless you can break line of sight. Much like all of the big baddies, your only real chance against one solo is to to hug a piece of cover with a generous overhang and tear down its armor piece by piece.
During the Scrutiny event, the Vaporizers can spawn in packs of three around the Assessors, unique loot opportunities that drop from the sky every few minutes. My coworkers who play a lot more Arc Raiders than I do say you should pack like you're fighting a Queen: Wolfpacks, Hullcrackers, and way more healing items than you think you'll need. Even with all that in mind, I've never seen more PvE death and destruction than with Scrutiny. I definitely should have brought more than one stack of defibrillators.
While I wasn't aching for more bots capable of killing me faster than I can react, my und...Read more: Full article on www.pcgamer.com
What do you think about this?