The PC gaming scene has always been able to offer experiences that dip more heavily into "realism" than consoles have. For the most part, this has been thanks to the keyboard and mouse setup that PCs are known for, which are more precise and feature a broader suite of control options. These control options let players to perform more actions, which allows the game to feel more grounded. Nowhere is this more apparent right now than with Escape From Tarkov.
In development for years but earning recent recognition after a surge in popularity on Twitch, Escape From Tarkov is one of the most realistic games out at the moment. The game sees players enter a map with next to no hud, duking it out with other players and NPCs over a finite pool of supplies. Those supplies are a big part of everything Escape From Tarkov does, keeping the player healed, fed, and equipped with gear.
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On a deeper level, though, the game is a complex shooter. Players are given a lot of control over the weapon components they use, ammo types, armor sets, and a lot more. In-game, players have to pay attention to their stamina, how much noise they're making, and a bevy of other factors that can cost a player valuable loot if they aren't capable. What's most impressive, though, is how fluid Escape From Tarkov is when embracing that realism.
Few games are able to make the moment-to-moment movement as central to the experience as Escape From Tarkov does, especially not on PC, where the lack of thumbsticks makes slow movement nearly impossible. Escape From Tarkov, however, features a slider that controls how quickly players are moving, which, in turn, controls how much noise they're making. It might seem like a small thing, but it makes the game feel dramatically more realistic.
What's particularly impressive about that is how fluid changing speed feels. Out of the box, players adjust it simply by moving the mouse wheel, a quick action that similar games require multiple key presses to accomplish. This gives layers precise control over how they're moving through cluttered streets and tight corridors. When players are part of a team, it gives everything an especially tactical feel, as players move through a building clearing room after room while looting.
It's a difficult thing to compare to other military shooters simply because most of the popular ones feel more like an arcade game in comparison. Take Call of Duty: Warzone, for instance. While the game is slower than its mainline counterparts during tense moments, it's still all about fast-paced movements, jump shots, and other unrealistic styles of traversal. That's not a bad thing – Call of Duty has one of the most refined formulas out there – but it's incredible how different of an itch the two games manage to scratch.
Where Tarkov really starts to prove itself, though, is when it asks players to engage in combat. Escape From Tarkov's gunplay is punchy and as authentic as one could hope to find in an FPS game. It's not just how the weapon feels that defines what Tarkov is trying to do. Instead, it's the entire flavor of the experience, which aims to introduce some level of confusion whenever a fight breaks out. It's tense, and that tension brings every other element together.
Not to mention, there are other mechanics that are intended to drive home that feeling. Guns will jam, players will bleed out, and weapon selection matters a lot. It certainly isn't something for the faint of heart, and that may turn some players off, but it also means that there's a game out there for those looking for something tense.
Escape From Tarkov is available now for PC.