Arc Raiders Cold Snap Event In Review
The Cold Snap event in Arc Raiders might be over, but players are still talking about it. This limited time winter event completely changed how raids felt, turning every run into a survival challenge where the environment was as dangerous as the enemies.
Instead of just being another seasonal gimmick, Cold Snap added new mechanics, fun distractions, and a surprising amount of tension. From deadly hypothermia to chaotic snowball fights, the event gave Arc Raiders players a fresh way to experience the game.
Snowballs, Fireworks, and a Lot of Frostbite
On the surface, Cold Snap sounded light hearted. Snow, fireworks, and silly snowball fights in a third person shooter. In reality, the event mixed goofy fun with serious survival mechanics.
During the event, players could pick up and throw snowballs. A massive 95 million snowballs were thrown over the entire Cold Snap run. Yet for all that effort, they did only about one damage per hit. That meant it took a determined squad and a huge pile of snow to actually down anyone with them.
Even with those limitations, players still managed to:
- Take down 10,577 arcs with snowballs
- Knock out 91 raiders using snowballs alone
Given how bloodthirsty most online games can get, those knockout numbers are almost surprisingly low. You might expect players to go all in on meme kills during a limited event, but the tiny damage meant most snowballs stayed in the realm of playful trolling instead of serious PvP.
Snowballs were not the only festive tools on the field. Players also went wild with explosives:
- 2.9 million fireworks were set off
- 9.2 million firecrackers were thrown
These gave the battlefield a chaotic, celebratory feel, with bright bursts of light and sound overlaying the usual Arc Raiders combat. It was a rare moment where a grim world felt oddly festive.
But the most dangerous thing in Cold Snap was not snowballs or fireworks. It was the weather itself. Hypothermia became a real threat during raids, and the stats show just how deadly it was. A huge 3.5 million players were knocked out by the cold.
The chill damage over time was not brutally high on paper, but it punished carelessness. If you got caught out in the open too long without healing or shelter, it could go wrong very quickly. This turned navigation and timing into real survival decisions instead of just movement between fights.
The Candleberry Banquet and Player Engagement
Cold Snap was not only about combat and survival. It also introduced the Candleberry Banquet, a special event activity that required players to gather Candleberries and complete a kind of seasonal meal quest.
Out of the 12.4 million people who bought Arc Raiders, only 1 million actually served the banquet. That is just 8.06 percent of the player base. On the surface, it might look like most people did not care about the challenge, but there is more to it than that.
Candleberries themselves turned out to be surprisingly hard to find. Their rarity meant that even players who were interested in the banquet had to put in a serious amount of time and effort just to complete it. Between survival concerns, normal progression, and other event distractions, a lot of players simply never got around to it before the Cold Snap ended.
The result is a fun bit of trivia for Arc Raiders fans. The banquet became a quiet badge of honor for a small slice of the community. If you managed to complete it, you are in a pretty exclusive club.
Why Players Miss Cold Snap and What Comes Next
Now that Cold Snap is over, a lot of players are feeling its absence. It was not just about rewards or loot drops, although those were boosted and definitely appreciated. The event changed the whole rhythm of the game and made each raid feel more dynamic and risky.
One player summed it up well, saying they wished the Cold Snap event had stayed longer, even if the main project tied to it had been removed. Without it, the game can feel emptier, with only a few secondary events filling the schedule.
What made Cold Snap memorable was the combination of elements:
- A harsh environmental threat that forced players to adapt
- Fun side activities like snowball fights that let people mess around
- Unique goals such as the Candleberry Banquet that gave completionists something to chase
All of that together created a sense of a living world that was changing in real time. It is the kind of thing that keeps players logging in just to see what is happening next.
With Cold Snap behind them, players are already looking ahead. Hints point toward a future toxic swamp themed event and possibly even a volcanic eruption scenario later in the year. If the developers build on what worked in Cold Snap, those events could bring new environmental hazards, new loot opportunities, and more reasons for the Arc Raiders community to jump back in.
For now, Cold Snap stands out as one of those special moments in a live service game where mechanics, atmosphere, and player behavior all came together. Whether you were farming Candleberries, lobbing snowballs at mechs, or just trying not to freeze to death, the event gave Arc Raiders a sharp shot of energy that players clearly want more of.
Original article and image: https://www.pcgamer.com/games/third-person-shooter/arc-raiders-has-released-its-cold-snap-numbers-and-only-8-percent-of-raiders-managed-to-finish-their-candleberry-banquet/
