Escape from Tarkov—a game of high risk and reward. A game with its highs and its lows. 

I came across Tarkov about 3 years ago. I was looking for new games on YouTube because old games like Call of Duty were getting boring. I came across a YouTuber who goes by the name of OperatorDrewski and he had just posted a video about a game called Escape from Tarkov. After I watched this video I knew I would like this game. It was a first-person shooter survival military-style game I had never played before. 

Tarkov is an extremely realistic survival looter, shooter, and extraction military-style game. Imagine taking DayZ, Call of Duty, and Dark and Darker and just merging them, you get Tarkov. From the Survival aspects of DayZ, the firearms and weapon customization from Call of Duty, and the extraction from dark and darker. 

But I bought the game and hated it. 

There was no map, no tutorial, no guidance—nothing. They just gave me a stash with some firearms, food, backpacks, ammo, and money. I had to take my selected gear load into a map and figure it out.  I thought this game would be impossible to learn and a waste of money; why would anyone want to play a game that did not have a tutorial? 

I gave it another 6 months for the game to reset and I started playing again. I put another 200 hours in and then stopped playing again. The game did not grab my attention like I thought it would. 

So I kept watching YouTube and about another 6 months later when the game reset again I got hooked. Learning its extremely detailed mechanics from checking my firearms chamber, to learning the maps by pure memorization. The game surprised me.

Even With about 2000 hours I still learn something new every time I play. I love the extreme detail put into the game: walking on wood makes different cracking and creaking sounds depending on how old the building is, and walking on rocks sounds like gravel. Weapon customization is almost endless, from the sight down to the lower receiver, you can choose from a larger variety of stocks, pistol grips, even ammunition, and way more. One of the coolest factors about the game is the armor detail and how different ammunition penetrates different levels of armor. 

One last thing that is amazing about this game is the weapon selection. You can select from real-life firearms, such as a pistol chambered in 9x19. If you want a rifle chambered in 5.56 they got it, want a bolt action chambered in 7.62x51 they have it, 762x39, .338 Lapua they got it. They even have a player-controlled flea market where you can sell items you get out of a raid for rubbles, a Russian currency, to increase your money for acquiring more expensive items. 

Tarkov is a game of pain—and excitement. If you like military games that require patience, time, and skill, this is a game to play. The gear you bring in you don’t always leave with. Once you die everything you had on you is gone, but more gear can be acquired with patience and time.