communityeventsArc Raiders

How to Organize a Community Map Night for Arc Raiders (Keep the Old Maps Alive)

UUnknown

2026-02-14

9 min read

Step-by-step plan to run Arc Raiders map nights, votes, and tournaments that revive old maps and boost player engagement in 2026.

Keep the old maps alive: a battle plan for Arc Raiders communities

Pain point: new maps are coming to Arc Raiders in 2026, but community attention will naturally shift. If your servers and Discord channels are already losing traffic or your veteran maps collect digital dust, this guide gives a step-by-step event plan to run map nights, votes, and tournaments that keep old maps relevant and players coming back.

Short version: set clear goals, run a community vote to build buy-in, design map-specific match formats, lock reliable tech for private lobbies and streaming, promote across socials, and convert one-off nights into recurring retention hooks. The rest of this article breaks that into actionable tasks you can implement in 48 hours, 2 weeks, and over an 8-week campaign.

Why map nights matter in 2026 (and why you should act now)

Embark Studios confirmed Arc Raiders will be getting multiple maps in 2026—some smaller, some grander—so community focus will expand. That’s great, but new maps can cause migration: players flock to novelty while veteran maps lose playtime and community lore. Map nights plug that leak by turning nostalgia and map mastery into social reasons to log on.

In 2025–2026 the ecosystem changed: Discord event features and streaming tools made community-run tournaments easier, crossplay rollouts made scheduling more inclusive, and content creators pivoted to short-form highlights to drive discovery. Use those trends to your advantage: community-run map nights are the perfect mix of social play, content creation, and retention mechanics.

Top-line framework: a one-paragraph event plan

Run a weekly map night that alternates between a community choice night (voting for favorite legacy maps) and a tournament night (single-elimination with map rotations). Promote with a pinned Discord event, schedule matched streams, and provide post-event clips and leaderboards. Use a simple reward system—titles, digital flair, or small cash/gift card prizes—to incentivize consistent play and build long-term engagement.

Step 1 — Pre-event planning (48 hours to 2 weeks)

Define goals and KPIs

Primary goal: Increase weekly active users on your servers and keep legacy maps active.
KPIs: attendance, average session length, stream views, Discord event RSVPs, retention rate next week.
Set numeric targets: e.g., +25% RSVPs, 50 unique players, or 4-hour average session length.

Assemble roles (small teams scale well)

Event Lead: coordinates timeline and approval.
Community Manager: handles promotion and voting.
Admin/Referees: enforce rules during matches.
Casters/Streamers: provide live coverage and clips.
Tech Lead: manages servers, overlays, and bracket software.

Pick a theme and map focus

Themes increase engagement. Rotate between:

Map Mastery — one map gets in-depth play and analysis.
Vault Night — vote to bring back retired or less-played maps.
Challenge Night — add modifiers that highlight map quirks.

Step 2 — Voting: build buy-in before the event

A vote creates ownership. Use a two-stage process for fairness and excitement:

Nomination (3–5 days): community submits map suggestions and nominations for game modes/modifiers.
Ranked voting (48–72 hours): run a ranked-choice poll so minority favorites still win if broadly liked.

Voting tools and mechanics

Discord polls for quick picks (good for low-effort nights).
Google Forms + Ranked Choice Voting script for robust results.
StrawPoll or Poll Maker for embed-friendly voting.

Example ballot items: map name, preferred time slot, match length, optional modifiers (fog, low-gravity, reversed spawns), and whether to include a tournament bracket.

Step 3 — Tournament formats that highlight old maps

Not all tournaments are created equal. Pick a format that rewards map knowledge and is spectator-friendly.

Recommended formats

Map Mastery Series: Best-of-3 where each map chosen by higher seed picks a side or spawns. Rotate maps mid-series to force adaptation.
King of the Map: Continuous play: winners keep the map until defeated. Great for casual drop-in audiences.
Map-Only Elimination: Single-elim bracket, each round played on a different legacy map decided by vote.

Seeding & tiebreakers

Seed by community ranking, past event performance, or a quick qualifier.
Tiebreakers: short sudden-death on a neutral map, or coin flip if time is tight.

Map-specific rules

Protect map integrity and balance fun with rules that highlight the map’s unique features—e.g., ban certain high-tier loadouts if they trivialize choke points, or require minimum use of mobility items to showcase verticality.

Step 4 — Tech stack and logistics

Reliability wins events. Lock these technical pieces early.

Private lobbies & server options

Use official private lobby features or rent community servers if the game supports it.
Have a backup server region—crossplay and latency can kill turnout.

Bracket and scheduling tools

Start.gg, Challonge, or Toornament for brackets and match management.
Use Google Sheets as a lightweight public bracket if you need maximum control.

Streaming & overlays

OBS or Streamlabs for broadcasting.
Overlay elements: current map, timer, bracket, team rosters, and a small “Map history” panel showing win rates.
Assign a dedicated clipper to capture short-form highlights for social sharing.

Anti-cheat & dispute resolution

Set clear rules around reprovisioning evidence for disputes. Use replay files if Arc Raiders supports them. Pre-appoint an impartial referee team and publish a one-paragraph dispute policy before the event.

Step 5 — Promotion & scheduling

Promote across three channels, starting 7–10 days out.

Discord: create a pinned event with RSVP, @everyone reminders, and a countdown.
Twitch & YouTube: coordinate with streamers and schedule the event page; create a “watch party” channel.
Socials & subreddits: post short teasers, map spotlight clips, and the vote link.

Leverage cross-posting: run a stream highlight the night before to explain the voting process and show map snippets to build hype.

Step 6 — Running the night (day-of checklist)

One hour before: test streams, verify lobbies, confirm ref availability, and post warm-up voice channels.
On the hour: launch a 5–10 minute pre-show with rules, schedule, and casters introducing map lore and tips.
During matches: keep time, update the bracket live, and enforce rules. Use a dedicated admin channel for quick problem-solving.
Between matches: play short map tutorials or community interviews to keep viewers engaged.

Step 7 — Post-event retention tactics

Turn event momentum into long-term retention with these moves:

Recap & highlights: publish a 3–5 minute highlight reel within 24 hours.
Leaderboard & badges: update a public leaderboard and award Discord roles or custom flair.
Map mastery challenges: weekly missions that encourage revisiting the map (e.g., “win 3 matches on Stella Montis to earn a role”).
Follow-up surveys: short poll about what players liked and what to change—use results to iterate.

Advanced strategies & future-proofing

Coordinate with creators and the devs

Reach out to streamers who made map guides and offer co-stream nights. If you build consistent traction, pitch a dev AMA or a “map design postmortem” with Embark—studios are more receptive when you show clear metrics.

Create a rotating “Map Vault”

Run a seasonal Map Vault where a retired or underplayed map becomes a featured map for a month, with themed rewards or special modifiers. This turns old maps into predictable content drops and ties community events to retention hooks.

Cross-community leagues

Partner with other Arc Raiders communities to run inter-clan map nights and seasonal cups. Shared events increase visibility and bring fresh competitors to stale maps—consider cross-community leagues and collaboration templates when planning invitations.

Sample 8-week campaign: from kickoff to league

Week 1: Announcement, nominations, community survey on map preferences.
Week 2: Ranked vote, recruit casters, finalize rules.
Week 3: First Vault Night (casual, community voting), record clips.
Week 4: Minor tournament (8 teams), test streaming overlay and brackets.
Week 5: Map Mastery feature — deep-dive stream with tips and challenges.
Week 6: Inter-community scrimmage; invite two external Discords to compete.
Week 7: Main Cup — single-elim bracket with prizes and live casters.
Week 8: Review, publish highlights, launch a persistent leaderboard and schedule season two.

Templates & quick resources

Voting template: Google Form fields — Map name, reason (1–2 lines), preferred modifiers, checkbox if willing to volunteer as host.
Match rules snippet: round length, win conditions, banned items, timeout policy, evidence submission link.
Stream overlay checklist: map panel, bracket window, caster name, sponsor area (if applicable).
Prizes: digital gift cards, community store credits, unique Discord roles, and small cash pools (manage legally).

Common problems & quick fixes

Low turnout: shorten the event, run faster formats (King of the Map), and cross-promote with a streamer.
Server lag: switch region, reduce party size, or reschedule to lower-traffic hours.
Rule disputes: keep replays and appoint two referees who review evidence before overturning results.

Why this works: the psychology of map nights

Map nights convert passive nostalgia into active mastery. Players who know a map well feel competence and social status when they lead teams—this drives both short-term excitement and long-term retention. Combine that with modern 2026 tools (stream-friendly clips, Discord event integrations, crossplay lobbies) and you get a scalable community engine for legacy maps.

"There are going to be multiple maps coming this year... some smaller than we've ever had and some even grander than what we've got now." — Arc Raiders design lead Virgil Watkins (GamesRadar, 2026)

Final checklist before you launch (copy & paste)

Set goals and KPIs — publish them.
Create voting and nomination forms.
Assemble roles: lead, admins, casters, tech.
Lock private lobbies and test stream overlays.
Publish rules and dispute policy publicly.
Schedule promotion cadence: Discord, Twitch, socials.
Record and clip during event, publish highlights within 24 hours.

Parting strategy: turn a night into culture

Map nights aren't a one-off stunt; they're cultural rituals. Make them predictable, emphasize storytelling (map lore, pro plays, milestones), and reward consistent participation. If you build a recurring cadence and measure what matters, your community will keep those old Arc Raiders maps alive long after the freshest map drops.

Ready to start? Pick a date this week, open nominations, and schedule a 30-minute pre-show to explain the plan. Invite one creator to co-host and promise the community a highlight reel—those two moves alone raise attendance dramatically.

Call to action

Use this plan: host your first Arc Raiders Map Night within two weeks. Share your event summary, bracket, and highlights in our community thread at gamernews.xyz, or drop your Discord invite below to get feedback on rules, overlays, and prize ideas. Let’s keep the old maps alive—one night at a time.

Unknown

Contributor

Senior editor and content strategist. Writing about technology, design, and the future of digital media. Follow along for deep dives into the industry's moving parts.