Understanding the Mindset of a “Good” Tarkov Player

We’ve spoken about this topic before; many months ago. About what makes a “good” Tarkov player. And today, I wanted to make sort of a follow-up video to that idea. Previously, we talked about how aim, knowledge of the maps, and adaptability were cornerstone components to making a lethal and effective Tarkov player. And while those are definitely still important, upon reflection of the idea of what is a “good” Tarkov player, there have been other ideas and components that I’ve taken into more serious consideration that would arguably be sometimes more important that those previously talked about ideas. I’m sure most of us that play the game also watch others play it. And especially those that are prominent and skillful at the game. You watch their gameplay, and you can sometimes pick up on little ticks or muscle memory from doing the same thing thousands of times before. What they end up using a majority of the time, and how they bend and stretch the game to play more under their own rules. There is a lot more nuance with these ideas, and it isn’t as concrete and simple as the previous video. It boils down to more of a mentality thing, as well as repetition of playing the game a certain way. And that’s what I wanted to discuss today: the smaller, finer details of playing Tarkov and what aspects you can focus on once you have the basics and fundamentals down to really grow as a player. Again, it’s not as cut and dry, nor pretty as giving someone three tips and they immediately improve. Tarkov, and we’ve said this before many times, is a complex game with a ton of layers, situations, moments where one idea might apply but not the other. It’s important to understand the why as much as the how. So, let’s try and understand what goes into the mindset of a good Tarkov player.

Efficiency is one angle of attack that many utilize when playing the game, especially in a situation like the start of a wipe. Finding the path of least resistance, and being able to tackle two, three, or even four tasks all in one raid, and allowing for that accelerated account growth to quickly get to the higher reputation levels for better gear and therefore an advantage against everyone else. Nowadays, getting better gear has mattered less than it did many years ago, but the better attachments on your weapons like scopes means you can tackle problems from angles and distances lower-level players can’t yet. Access to better armors now that ammo has been made much more difficult to acquire, means your chances of survival against another player go up. All because you are trying to min/max how you play the game. If I may interrupt this with my own personal feelings, this level of efficiency is something I have never personally strived for because it sucks the fun out of the game, at least to me. I am acutely aware that there are people who only want to use the best items in the game, from day one. And capitulate with the crap gear we are given at the start, so they can blow through the game as fast as possible. That comes down to personal preference and how you want to experience Tarkov. I won’t knock people for playing that way. But I’ve always wondered as to why? Why do they enjoy the hyper aggressive, juiced to the gill's gameplay that Tarkov can provide? Is it because deep down they want this gameplay loop in more of a deathmatch setting (and I’m certainly not talking about arena here). Do they just want to fight the best, with the best? Kind of an equal playground scenario. I can’t say for sure. Don’t get me wrong; it’s fun to use big boy gear occasionally. Level 5 and 6 armors, helmets with shields and night vision. 300k+ ruble weapon builds with the best ammo in for that caliber. In small bursts, to me, that Tarkov can be amazing fun. But what I’ve learned overtime is that unless you no life this game, that style of gameplay isn’t always available to everyone. People are going to struggle if they are new, or just have a bad streak of luck. With how unforgiving this game can be sometimes, the only sanity that can be hung onto is knowing if you have tens of millions of rubles in your stash. At least that way, the deaths are annoying for sure, but it hurts a lot less when you can press a few buttons and have the exact half a million-ruble kit ready to go once more.

Combat is another area that has so many layers to it. It isn’t just about hitting your shots on people. It isn’t just about using what you think is the right ammo for the job. Whether that’s high penetration ammo or high flesh damage ammo to chomp at people’s ankles. The new armor system has thrown quite the wrench into that equation. Ammo’s that never used to kill you are now suddenly one-tapping you through level 4 or higher plates. It’s kind of wild. You need to know as soon as your screen fades in from black where you are on the map, where others might be in relation to you, what’s the fastest, safest and most optimal route to get where you want to travel to. When you hear noise across the map; where the sound is coming from. It gets tricky really fast when you know what to look for and are actively looking for it. And this is hoping that you don’t die off spawn, because we have all been there and that feeling of spending time on a kit you are excited to use only to be gunned down within the first minute of a raid is soul crushing. Especially for those who want to only use the best; that stuff isn’t cheap, and when you die before you get to use it, those moments can easily lead to closing the game for the day. The game’s combat unfortunately can be boiled to, if we really want to min/max this, to using the best ammo, best scope, and being in the most advantageous position. Again, it’s Tarkov; so, trying to actively do that every raid will prove difficult unless you have the capital, knowledge and experience behind you to know what you need to be doing on each map. And when you do have all those things, then we can get into the mechanics of Tarkov and how you can abuse them to your advantage. SJ6+Trimadol for infinite stamina, always using a proptial because it’s the best painkiller in the game. When trying to figure out someone's exact location in a building, running across a hallway back and forth while tilting your head to the side. The fact that Comtac 4’s are the best headset and it’s not even close. Or the fact that currently, when you slow-creep in this game (moving crouched at the slowest speed possible), you make no noise for anyone else even though you hear yourself. A lot of people know this already, but for anyone that doesn’t, these are just some examples of the many holes in Tarkov’s gameplay that can quickly spiral out of control when you incorporate all of them together. And don’t even get me started on the net code and general audio in the game, because that could be its own video. But knowing how these work (or don’t) is honestly half the battle. The fact we currently have a way to tell if the scav boss on any given map is there or not perfectly succinct these problems. Again, the game is a huge knowledge check as much as it is about aim. That is information we shouldn’t know in the first 15-20 seconds of a raid. It should be that we go to dorms or new gas station and oh, there’s Reshala I'm going to try and wipe him. The Killa farm has been hilarious to watch because some people have resorted to literally disconnecting if he is not on Interchange. Don’t hate the player, hate the shit mechanic we have right now that shouldn’t be in the game.

A good Tarkov player has the knowledge to know what’s going on around them, the gear they need to use to be effective, how to move, shoot, and fight everyone, as well as what loot they should be taking. That’s a little more subjective because everyone values items differently. But again, if we want to min/max this, suppressors, scopes, foregrips, ammo, magazines; people usually take those things because they either good sale value or can be repurposed on their own weapons. Effective Tarkov players have all the tools at their disposal and know how to use them. And even then, the game can sometimes just say screw you and get you killed in a multitude of ways. Should you aim or strive to become “good” at Tarkov? It depends on what you want to get out of it. Because even the best players die of stupid things all the time, so it begs the question of why bother. And personally speaking, having those moments when you do pop off and everything lines up just right; you hit all your shots, you position perfectly, and you manage to wipe player after player. It feels good. You feel like you finally gained some footing in this dark, difficult sometimes depressing world. Whether you’re rich or poor in Tarkov, doing well feels good. It’s exhilarating. But it’s not the same as being good. At least to me. They mean two different things. And I hope I was able to convey that to you. Thank you very much for taking the time out of your day to watch this video. Let me know in the comments your thoughts on good players in Tarkov and what that means and be sure to subscribe for more videos about the nuance of labels we put on things that don’t really need them. I hope to see you in future ones.