Blue helmet and red attire make the Bungulators easy to spot topside / Image credit: X (@theburntpeanut) / Embark Studios
TL;DR
Two streamers and their allies had an all-out war in Arc Raiders
Both sides wore their respective outfits and hunted everyone who wasn’t on their side
The community war ended when one streamer had an overwhelming numbers advantage and dominated their team
If you’ve been playing in the North American servers and felt the vibe was off for the last few weeks, then you’ve been unknowingly caught in the crossfire in the biggest community civil war in Arc Raiders. Two rival streamers rallied their followers, forming alliances with other content creators and splitting into factions, who then coordinated outfits and waged war on each other.
Arc Raiders’ release date was only a month before this, so to have such a chaotic, emergent event early on in its life cycle emphasises a healthy player-driven community. For everyone else, it was hilarious, concerning, and mildly terrifying if you were ever caught with the wrong skin.
This is a recap of the Battle of the Bunguraiders (yes, for real), marking a community war that nobody asked for but everyone was unwittingly involved in.
I started a joke that had the whole topside crying
The conflict started with a throwaway joke that snowballed. During an Arc Raiders match in November, popular streamer HutchMF was downed by a random player who, after pleading for his life, the person executed him in cold blood while saying, “This is for the Bungulators.”
The battle cry is a reference to streamer TheBurntPeanut, whose Arc Raiders livestreams gained immense popularity. BurntPeanut didn’t back down from the challenges and rallied his troops to war, drafting his viewers into battle. In what began as a throwaway one-liner that should’ve died as a funny clip, it escalated into a full-scale war.
Forming factions and drawing lines
Naturally, BurntPeanut already had a name for his viewers, naming his side of the war The Bungulators. On the other side, HutchMF christened his side of the war as Team FMF (FMFers). Within the day, other content creators picked sides in this all-out war as bodies continued to pile on topside.
On his own, Peanut already has a loyal following of Arc Raiders’ players. However, his troops were bolstered when Myth, Shroud, RNGingy, Summit1g, and Ninja pledged support to the Bungulators. Ninja made a great point that he doesn’t want to go against Peanut because of his massive following, foreshadowing what would happen during the event.
The FMFers also had some big names on their side. NickMercs, TimTheTatman, Symfuhny, and Nadeshot went against the wave of Peanut’s army. Like any good show, these streamers kept the action spicy by switching sides mid-war. Nadeshot and Symfuhny defected to Peanut’s side, while Summit1g wanted to give the underdogs a chance and switched to Hutch’s team.
One of Twitch’s largest streamers, xQc, joined as a third faction, declaring himself Switzerland. He formed a neutral group to keep innocent civilians away from the war. There was even a coordinated group who joined as medics, reviving downed raiders to continue their fight.
BurntPeanut vs Hutch MF: Battle for Speranza
The two sides wore distinct skins to quickly identify themselves topside. The Bungulators wore a bright red Striker skin gained from the free battle pass with enough merits, including the gas mask and helmet.
FMFers took the blue Torpedo skin, keeping the googles on while ditching the helmet and mask. One unfortunate oversight is that Peanut’s chosen skin is free to earn through Arc Raiders gameplay, while HutchMF has to be bought from the in-game store.
During the height of this event, it was clear that this was a one-sided massacre. Red Bungulators were flooding North American servers en masse, teaming up and executing every other neutral party and the occasional blue FMFer. If you weren’t in the same uniform, you were a target to them.
As you can imagine, this was a very confusing and even bitter time for players who were unaware or didn’t care about the war. A few Steam reviews and complaints on social media were directed against streamers ruining the game for them.
The Arc Raiders’ game server even buckled under the busy matchmaking, causing issues with the game. Active participants were energised during this event, but everyone who was caught in the crossfire was annoyed at this disruption.
The Anticlimactic Spaceport Showdown
After a whirlwind week of skirmishes and escalating hype, both sides agreed to settle things with a grand final battle. On a one-time event on Spaceport, both sides would go online to fight it out during a specific time slot on the weekend.
This was the most hyped event in Arc Raiders. When the signal was sounded, utter mayhem happened throughout multiple lobbies in Spaceport, where opposing factions were bloodlusted and hunted each other relentlessly. Some sneaky players would even infiltrate the other group using their colours, only to find opportunities to assassinate and cause chaos from behind enemy lines.
Yet, there was a common trend that repeated itself, even during the supposed climax of the event. The Bungulators were simply unmatched in number, and it felt like each raid was a massive numbers disadvantage. It was funny to compare the streams of each side, so often that Bungulators gathered at the base of the launch tower, finding anyone to fight, while FMFers were fending off waves of red raiders in each lobby.
It didn’t take long to see where this one-sided conflict was heading. Instead of a dramatic in-game finale, the two generals and other notable commanders met in a Discord call, where BurntPeanut victoriously declared a sweeping victory for the Bungulators. The general public can collectively take a breath of relief, as both sides would eventually fizzle out, and we can go back to destroying ARCs and each other.
Conclusion
Overall, the community war was highly publicised and a great win for Arc Raiders in the public eye. This is going to be one of those video game stories that you just had to be there to witness.
The player-driven narrative is similar to Helldivers, where the players create their own organic content that even the best developers can’t match. During this time, the views and player counts skyrocketed, creating both great memories for followers and toxic encounters for those who didn’t want anything to do with it.
Embark Studios has now witnessed how a large section of the community craves large-scale battles and faction wars. Now the big question is whether they’re going to implement events for dedicated PvPers (without losing the identity as a cooperative extraction shooter), or let this event stay as a glorious one-time event.
FAQs
What platforms is Arc Raiders available on?
Arc Raiders is available on Windows, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X/S. Additionally, the game also features crossplay that you can easily enable or disable in the settings.
What are some Arc Raiders gameplay tips for beginners?
New Arc Raiders’ players can do a few raids using the free loadout to get a feel of the game’s loop and combat. However, they should quickly learn to overcome gear fear, as there are many ways to earn or craft loot in the game. It’s better to bring your best stuff than let it gather dust in your stash.
