The Rust Belt freezes over as Embark Studios launches a gripping new event for Arc Raiders.

As the icy winds of winter tear through the Rust Belt, Arc Raiders enters its most exhilarating seasonal event yet: Flickering Flames. Launched on December 16, 2025, this limited-time event brings a new layer of peril and opportunity to the post-apocalyptic world of Speranza. Players will face blizzards, freezing temperatures, and perilous outdoor conditions while striving to ARC Raiders BluePrints survive against ARC machines, rival Raiders, and an unforgiving winter landscape. But amidst the frost and violence, the survivors find solace in flickering candles that light the way through the darkness. It's a delicate balance of survival, cooperation, and strategy-set against a backdrop of communal warmth and ever-present danger.

Cold Snap: The Frozen Wasteland of Arc Raiders

At the heart of the Flickering Flames event lies the Cold Snap map condition, a game-changer that transforms familiar outdoor zones into chilling death traps. Maps like Dam Battlegrounds, Buried City, Spaceport, and The Blue Gate now feature perilous weather that forces players to rethink their usual tactics.

Snow blankets the landscape, turning once-familiar terrain into a white hellscape. Lakes freeze over, creating treacherous ice that cracks underfoot. Blizzards slash through the environment, reducing visibility to mere inches and giving Raiders precious few moments to make critical decisions. Whether trying to avoid the aggressive ARC machines or outmaneuver rival squads, players must constantly contend with the harsh realities of the Cold Snap condition.

But the cold is not just a backdrop-it's a killer in itself. In Cold Snap, frostbite is a constant threat. As players venture into the exposed outdoors, they risk taking increasing amounts of frostbite damage, forcing them to seek shelter inside buildings or other protected areas. Getting pinned down in the open can quickly become a death sentence as the biting cold saps your health.

The dynamic weather adds an extra layer of tension to the already intense PvPvE (Player vs. Player vs. Environment) raids. Long-range sniping becomes almost useless in the whiteout conditions, pushing players to engage in close-quarters combat, where fast reflexes and good positioning are paramount. But even in the relative safety of buildings, players have to stay vigilant-footprints left in the snow can be tracked by enemies, but the reverse is also true. Will you track your foes or expose yourself to cheap ARCR Coins an ambush?