Is the Flea Market and Found In Raid Healthy for Tarkov?

Recently, there has been an on-going discussion online about Tarkov, the flea market, and found in raid. All components to this game that have been divisive since they were introduced years ago. Band-aids to problems deeply rooted in the game’s ecosystem and functionality. The question of should these mechanics be removed is simply not a deep enough question to ask. There are too many layers in this problem that spirals out of control the moment you begin to think about it on a deeper level. For the longest time, Nikita and BSG were very steadfast about these mechanics not going anywhere. Especially the flea market. They made their bed and slept in it. However, as things have gotten rather.... tumultuous recently for BSG, curiously enough, Nikita has been more open to potentially adjusting these features for the future of the game. To what extent exactly, we’re not entirely sure, but these questions are still good to ask regardless. Everyone has a different opinion of the flea market and found in raid; some want it to stay because it is so integral to the game, especially considering there are other mechanics in the game built around the flea and FIR. While others want it gone so we can get those early Tarkov feelings back once again. It’s a tough position to be in as a developer. No matter what you do, people are going to be upset. So today I wanted to look at these features a little more closely and try to dissect the pros and cons of both keeping them around as well as removing them from the game. Again, it’s just a conversation; and while I will add my own personal interjections on the matter, at the end of the day, this is BSG’s game. They have the final say as to the mechanics that stay or get axed. So, keep that in mind as we go through this discussion.

Let’s start with the flea market because it feels a little more contentious than FIR. Plus, one exists because of the other. The reasons why we even have FIR is because of hatchet runners getting to loot faster than everyone else with no risk involved, players from regions who were immediately leaving raids to boost their survival rating (not that it even matters in the slightest), and people were able to make billions (with a B) of dollars on the first day of wipe because you could buy from the vendors and then throw those items on the market. But the flea was an intentional mechanic that was going to be added regardless of how the game state was at the time of implementation. And it has gone through a lot of changes. What was once a sprawling metropolitan society where everyone could buy and sell as they please, has turned into a more restrained and reserved version of itself. There are many restrictions on the flea in terms of what items can and cannot be sold there. High value weapons, armor plates, ammos, and any other equipment that players use to kill each other. But other than that, the flea is that for people to purchase goods and other items from other players. The economy of the flea is fascinating to watch in real time because as the wipe goes on you can see where the community as a whole is regarding their own personal progression. At the start, hoses are six figures, and then by the end sugar, water filters and the like are some of the most sought-after items. And anytime an event occurs makes an item important, the value of that item skyrockets on the flea. It’s always so interesting to see how the community reacts to the game around them. But as we all know, the only way before a recent change by BSG to put something up on the flea was for it to be “found in raid”. This single phrase alone has baffled the community for years. Because the phrase can have many interpretations, and the one it actually means kind of makes no sense. Okay, found in raid. That can mean that an item simply needs to be collected in a raid for it to count. Does that count as PMC gear? Their weapons and armor? What about their meds, magazines, and everything else? Sadly no, that’s not what it means. Found in raid is confusing because items that are crafted in your hideout are found in raid. But wait, that doesn’t make sense. Quest rewards are also classified as found in raid. But that item never even left the menu, how does that work? Items you do find in raid but leave with too early and get a run through no longer count as FIR because to keep that status you need to survive that raid. And a run through doesn’t count as surviving. You can see how messy this gets. And all to try and stop people from farming items with no risk and increasing their survival rating for literally no reason. These changes feel more reactive than anything; instead of looking at the situation and taking the time to craft a couple potential solutions, they came up with one quickly and slapped it into the game, now knowing the ramifications of how the entire game would function because of its existence.

Found in raid was ultimately the choice made by BSG to try and fix, well... everything. Cheesing quests, your survival rating, the flea; it encompasses pretty much every facet of the game we interact with. Surprisingly, there are quests in the game that still to this day don’t interact with FIR for one reason or another. Ragman’s “Supervisor” quest requiring you to give him a Goshan cash register key doesn’t have to be FIR. Even in his flavor text he specifically says quote: “Don’t care where you get the key, you can just buy it from the traders for all I care”. I always found it strange how some quests are omitted from this dictator-ish style of rule, where everything must follow FIR procedures. Well, I guess not because there are other quests that don’t require FIR. Not many, but they do exist. We know why they added it; however, I am still blown away at the why. Again, we know why, but at a deeper level, I’m surprised this never got adjusted over the years. FIR has kind of stayed almost exactly the same since it was implemented. With the exception of how getting survived status when exiting raids being adjusted with EXP and time, FIR hasn’t been altered to a degree that was noticeable or universally praised by the community as a whole. We’ve all been there: you find an item you need for a quest you’ve been stuck on for days or weeks. You bolt straight to extract; you check the timer, and you think you’re okay and leave. Only to be off by maybe less than 5 seconds and you see that dreaded white run through status, thus making that quest item and everything else you looted not found in raid. Ohhhh; we’ve all felt the sting of that loss and cursed Nikita’s name into the sky. It sucks a lot when this happens. But in reality, if things were done a little differently, we might’ve never had to deal with it in the first place.

Tarkov has a lot of these weird choices for mechanics and rules within its own game. So many tiny quirks that are explored and discovered overtime with experience put into the game. Some that make sense and are cool to use, and others that are just baffling. FIR being one of the most contentious ones to date that is still around in the game. To this day, I still stand by the idea that Tarkov is a better experience without the flea market. I know it’s pretty much blasphemous to say at this point, but as someone who spent a decent amount of time with the game before it was added, there was something about not having instant access to whatever you needed that made the game feel gritty and dirty. You wanted something? You either had to level up and work to get it from a trader, or if they didn’t have it, you had to take it out of someone's hands. Dead or alive. No flea also made money a slightly harder commodity to come by. Because there wasn’t an infinite amount of people waiting to buy whatever you decide to sell on the flea market. Back in the day, if you had a couple million rubles, that was the equivalent of having 100 million today. The power curve of Tarkov is seriously no joke. Again, most people who have played Tarkov have been around with the flea market, so removing it for them might have more of an impact than for those who played without it. I always thought Nikita and BSG were steadfast in their decision to never remove the flea. But now, there is a tiny, insignificant percent chance that it might at the very least get adjusted in some regard, our outright removed. Again, the chances of the game getting to 1.0 this year are higher and more likely than the flea getting taken away. But you never know.

FIR has been a pain in the ass for years now. And the flea is something I would genuinely like to see removed for a wipe cycle, at least. Just to test what the experience is like without it in 2024. But again, the rest of the game is so interconnected to the flea market and FIR that it would most likely just make the entire house of cards fall apart. So many band-aid fixes on top of each other has ultimately back BSG into a corner where they need the flea and FIR in the game, otherwise Tarkov might not work in terms of the economy. However, despite all the negativity behind FIR existing, there is one thing about the mechanic that genuinely makes Tarkov better. And it’s whenever you find the item you have been searching for weeks to find, and you pick it up and hear the quest ding, your anxiety goes through the roof, and you say out loud: I need to leave this raid. There isn’t a feeling that has been replicated by many other games and especially other shooters. It’s what initially motivates people to keep playing Tarkov when they are new. That’s how you get the bug. And with the removal of FIR, that feeling would kind of go away. Especially if we will be able to sell non-FIR items on the flea. But one thing is for certain: one cannot exist without the other with how BSG has handled the balance of their game. Which one needs the other, I will leave that up to you. Thank you very much for taking the time out of your day to watch this video. Let me know in the comments section your thoughts on the flea, FIR, and how these changes could be improved to make Tarkov a better experience and be sure to subscribe for more videos dissecting mechanics about Tarkov that can make or break the game experience as a whole. I hope to see you in future ones.