Right, that's it, I've already had enough of Arc Raiders' terrifying tumbleweeds

Arc Raiders: Key art of a raider looking over their shoulder in a forest to look at another raider in the aiming at them in the distance.

I don't think I'm alone in saying Arc Raiders is a horror game, at least at times. I'm not normally afraid to go toe to toe with Arcs or other players, but with a backpack full of loot on the line, I'm always making a beeline for the exit.

There's nothing that makes said escape more terrifying than thinking you saw something, or someone, moving in your peripheral vision. Maybe it's a player setting up the perfect ambush and you're walking into a trap? Perhaps it's a friendly player, though you'll find out too late if it's not.

Is that a person or a tumbleweed? I can't quite tell. (Image credit: Embark)

Or maybe it wasn't a player at all. More often than not, it's nothing more than a dead, dried-out plant rolling on by without a care in the world—completely oblivious to the fact that I either just shat my pants or was prepared to unload a full mag on it. Somehow they never fail to trick me into thinking they're a player stalking me, and it's got me feeling like a Bigfoot photographer.

Tumbleweeds are everywhere in Arc Raiders. Honestly, if you told me they were bugged and appearing more often than intended, I'd believe you. Add to this all the random debris also blowing past you, like scraps of paper, and you'll be seeing enemies literally everywhere you look.

Despite the instant psychic damage tumbleweeds inflict, or perhaps because of it, some of you sickos want to turn this detritus into an actual enemy. Tumbleweed armed with guns or claws, really?

ARC Tumbleweed Mimic Concept from r/ArcRaiders

As much as the mere thought sends me into a spiral, I'll admit I do think it would be a very funny move on Embark's part. This concept by ReffiComics is a good example of what could be done to weaponise tumbleweed, effectively turning them into robotic, face-hugging spiders. Oh, I guess now's the time to mention I'm also an arachnophobe.

If tumbleweed were to gain sentience, I hope Embark doesn't clue us in beforehand. I'd love to see the reactions of someone discovering this new enemy for the first time, so long as that person isn't me.

I did a comic strip and ode to our biggest rival tumbleweed! from r/ArcRaiders

A Common Occurrence from r/ArcRaiders