What is the story?

“BEAR and USEC operators”

“Escape From Tarkov” takes place in a fictional region of Russia called Novrinsk, where the surrounding area has been quarantined due to conflict between two paramilitary groups. BEAR and USEC. These PMC groups were hired by the Russian government (BEAR) and by TerraGroup Labs (USEC).

A huge political scandal involving TerraGroup Labs, a biochemistry research company, turned to massive conflict. This caused TerraGroup Labs to hire the Western-backed USEC company to protect their assets and for the Russian government to hire BEAR, a Russian-backed company, to investigate the issue.

Alongside the PMCs you have Scavs and Rogues who are the game’s NPCs. Scavs are local civilians turned militants fighting to survive. Rogues are ex-USEC members who have switched their allegiance to follow the “goons”. A group of three who are the Rogue bosses.

What is the main objective?

“A stroll through the city”

Above the money, kills, and loot, the ultimate goal of “Escape From Tarkov” is to survive each “raid”. Raids are basically the matches you play in. The importance of survival comes from the fact that when you die you lose everything you spawned in along with anything you find.

When you spawn into each raid you’re given a time limit to reach the extraction point which is where you can exit the map. Getting to the extract location before the time limit is reached, gives you a “Missing In Action” status which is treated the same as dying.

What you do with your time in Tarkov is up to you. There is no specific thing to do, or playstyle you need to follow. Every match is unpredictable, so the objectives may change depending on the circumstances. Your goal may be to reach a certain location to complete a task. But if you’re too injured to continue then you may have to change plans and exit as soon as possible.

What does gameplay consist of?

“A modded USP-45”

Tarkov is an extraction shooter which is a genre that has recently emerged, where players can choose to leave the map at certain locations called extract points. This combined with survival and PvPvE elements gives players a mix of combat, roaming and managing inventory.

The gameplay that Tarkov presents to you is meant to be challenging. Battlestate has done this by incorporating complex gameplay mechanics into all the systems presented. Weapon modification and the medical system are good examples of this. 

Along with complexity the combat is very unforgiving. The AI components are powerful and are just as skilled, if not more, than you would be. The players you encounter are usually harder to deal with especially if you’re just starting out.

1. Weapon Modding

“A heavily modified M4”

The weapon modding system in Tarkov is extremely detailed and scalable. You have the ability to modify crucial weapon components like receivers, barrels, and pistol grips. On top of those parts you can attach sights, stocks, lights/lasers and more, which are all named and modeled after their real-life counterparts.

Along with weapon attachments, Tarkov introduces different ammo types. Weapons are required to use ammunition of the respective caliber of the firearm, but there’s different types that alter varying properties. Properties such as velocity, tracer effects, and armor penetration.

2. Bosses

“Knight, one of the Rogue bosses”

Either by themselves or with their goons, the Tarkov bosses are always to be watchful of. There’s typically a pattern in their location, speed or whatever metric that the bosses could have. Killing them is rewarding as when you loot them they often give you good loot and a source of pride.

They serve as a good storytelling element as well. Giving players information on the way the different factions operate and origins of them. This is shown through special loot items such as Tagilla’s welding mask or Shturman’s key.

3. Traders

“A list of all Tarkov traders”

Much like the bosses, the traders offer another layer of interaction between the player and the game world. Each trader has their own backstory as to why they sell and give out the quests that they do.

With each trader you have a loyalty level towards them. As the level rises, you slowly unlock better prices and more items. With this loyalty level you can also unlock new tasks. All the traders serve a specific role. Ragman sells armor and clothing items, Therapist sells medical items and so on.

4. Quests

"Prapor, one of Tarkov's traders"

Every quest is given to you from a trader. The intensity of these quests vary based on how far along you are, the level you’re at with your character and the trader you got the quest from. These quests differ in their objectives. Some require you to find specific items and hand them over, others require you to kill players in a specific fashion.

The rewards you’re given after completing each quest differs as well. Depending on the quest and the trader you’re doing it for, you can be given money, items, or sometimes your reward is just an increase in experience. Along with rewards, quests offer a good storytelling system that can help further explain traders and their involvement within the world of Tarkov.

5. Health System

“A player healing their bleeding thorax using a salewa kit”

Medical items are necessary for survival in Tarkov. If your character is bleeding and can’t find a bandage then he will die from blood loss. If your character breaks a leg then he’s forced to limp unless you can find a splint.

The developers were able to incorporate a high level of realism to the health system. Including the ability to heal specific body parts and the order in which you should heal depends on the scenario you’re in. These mechanics push the player to be mindful of their next move and help to slow the game down.

6. Movement System

As is the nature of the game, the player’s movement capabilities are presented in detail. Players will find themselves having more control of their character than most shooters offer. Being able to change the crouch height and walk speed along with switching the weapon to your left shoulder to make corners more maneuverable.

The movement system is coupled with the health and inventory system where the health of your player along with the weight and specific items he carries can affect your movement. This causes for more careful calculation in what to bring, take and also whether or not you should third party that squad.

7. Flea Market

“A screencap of Tarkov’s flea market”

Tarkov is one of the few games in its genre that has an in-game economy. Items on the flea market are sold and bought by players. So in the beginning of a new wipe, most items will cost a lot depending on their value for the start of a wipe. 

As the wipe progresses, the price of items will either increase or decrease based on different factors. Even though traders offer a place to buy and sell, the flea market is different in that there are no limitations as to what can be placed on the market.

8. Hideout

“Showcase of a player’s hideout”

An RPG element in Tarkov that allows the player to craft items and speed up player progression. It’s incorporated smoothly into the game as it is a component that isn’t shoved into the player’s face.It’s presented as an option to the player. It’s your choice if you want to throw countless hours into the hideout, or to just mess around for a little bit. 

There’s various stations in your hideout that offer different opportunities. You have a med station where you can craft medical supplies, a workbench where you can craft utilitary items, and even a gym where you can increase your character’s strength stats. All these systems are upgradeable to take less time and resources to accomplish whatever crafting or leveling goal. 

9. Character Skills

“A screencap of all the character skills available”

Almost every aspect of Tarkov is or can be influenced by the skill level of your character. Your character has many skills that can be increased. Strength, agility, weapon modding, and even the time it takes to search containers.

The way these skills can be modified is either through experience and playing the game or can be boosted using the hideout. This is an interesting element as in some cases it can reduce the need for player skill. You can notice a big difference between a low skilled character and a high skilled one. 

10. Map Attributes

“A screencap of the resort in Shoreline”

Each location embodies the post apocalyptic scenario the developers are going for. Little details around the map help to increase the atmosphere, there’s lots of visual storytelling. The maps are large and have lots of paths and congested areas to remember.

As for level design, the maps encompass that well. The players are given places to rest, explore, and places for combat. This is done through locating bosses and loot in varying areas. There’s also no way to see how many players are in the map, most maps host 8-12 players. The extract points are placed nicely giving the player enough time to exit.

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