When it comes to finding the perfect weapon for any situation in ARC Raiders, it’s surprising to me that the best options are usually some of the cheapest. Common weapons like the Stitcher, Kettle, and Ferro can be incredibly powerful when upgraded and kitted out with attachments, and I usually find myself using some combination of those three when heading out topside. However, I recently wanted to test out the worst weapons in ARC Raiders to see if there was any situation where they would be usable, and concluded that one weapon is virtually useless and needs to be buffed if it ever wants to see regular play.
The Rattler is often cited as the worst weapon in ARC Raiders due to its lower DPS and limited magazine size, but it is also a common weapon that is frequently given away in free kits. The Burletta is another contender for the title, being the worst of the game’s uncommon weapon options. However, both of these weapons still have some marginal utility, whereas the Flame Spray shouldn’t be used for anything more than a gimmicky run.
ARC Raiders’ Flame Spray is the Worst Weapon in the Game By a Mile
Putting the Flame Spray on a loadout is just asking to get downed, as I quickly learned in my time trying to make the weapon work for me. This ARC Raiders quick-use item fills a valuable slot in the player’s backpack that could be used by much better items like Wolfpack or Heavy Fuze grenades. Instead, the Flame Spray simply allows the player to spew a short stream of flames that looks intimidating, but doesn’t have the damage capabilities to make it worth the slot it takes up.
The Flame Spray can be crafted using 1x Air Freshener and 1x Fireball Burner, but 3 are also given as part of a reward in the Raider Deck.
The Flame Spray is Effectively Useless Against ARC Enemies
To put the Flame Spray to the test for myself, I first dropped into a Night Raid on Stella Montis to try to maximize my chances of encountering enemies in close-quarter situations. At night, Stella Montis is overrun with Ticks, Pops, and Fireballs, so I figured it would be a great place to see if I stood any chance against these weaker ARC enemies. Although I primarily used the Flame Spray, I did bring a silenced Burletta as a backup in case things really went off the rails, and I wanted to be able to compare the Flame Spray to another contender for worst gun in the game.
Against even the weakest ARC enemies, the Flame Spray is pretty pathetic. While I was able to take down a lone Pop, I found myself in trouble once a few started swarming me. Luckily, I swapped to the Burletta and was able to destroy them with only a couple shots each, giving an early advantage to the Burletta over the Flame Spray. The problem with Ticks is that they move too much for the limited range of the Flame Spray to consistently damage them. Meleeing Ticks is usually a better option, or just hitting them with a few bullets from whatever gun you have equipped is a better alternative.
Other Raiders Take Little Damage from the Flame Spray
My secondary target for the Flame Spray was other players in ARC Raiders‘ PvP combat. This weapon proved to be even more difficult in PvP situations than in PvE. I had moved on to playing on Spaceport, and an open map like this had already made closing the gap to hit a player with the Flame Spray difficult enough, but I was able to get the jump on an unsuspecting raider. However, the lower DPS of the Flame Spray, combined with the fact that fire damage dissipates far too quickly to be effective long term, made it so that the other player was easily able to fight back and get the KO before I could even swap my weapon. This was essentially the playbook for each one of my runs attempting this strategy.
The Rattler May Have Lower DPS, But the Flame Spray is Still Worse
|
Weapon |
Damage |
Range |
|---|---|---|
|
Rattler |
9/s |
56.2 |
|
Burletta |
10/s |
41.7 |
|
Flame Spray |
10/s |
N/A |
Comparing the stats of what are considered the worst weapons in ARC Raiders may tip the scales in favor of the Flame Spray over the Rattler. After all, the Rattler does less damage per second than the Flame Spray. However, the Rattler also has a much further range and is capable of hitting flying ARC from a distance. The Flame Spray, on the other hand, requires players to be so close to an enemy that they may as well just use their melee weapon since it’s automatically equipped and frees up space in their backpack for a better quick-use item.
How ARC Raiders Could Improve the Flame Spray and Make it a Viable Option
The main problem with the Flame Spray is that it doesn’t excel in any one area to make up for its poor stats in another. Its damage is too low for its limited range, and its range is too short to trade the fire damage over time for. If ARC Raiders want to make this weapon more viable, it will need to pump up the stats in one of these areas.
Ideally, the Flame Spray would have its DPS increased to something like 13/s to make up for its limited range. Players could then use it as more of a high-risk, high-reward weapon for the danger of getting too close to an enemy or other player. Alternatively, fire damage could be buffed to last longer on players so that there is a greater risk of taking too much damage if an opposing raider disengages from a fight with a player using the Flame Spray. Raw damage output numbers aren’t a hard-and-fast solution, since a weapon like the Stitcher only deals 7 damage per shot, but fires at a very fast rate and has a large ammo capacity. Since the Flame Spray doesn’t function like a traditional gun nor a throwable, it may take more tuning for ARC Raiders to find the sweet spot for its stats.
- Released
-
October 30, 2025
- ESRB
-
Teen / Violence, Blood
