Dog Tags Need More Uses in Tarkov

Are there any items in Escape From Tarkov that you wish had more value, or use cases that could create more value for that specific item? For me, that easily has to be dog tags in the game. An item found off the dead players in your raids, they give you the information to figure out the basics of how they died, what level they were, and of course their name. But managing to get tags out of raids yields some opportunities. Aside from needed a bunch of each faction for some quests, dog tags also have some barters from the vendors. And while some are more enticing than others, ultimately the utility of dog tags isn’t being used to their maximum potential. Having more uses for dog tags in-game makes people more interested in retrieving as many tags in raid as possible. What new uses could dog tags have? Well, let’s go over some potential possibilities. And remember, these are just simple mock-up ideas; they might be balanced, they might be broken, and they might not work at all. But coming up with any possible extra uses for tags could create a more compelling gameplay loop. But regardless, dog tags have some uses, but could be expanded upon even further to give them more opportunities to shine. So, if you are interested in this and any future conversations about Tarkov be sure to subscribe for more videos coming soon.

I guess the first thing we should do is go over what dog tags do currently in the game. Dog tags can be collected and stored in your stash for either selling to vendors for straight cash, turning in for some quests, or used in some barter trades. The amount a dog tag is worth is a flat amount of rubles times the level of the player. Off the top of my head, I can’t remember what a level one tag is worth, but for this example let’s say it’s 500 rubles. So, if a tag is level 25, that means the tag is worth 12,500 rubles. Which doesn’t seem like a lot, until you start collecting tags that are in the high 30’s or even 40’s. The amount of value that is in the tags is kind of insane when you collect a bunch of tags that are high level. What makes this easier is getting your hands on a dog tag case, which can hold a whopping 100 tags. They can be bought for a raw purchase at Therapist for a little under 400k rubles, or what is more enticing, is the barter at Jeager level 2 for a military flash drive and cassette tape. Pound for pound that barter is amazing, if you can get either of the components, especially the flash drive. But if you can get your hands on one, a dog tag case will pay for itself and then some filling it up even just once. But you don’t want to immediately sell your tags. Friend From the West Part 1, Punisher Part 6., and some other later game quests do require a bunch of tags from each faction to be turned in. So, keeping some around for those quests will make your life just that much easier. But even if you don’t or forgot to, don’t worry, getting tags is as easy as taking out other players in the game.

The barters the dog tags are used in are... a mixed bag to be honest. There aren’t a ton to begin with, only 12 in total if I recall correctly, used for a variety of items in the game. And this is where my first change to tags would come in. There needs to be more barters using tags. Tons of items on offer; it would just give them more utility, and allow for different weapons, armor, ammo barters and more from dog tags. And they can even do the thing they do now where you could require certain level requirements for the tags so you can’t just use a bunch of low-level tags for high tier barters. Maybe it’s just me, but I really love all the different barters in the game. And to see it expanded on further with dog tags would be a neat and interesting change. The question at that point would be what the new barters are and are they far in terms of amount needed and level required.

Again, I forget how much tags are worth right now, but something that would encourage keeping tags more would be to make them more valuable than they currently are to the vendors. Again, the question for balance would be okay, how much more expensive are they. And while I don’t know what amount would be ideal for selling tags, anything more would be better than what we have now. This does two things: first, it makes keeping them around more of a payout because selling a bunch of tags en masse would be much more lucrative than selling one tag at a time. Second, it makes PvP more enticing, and arguably profitable. Because for the longest time, if you are trying to make money in Tarkov, the last thing you wanted to do was fight other players. Using ammo, ruining armor durability, it usually just ends up in a net loss of money, even if you do walk out with some gear, and especially if you die. So, having tags be worth more money means taking fights, and being skillful enough to take out multiple PMCs in a single raid can actually be profitable for once.

Another potential change to Tags would be to have the ability to trade them in for additional experience if they are found in raid. The only reason I say found in raid is so that it lines up with all the other stupid stipulations BSG has put in place that FIR requires. But maybe something with Fence, where he will provide bonus experience or rewards for turning in Tags to him, and the higher the level the better the rewards and/or experience. Oh, I literally just thought of this as I am writing this. Add a dog tag option at the scav case in the hideout. The number of tags and level of them required is up in the air, but again, we’re trying to create more use cases for dog tags other than some barters, quests, and money. Anything to make people want to not only fight one another more but have the very first thing to loot off a dead PMC they killed is their dog tag. Because for myself, that is still the first thing I take off their body while searching for their rig or backpack.

Dog tags are an interesting mechanic in the game, and it’s a shame that BSG hasn’t tried to expand upon it over the years. Because of how many roadblocks they have added because of their own decisions, it would be cool to seem them give some love to one of the oldest gimmicks in the game. And to be real, it doesn’t have to be any of the ideas I mentioned above, but at this point I’ll take anything. They technically did this with the newly added hall of fame, allowing for skills to get bonus experience towards leveling them up. But the bonus is so minimal it might as well not exist in the first place. Personally, I love that Tarkov has dog tags, and that there are some uses for them. But to see more added into the game would be awesome. I think adding more barters would genuinely be enough for me, but to see some other ideas maybe messed around and iterated upon would be cool. Something with Fence just feels the most compelling and fitting for what a dog tag means and signifies. You took another life, and someone like Fence who has connections and is relatively just a shady person all around, would seek to benefit from that. Maybe Lightkeeper too but screw him.

Dog tags are one of Tarkov's oldest mechanics in the game. And that age is beginning to show itself. The lack of creativity or any real expansion to this mechanic is a shame because of how simple and effective they could be. From being worth more money, to adding more barters, or additional experience opportunities, dog tags need some QOL changes and allowing players to make some more choices with what they do with their well-earned kills. Thank you very much for taking the time out of your day to watch this video. Let me know your thoughts about dog tags in Tarkov. Are they in a good spot? Could they be expanded upon? Any and all thoughts are appreciated and subscribe for more videos about old ass mechanics in Tarkov that are in need of some love. I hope to see you in future ones.