"Arc Raiders" won the best multiplayer award at the recent The Game Awards 2025. For fans who stayed throughout the year, Embark Studios is rolling out the newest seasonal hook called "Cold Snap." Here, the once-familiar battlegrounds into frozen survival zones, where only a brave Raider would dare venture topside.
With snow-covered environments, hazardous frostbite mechanics, and exclusive seasonal resources, Cold Snap is not only a higher-risk mode but a much richer reward-style one. Some players are exploring how to get candleberries, and this is the guide for you.
What's Inside 'Cold Snap?'
Cold Snap is a rotating map modifier similar to Night Raids and Electromagnetic Storms. It may appear in various locations such as Blue Gate, Buried City, and Dam Battlegrounds. If active, it turns the environment into a really frigid land.
According to Forbes, the most direct risk is Frostbite. Spending too much time outside quickly depletes health, making long firefights in particular especially dangerous. Raiders will need to head indoors to slowly warm up; visible frost will melt from their gear as they recover.
Lightning storms might still be the deadliest, but Cold Snap turns every open-area encounter into a game of calculated risk.
Where to Find Candleberries During 'Cold Snap'
The highlight of this winter event is candleberries, which only appear in the matches of Cold Snap. To collect them, players need to find Candleberry Bushes, which are very easy to spot due to their bright red berries.
According to GameSpot, your best hunting grounds are areas usually rich in natural resources, such as Lemons or Apricots. Such zones often carry a Nature icon on the map. The strong locations include, among others, the Swamp in Dam Battlegrounds and the northern trench in Space Port. Candleberries can also show up inside baskets, so thorough looting pays off.
Curiously, Cold Snap seems to be one of the most generous standard Lush Bloom events. Resource density spikes significantly, and players reported unusually high counts of Mushrooms and other upgrade materials. This makes the event a really good opportunity to progress Scrappy's upgrades and craft resources in advance.
What Are Candleberries Used For?
The primary fuel for the Flickering Flames event is Candleberries. Citizens of Speranza are preparing a Candleberry Banquet, where players must contribute collected items to unlock event rewards. This includes new gear, Raider Tokens, weapons, and other valuable items.
While Candleberries can be sold or broken down into Seeds, it's best to hold onto them until you complete the event. Cold Snap runs until January 13, giving players ample time to gather everything they need. With a new Deck arriving on the 26th, now is the perfect moment to grind resources and prepare for the next wave of unlocks.
Better Loot and Event Rewards
Unlike other high-risk modifiers, Cold Snap increases the overall quality of loot. Blueprint drops have been increased with the latest update, and now each run can be even more worthwhile for progression chasers. In addition, a good amount of Candleberries can be passively earned through the Gathering Candleberries event when earned XP converts into Merits, which then unlock other rewards.
Originally published on Player One
