Explaining Tarkov Wipes in 6 Minutes

Tarkov is a game that has what are called wipes. Moments in the game's life where either a large content update is being dropped large enough to require everyone to start over to properly test the new features, or enough time has passed that the current game state needs to be reset. Depending on how long you’ve played Tarkov you most likely have experienced at least one wipe. You’ve also most likely seen all the memes about when’s wipe? Or that the wipe is going to be on a Thursday. These are old school Tarkov memes that have been around for many years, and still get tossed around whenever the developers begin to hint at the notion of the game resetting in the near future.

But for those who haven’t and maybe this will be the first time you experience it, essentially, each major patch comes with a wipe to coincide with it. Many years ago, wipes where more common as new updates to the game were being pushed out more frequently. They required restarting everyone’s progress so that the features could be flushed out with feedback. Nowadays, we’re lucky if we get two wipes a year. And it’s kind of been at that speed for some time now. As with the game becoming much larger in both scope and popularity, the desire to push bigger and bigger updates certainly grew as well. But usually, the content updates are worth the restart. Whether it’s new maps, mechanics, weapons, gear, armor; it makes sense to wipe when these new toys to play with are added because we need to test them properly. It wouldn’t make sense if we all still had max level traders and could instantly purchase them. If they are too strong, they would need to be unlocked later down the progression tree. So, restarting everyone to see if a new gun is unlocked at the right time makes the most sense.

Eventually the game will reset; everyone’s progress reverts as if they first bought the game. All the quests they completed will need to be redone once more. Their hideout is all the way back to square one. Soft skills, money, reputation... everything. And while a lot of people are hesitant at the notion of all their progress and hard work being taken from them, Tarkov is a game that is universally celebrated when a wipe happens. The early game is some of the most interesting, exciting, and exhilarating gameplay to be had. Because everything matters. Death is the most brutal at the start of a wipe; you might have precious hideout items on you. Or components to an early game quest that has been holding you back for days or even weeks. Anyone who has been stuck looking for flash drives, I feel your pain. But this is where Tarkov truly shines; the struggle, the challenge and the ability to either fight tooth and nail for every morsel the game is willing to give you. Or, to try and seek out cooperation from your fellow PMCs so that we all can achieve our goals to progress further into the game. VOIP has become paramount to that in the early game, so if you haven’t already, make sure your VOIP option is enabled. Trust me, it will help you early on.

But it isn’t usually just the new stuff people look forward to too. The game and many aspects of it that were there previously, usually get a shakeup. The economy being the biggest to get an overhaul. Or in the case of last year, the entire recoil system being completely redone from the ground up. Which arguably kind of saved the game because of how terrible the previous system was (granted the state of affairs now isn’t doing it any favors, either). Even if people could articulate it, until you get something better for comparison, it was hard to really show just how bad it was.

Okay but if we’re doing all this talking about what a wipe is and what it means, then, when is the next one going to happen? And that’s honestly a great question. Like I said before, it’s usually been two wipes a year for some time now. And since BSG likes to wipe close to or literally on the day Christmas or New Years, that would make the first wipe for any given year in June... roughly. Again, they are weirdly cryptic with exactly when a wipe will occur. Because they know if they give a specific date and then it doesn’t happen, there will be hell to pay. So, it’s a ton of another meme from the community, which is soon? Soon soon. We won’t ever truly know the exact date, and to be fair neither will BSG until they test everything on their end, everyone gives the green light and then they will update the launcher to say hey we plan to install patch 0.15 or whatever it might end up being. I doubt the number will go that high for this upcoming wipe, but it’s just an example. But seriously, June will be about the six-month mark and that’s usually when people become antsy for a wipe, and when the teases, hints and events start. Because before a wipe, BSG will start to mess with the game and add huge modifiers to shake up the endgame experience to be a little more interesting and just to have some fun. Whether that’s having all bosses be a 100% spawn chance, or moving them to a single location, the time before a wipe can be fun, or it can be a disaster depending on what they decide to do. It’s kind of a roll of the dice if I’m being honest.

But that’s pretty much all there is to know about a Tarkov wipe. The game resets, we get big content updates, and for a couple weeks people are usually having fun and enjoying the game. Until the bugs, glitches, crashes, cheaters and the usual suspects begin to rear their ugly head again for the umpteenth time. But the cycle of a wipe is always so exciting. So, whether this will be your first wipe, or your tenth, hopefully it’s interesting enough to bring back the player base for some more early game shenanigans. Thank you very much for taking the time out of your day to watch this video. Let me know in the comment section your thoughts on wipes, what we might expect from the next one and be sure to subscribe for more videos about when the new stuff added into the game might make the community implode once more. I hope to see you in future ones.