Escape From Tarkov is widely known as being one of the most challenging, unforgiving games in the business, boasting borderline ‘milsim’ features, gruelling combat mechanics, and a learning curve that is nothing short of damning for new players. It has been around since 2016, spearheading the extraction shooter niche and making a name for itself – and not always a good one.
If you’re at all connected to the world of Escape From Tarkov, you’ll likely have heard about Escape From Tarkov: Arena, but you might not know what it is, or why you should be excited about it.
What Is Tarkov Arena?
Escape From Tarkov: Arena, which we’ll shorten to ‘Tarkov Arena’, is an all-new, standalone game that operates alongside the core EFT experience but offers up a different experience. Instead of being an extraction shooter with soul-crushing mechanics, Tarkov Arena is a session-based, team-structured shooter, giving players a series of maps, modes, and loadouts to work with as they fight alongside others in traditional arenas.
It’s free for those who have purchased the ‘highest edition’ of Escape From Tarkov, but for anyone else, it’ll cost around $40 to get involved with Tarkov Arena, and of course, it’s only available (for now) on PC.
But Why Should You Be Excited?
There are a few reasons why the concept of Tarkov Arena should be exciting, especially to the more ‘casual’ players out there. Firstly, it’s a perfect introduction to the world of Escape From Tarkov for ‘less skilled’ players who have refrained from buying the extraction shooter title for fear of not ‘being able to play it’.
Related: 5 Best Games Like Escape From Tarkov
It’s being touted as a solid alternative to the many shooters that exist at the moment, including the likes of Rainbow Six, Call of Duty, The Finals, Battlefield, and many more. With both Ranked and Unranked matches, a good spread of maps, and some tantalising modes that fuse PvP and PvE elements, Tarkov Arena has plenty to offer the average first-person shooter fan.
One of the most attractive things about Escape From Tarkov is its realism, and that bleeds over into Tarkov Arena. If you’re a fan of a more based, gritty shooter experience, then that’s what you’ll find in Tarkov Arena.
When Is Tarkov Arena Out?
Tarkov Arena is expected to launch for the first wave of players any day now, as the core game approaches its end-of-year ‘wipe’. It’s believed that the game will be readily available by Q1 of 2024, and with a lofty roadmap in mind, the game’s developer – Battlestate Games – is ready and willing to support Tarkov Arena for quite some time.
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