inZoi early access review

Soulless simulation

Image credit:RPS / inZOI Studio

• Developer: InZOI Studio
• Publisher: Krafton
• Release: March 28th, 2025 (Early Access)
• On: Windows
• From: Steam
• Price: TBA
• Reviewed on: AMD Ryzen 9 7950X 16-Core Processor, 32GB RAM, NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 Ti SUPER, Windows 10

I was, like so many of my 1990s-born peers, a huge Sims girlie. I spent hundreds of hours as a teen and young adult making people I knew, characters from shows I was obsessing over, or original characters I wanted to experiment with, and diligently following their life paths and ambitions. I played it as a traditional life sim and I also got into all the weird, scrappy lore. I played with all the cheats and glitches and I, of course, put my sims in the pool and took the ladder out so that they were forced to drown.

Try as I might, I could not capture any of these feelings in InZOI , Krafton’s early access life simulator that I would not typically immediately compare to another game if it did not beg for it by lifting every part of its design from the 25-year-old series that defined the genre. At first, navigating my shiny, photorealistic, model-perfect Zoi’s around the shiny, photorealistic, model-perfect world, I feared that I am simply thirty years old and that the whimsy in my heart has withered with time. But in the end, I must insist that it’s not me who is wrong. InZOI simply has awful vibes.

Starting where you have to start: in character creation. Zois, the game’s controllable characters, are rendered in minute, slightly uncanny valley detail. Absolutely everybody is beautiful, with flawless skin and hair, and god forbid you want to make a fat person. You’ll have to choose between a “male” and a “female” body, and even though you can then set your Zoi’s gender as male, female, or nonbinary, you’ll still be locked into a lot of the baggage those body types imply. You can’t have a beard on a female body, for example.

In short, for a life simulator, you can really only simulate a plastic-y, pared down sort of life. The Sims also has its limitations, but its cartoonish style gives it more leeway. InZOI’s photorealism implies a world close to our own, and so its delineations between the possible and the impossible feel more charged. This is not only true of character creation. When you’re done making Zois and ready to get into the game, there’s plenty to do: build a career, skills, and hobbies; explore the world and visit locations; and navigate relationships with other Zois. But each of these is just as shallow.

Careers, skills, and hobbies are progressed straightforwardly. Your Zoi will have an overlapping set of ambitions and drives to push you towards choosing something among the cacophony of options. Take, for example, Eddie Jenkins, who desires a life of excitement, is a joyful and cheerful adventurer, and values accomplishment. These presumably influence the autoselected ambition to become a fitness star, so I put him to work.

Image credit:RPS / inZOI Studio

First, he wants to buy some home gym equipment, and then use it three times. This is easy enough. He then wants to read 10 fitness books and level up his fitness score to six. This takes a few days of steady reading, and since reading also increases the skill score, there’s not much else to it. He then spends three days doing pull ups to finish the entire ambition by hitting a fitness level of ten. This whole thing took maybe a week in-game and maybe an hour of real time.

I could have spread this out with other activities, of course, but everything else feels just as vapid. Eddie works as an amusement park employee three days a week – this is considered a full time job – during which time he goes and walks around the boardwalk, loosely interacting with vending machines and rides.

His housemate Helen, who is a journalist, sometimes pops up to ask how she should proceed in working on an article. Twice in a row with a couple of days of separation she discovered that her editors were up to something shady and got a bonus for calling them out, but the amusement park doesn’t seem to have any equivalent speedbumps. Eddie walks around. He gestures vaguely at the bins. Sometimes, he, like all Zois, gets a fleeting desire to do something different, like go boxing or talk to someone about his accomplishments. This changes his mood, which theoretically makes it easier to do certain tasks, except that all tasks are frictionless, so in practice it does nothing.

Image credit:RPS / inZOI Studio

Eddie’s intangibility at work extends to any interaction outside of the Zoi’s home. InZOI boasts of its open world; you can walk around as a Zoi and…look at things, I suppose. But I don’t know why you would want to. InZOI doesn’t seem to think it’s worthwhile either: if you actually choose to go somewhere specific, your Zoi will hop on a bus or into a taxi and the world will be replaced by a loading screen. These areas are where a self-driven narrative ought to open up for the creative player, if InZOI had the scaffolding to support it. It does not. You can interact with objects in these locations a thousand different ways, but all of them feel as intangible as doing 72 hours of pullups for no reward.

One aspect which does potentially contain some of the creative spark I was hoping for is the building mechanics. I was never good at this; my Sims lived in ugly, boxy homes covered in mismatched wallpaper and the same cheap paintings. But I do remember the ability to have bowling alley carpets and bizarre, fun sculptures, and InZOI will let you put a badly looping gif of a firework on your walls and an ice cream truck in your garden, which I think is important. (Any of the pre-built homes you move your Zois into will, of course, be immaculately furnished as if by cutting-edge though somewhat sterile interior designers, so I have no doubt players can also create these kinds of homes if they want to and have skills that I do not.)

Image credit:RPS / inZOI Studio

It’s near impossible to leave Zois unattended and also build the social life you’re aiming for, because they will insult people at the drop of a hat and derail whatever you’ve been working on. And not just insult, either. At one point after I swapped away from the wife in a married couple who I had just instructed to spend several minutes talking about how much she wanted a divorce, and she immediately texted her husband saying she thought things were going great these days.

Image credit:RPS / inZOI Studio

I really could go on with detailing all the ways that InZOI’s vibes are simply not good, but here’s a final big one: the whole game is wrapped in this Assassin’s Creed-like meta layer where you’re actually controlling (?) a game developer (??) who works at a building full of cats (???) and is then controlling (????) the Zois in turn.

The only thing this does for the game is add a veneer of corporate soullessness to the whole thing. Alongside the terrifyingly flawless faces and bodies of every Zoi, their obsession with being influencers, and the meaningless achievement grinding as a replacement for opportunities to find real stories to tell, it seems that the only thing I’m simulating is an endless “9-5 in the life of a corporate girlboss” TikTok trend. And, honestly, I find that an insult to every weird teenage girl who’s ever spent the weekend in the Sims burning their family lot to the ground so that they can seduce the grim reaper.

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inZOI

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All 75 Arc Raiders Blueprints and where to get them

These areas have the highest chance of giving you Blueprints

Image credit:Rock Paper Shotgun/Embark Studios

Looking for more Arc Raiders Blueprints? It’s a special day when you find a Blueprint, as they’re among the most valuable items in Arc Raiders. If you find a Blueprint that you haven’t already found, then you must make sure you hold onto it at all costs, because Blueprints are the key to one of the most important and powerful systems of meta-progression in the game.

This guide aims to be the very best guide on Blueprints you can find, starting with a primer on what exactly they are and how they work in Arc Raiders, before delving into exactly where to get Blueprints and the very best farming spots for you to take in your search.

We’ll also go over how to get Blueprints from other unlikely activities, such as destroying Surveyors and completing specific quests. And you’ll also find the full list of all 75 Blueprints in Arc Raiders on this page (including the newest Blueprints added with the Cold Snap update , such as the Deadline Blueprint and Firework Box Blueprint), giving you all the information you need to expand your own crafting repertoire.

In this guide:

• What are Blueprints in Arc Raiders?
• Full Blueprint list: All crafting recipes
• Where to find Blueprints in Arc Raiders Blueprints obtained from quests Blueprints obtained from Trials Best Blueprint farming locations

What are Blueprints in Arc Raiders?

Blueprints in Arc Raiders are special items which, if you manage to extract with them, you can expend to permanently unlock a new crafting recipe in your Workshop. If you manage to extract from a raid with an Anvil Blueprint, for example, you can unlock the ability to craft your very own Anvil Pistol, as many times as you like (as long as you have the crafting materials).

To use a Blueprint, simply open your Inventory while in the lobby, then right-click on the Blueprint and click “Learn And Consume” . This will permanently unlock the recipe for that item in your Workshop. As of the Stella Montis update, there are allegedly 75 different Blueprints to unlock - although only 68 are confirmed to be in the game so far. You can see all the Blueprints you’ve found and unlocked by going to the Workshop menu, and hitting “R” to bring up the Blueprint screen.

It’s possible to find duplicates of past Blueprints you’ve already unlocked. If you find these, then you can either sell them, or - if you like to play with friends - you can take it into a match and gift it to your friend so they can unlock that recipe for themselves. Another option is to keep hold of them until the time comes to donate them to the Expedition.

Full Blueprint list: All crafting recipes

Below is the full list of all the Blueprints that are currently available to find in Arc Raiders, and the crafting recipe required for each item:

Note: The missing Blueprints in this list likely have not actually been added to the game at the time of writing, because none of the playerbase has managed to find any of them. As they are added to the game, I will update this page with the most relevant information so you know exactly how to get all 75 Arc Raiders Blueprints.

Where to find Blueprints in Arc Raiders

Below is a list of all containers, modifiers, and events which maximise your chances of finding Blueprints:

• Certain quests reward you with specific Blueprints .
• Completing Trials has a high chance of offering Blueprints as rewards.
• Surveyors have a decent chance of dropping Blueprints on death.
• High loot value areas tend to have a greater chance of spawning Blueprints.
• Night Raids and Storms may increase rare Blueprint spawn chances in containers.
• Containers with higher numbers of items may have a higher tendency to spawn Blueprints. As a result, Blue Gate (which has many “large” containers containing multiple items) may give you a higher chance of spawning Blueprints.
• Raider containers (Raider Caches, Weapon Boxes, Medical Bags, Grenade Tubes) have increased Blueprint drop rates. As a result, the Uncovered Caches event gives you a high chance of finding Blueprints.
• Security Lockers have a higher than average chance of containing Blueprints.
• Certain Blueprints only seem to spawn under specific circumstances: Tempest Blueprint only spawns during Night Raid events. Vulcano Blueprint only spawns during Hidden Bunker events. Jupiter and Equaliser Blueprints only spawn during Harvester events.

Raider Caches, Weapon Boxes, and other raider-oriented container types have a good chance of offering Blueprints. |Image credit:Rock Paper Shotgun/Embark Studios

Blueprints have a very low chance of spawning in any container in Arc Raiders, around 1-2% on average. However, there is a higher chance of finding Blueprints in particular container types. Specifically, you can find more Blueprints in Raider containers and security lockers.

Beyond this, if you’re looking for Blueprints you should focus on regions of the map which are marked as having particularly high-value loot. Areas such as the Control Tower in Dam Battlegrounds, the Arrival and Departure Buildings in Spaceport, and Pilgrim’s Peak in Blue Gate all have a better-than-average chance of spawning Blueprints somewhere amongst all their containers. Night Raids and Electromagnetic Storm events also increase the drop chances of certain Blueprints .

In addition to these containers, you can often loot Blueprints from destroyed Surveyors - the largest of the rolling ball ARC. Surveyors are more commonly found on the later maps - Spaceport and Blue Gate - and if one spawns in your match, you’ll likely see it by the blue laser beam that it casts into the sky while “surveying”.

Surveyors are quite well-armoured and will very speedily run away from you once it notices you, but if you can take one down then make sure you loot all its parts for a chance of obtaining certain unusual Blueprints.

Blueprints obtained from quests

One way in which you can get Blueprints is by completing certain quests for the vendors in Speranza. Some quests will reward you with a specific item Blueprint upon completion, so as long as you work through all the quests in Arc Raiders, you are guaranteed those Blueprints.

Here is the full list of all Blueprints you can get from quest rewards:

• Trigger Nade Blueprint: Rewarded after completing “Sparks Fly”.
• Lure Grenade Blueprint: Rewarded after completing “Greasing Her Palms”.
• Burletta Blueprint: Rewarded after completing “Industrial Espionage”.
• Hullcracker Blueprint (and Launcher Ammo Blueprint): Rewarded after completing “The Major’s Footlocker”.

Alas, that’s only 4 Blueprints out of a total of 75 to unlock, so for the vast majority you will need to find them yourself during a raid. If you’re intent on farming Blueprints, then it’s best to equip yourself with cheap gear in case you lose it, but don’t use a free loadout because then you won’t get a safe pocket to stash any new Blueprint you find. No pain in Arc Raiders is sharper than failing to extract with a new Blueprint you’ve been after for a dozen hours already.

One of the best ways to get Blueprints is by hitting three stars on all five Trials every week. |Image credit:Rock Paper Shotgun/Embark Studios

Blueprints obtained from Trials

One of the very best ways to get Blueprints is as rewards for completing Trials in Arc Raiders. Trials are unlocked from Level 15 onwards, and allow you to earn rewards by focusing on certain tasks over the course of several raids. For example, one Trial might task you with dealing damage to Hornets, while another might challenge you to loot Supply Drops.

Trials refresh on a weekly basis, with a new week bringing five new Trials. Each Trial can offer up to three rewards after passing certain score milestones, and it’s possible to receive very high level loot from these reward crates - including Blueprints. So if you want to unlock as many Blueprints as possible, you should make a point of completing as many Trials as possible each week.

Best Blueprint farming locations

The very best way to get Blueprints is to frequent specific areas of the maps which combine high-tier loot pools with the right types of containers to search. Here are my recommendations for where to find Blueprints on every map, so you can always keep the search going for new crafting recipes to unlock.

Image credit:Rock Paper Shotgun/Embark Studios

Dam Battlegrounds

The best places to farm Blueprints on Dam Battlegrounds are the Control Tower, Power Generation Complex, Ruby Residence, and Pale Apartments . The first two regions, despite only being marked on the map as mid-tier loot, contain a phenomenal number of containers to loot. The Control Tower can also contain a couple of high-tier Security Lockers - though of course, you’ll need to have unlocked the Security Breach skill at the end of the Survival tree.

There’s also a lot of reporting amongst the playerbase that the Residential areas in the top-left of the map - Pale Apartments and Ruby Residence - give you a comparatively strong chance of finding Blueprints. Considering their size, there’s a high density of containers to loot in both locations, and they also have the benefit of being fairly out of the way. So you’re more likely to have all the containers to yourself.

Buried City

The best Blueprint farming locations on Buried City are the Santa Maria Houses, Grandioso Apartments, Town Hall, and the various buildings of the New District . Grandioso Apartments has a lower number of containers than the rest, but a high chance of spawning weapon cases - which have good Blueprint drop rates. The others are high-tier loot areas, with plenty of lootable containers - including Security Lockers.

Spaceport

The best places to find Blueprints on Spaceport are the Arrival and Departure Buildings, as well as Control Tower A6 and the Launch Towers . All these areas are labelled as high-value loot regions, and many of them are also very handily connected to one another by the Spaceport wall, which you can use to quickly run from one area to the next. At the tops of most of these buildings you’ll find at least one Security Locker, so this is an excellent farming route for players looking to find Blueprints.

The downside to looting Blueprints on Spaceport is that all these areas are hotly contested, particularly in Duos and Squads. You’ll need to be very focused and fast in order to complete the full farming route.

Image credit:Rock Paper Shotgun/Embark Studios

Blue Gate

Blue Gate tends to have a good chance of dropping Blueprints, potentially because it generally has a high number of containers which can hold lots of items; so there’s a higher chance of a Blueprint spawning in each container. In my experience, the best Blueprint farming spots on Blue Gate are Pilgrim’s Peak, Raider’s Refuge, the Ancient Fort, and the Underground Complex beneath the Warehouse .

All of these areas contain a wealth of containers to loot. Raider’s Refuge has less to loot, but the majority of the containers in and around the Refuge are raider containers, which have a high chance of containing Blueprints - particularly during major events.

Stella Montis

On the whole, Stella Montis seems to have a very low drop rate for Blueprints (though a high chance of dropping other high-tier loot). If you do want to try farming Blueprints on this map, the best places to find Blueprints in Stella Montis are Medical Research, Assembly Workshop, and the Business Center . These areas have the highest density of containers to loot on the map.

In addition to this, the Western Tunnel has a few different Security Lockers to loot, so while there’s very little to loot elsewhere in this area of the map, it’s worth hitting those Security Lockers if you spawn there at the start of a match.

That wraps up this primer on how to get all the Blueprints in Arc Raiders as quickly as possible. With the Expedition system constantly resetting a large number of players’ Blueprints, it’s more important than ever to have the most up-to-date information on where to find all these Blueprints.

While you’re here, be sure to check out our Arc Raiders best guns tier list , as well as our primers on the best skills to unlock and all the different Field Depot locations on every map.

ARC Raiders

PS5 , Xbox Series X/S , PC

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