Yes, the HDMI inputs on a TV pass audio back to the ARC connection from what I've read. I haven't heard of a TV which does not do this.
So, you hook up your cable box and game system to the TV and the speaker bar can connect to the ARC input on the TV and get audio played back through it. The one obvious issue is that the speaker is getting the same audio quality that optical or coaxial digital audio delivers. So, no reason to take up an HDMI input on the TV to use the ARC connection.
I'm not sure why anyone would get a 2 channel these days when there is so much more design money put into surround sound receivers. Perhaps on the very high end, but on more of a budget, the surround receivers give you a lot more for the money, and if you only use 2 channels of the receiver, then you get more overall quality delivered to those two speakers.
Plus, they typically come with a bunch of HDMI inputs on them, so instead of getting stuck with the TVs 'smart' functionality, you can use a proper streaming device like a Roku, Chromecast, AppleTV, or a Fire TV.