Our cycling tour of PC gaming is complete, read it all here

The collected Tour De Jeux

Shotgun From The Archives is an ancient RPS tradition we can’t believe you’ve only just noticed. Each Wednesday, we resurface some classic RPS writing. It’s like it never left (the content management system)!. This week, it’s Alice O’s cycling tour of PC gaming. That’s 8 articles for the price of one, you lucky sherberts!

After five weeks, 12 posts, 14 games, and 11,146 words, my cycling tour of PC gaming ended on Friday. I’ve crossed the active warzones of GTA Online and PUBG, stunted down murderous descents in extreme sports games, tried to learn serious bike race tactics in strategy games, gone for a weird ride in a walking simulator, and even needed to ride my real bike for a game powered by Strava. For your convenience and enjoyment, that’s now all gathered here with some bonus bike thoughts.

In early July, I started writing about cycling in PC games to mark the 2022 Tour De France and inaugural Tour De France Femmes. I ride a lot in real life and enjoy watching the Tour, and wanted to share these pleasure while doing a lot of cycling in games too. I never wanted to cover every single game with bikes but the series did run long as I kept thinking of more topics to talk about (and kept making video montages of my little digital biking body being smeared across hillsides and tarmac). It’s been fun! Here’s the whole thing:

Serious identical men in the TDF game

Stage 1 - Tour De France 2022

Where better to start than the official Tour De France game? I talked about the allure and tactics of cycling’s greatest race, which to me is a sightseeing soap opera across three weeks and thousands of kilometres. Alas, this game feels like neither cycling nor the TDF to me.

Stage 2 - Knights And Bikes

We bounce over to the childhood joys of riding bikes with pals and of customising your bike—and how even serious adult cyclists try to make their bikes look like. And I cannot stop myself from raising the worst fashion of this year’s TDF.

Stage 3 - Riders Republic

Ubisoft’s open-world multi-sport xtreme-o-rama has a wildly offputting rude ’tude but its cycling experience feels great! With the game’s HUD turned off, I rattle through deadly downhill races and go on long aimless bike rides through American national parks. I remain delighted by how good this turned out to be.

Stage 4 - Bird Snapper

I get lost in a walking simulator with a bicycle, dinging my bell to myself as I cross a desert where night falls fast. Which reminds me of getting lost and having adventures go wrong on my real bike. The game’s free, too.

Stage 5 - Pro Cycling Manager 2022 and The Cyclist: Tactics

To better understand the tactics and strategies of competitive cycling, I try two management sim games. My favourite of the pair is The Cyclist, which has a great board game feel.

Bird Snapper

Stage 6 - Grand Theft Auto Online

While I own supercars, warplanes, motorbikes, attack helicopters, and a hoverbike in GTA Online, my favourite form of transport is the humble BMX. It’s the most fun way to roam the city and watch what other players are up to. The vulnerability of cycling tends to make other players humour your tourism, unless they plan to supermurder you. Which they might. Often.

Stage 7 - PUBG: Battlegrounds

Honestly, I just thought it would be funny to ride around warzones with my pals, dodging bullets and trying to ding out Chelsea Dagger on our bells. We never managed a full squad of bicycle bully boys but I still enjoyed both stealthy serious travel and dangerous daft antics—and I did kinda manage Chelsea Dagger. I was also impressed that the devs picked the perfect type of bicycle for stag & hen weekend bike hire.

Stage 8 - Wren

This idle RPG feeds on data from real exercise recorded on Strava or Fitbit. I saddle up and put in some kilometres to talk about stats, data, seriousness, and why I think the question “Do you do Strava?” is often actually people asking me “So are you a prick about cycling?”

Stage 9 - Bike Mechanic Simulator 2023 and Bicycle Mechanic Simulator

After puncturing a tyre on my real bike while riding for Wren, I get curious about bicycle repair games. I glance at two currently in development, then start wishing for a bike repair puzzle game full of fiendish fiddling, esoteric incompatible standards, distressing DIY bodges, mistakes making problems worse, and clumps of oily pet hair.

The Cyclist: Tactics

Stage 10 - Aran’s Bike Trip

My tour joins up with someone else, accompanying an indie dev on his two-day bike trip in the Netherlands through a lovely little visual novel.

Stage 11 - Lonely Mountains: Downhill

Lonely Mountains is a game of honing routes and shaving seconds to optimise descents, but also captures the feeling of adventures through nature. The best part is having preset points you can stop, get off, and admire the view, which has a lesson for me and me own cycling.

Stage 12 - Descenders

The tour ends with downhill mountain biking whose riding and stunting is so much fun that I don’t really mind that it’s wrapped in a bland roguelikelike structure. A reminder that however you ride and enjoy bikes is good if it works for you (and doesn’t endanger others).

That was the main feeling that developed for me across my Tour De Jeux: wanting to celebrate all types of cycling, bikes, and cyclists. I think some people expect snobbery and I want to defuse that. Myself, I ride a beat-up bike to get about town then have a good bike to ride distance on weekends, in a middle ground of ‘serious about cycling but not really fast’. Even in my fancy kit on a 100km ride, I’ll give a nod or wee wave to everyone I pass. No judgments; I’m just excited for all of us to be out on bicycles. In all sorts of games, too.

If you fancy more bikereading, my pal Hannah Nicklin, the CEO of Mutazione developers Die Gute Fabrik, wrote a fun wee zine about cycling and game bikes a few years back. She’s more serious about cycling than I am, and looked at bikes in games I haven’t covered. It’s named N+1, and you can get a PDF copy from Big Cartel for £1.50 (please do be patient if you buy one, because it’s just her e-mailing out download links).

Thank you for joining me on the Tour, gang. I was glad to hear about your own cycling adventures, your own passions, and how we had often suffered similar mishaps. And I was very glad to hear that all this had made some of you want to get back on your own bikes.

Alright, now developers need to create a rash of new bicycle games so we can do this all over again alongside the 2023 Tour(s) De France. Allez allez!

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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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