Escape from Tarkov: What is a wipe and other frequently asked questions (2024)

This morning the wipe occurred in Tarkov. If you don't know what a wipe is, orif you woke up this morning confused as why you are level 1 and why all yourgear is gone, we are here to answer your questions

If you just got into Tarkov, you saw that for the last couple of days everyone was talking about a wipe happening soon, pre-wipe event, post-wipe strategies, like wipe is some mythical event all the player base is waiting on.

And in more ways than not, it is true. Wipes are probably the most important event in Escape from Tarkov's timeline.

So let's dive in and answersome of the questions you might have.

What is a wipe?

A wipe is an event in Escape from Tarkov, usually happening after major patch releases, where all the player's progress is reset to zero. That includes the level, the character development, quest progress, and everything else in the game.

Your stash and gear are deleted and replaced by default loadout which differs depending on what game edition you own.

Shortly put, Wipe is a new start to the game.

If you have plans to play Escape from Tarkov, now is the best time to start.

What is the purpose of the wipe

Wipe has many purposes. First, you have to understand that Escape from Tarkov is a game that is still in development and currently is in BETA state. So the major patches not only feature new content via maps & weapons but can also feature major gameplay changes, code optimizations, migrating to new engines, etc.

So the initial idea of wipes came for coding reasons because it was much easier to start each patch without having to worry about consistency and bugs between releases. That covers the technical part of the question.

As for the game itself, wipes bring in a lot of new players to the game and have a lot of older players return for the first few months of the wipe.

The early days of a wipe are more exciting, more alive than the last couple as the game gets repetitive, and most of the players get geared up with M.E.T.A. equipment, while raids start to resemble each other.

Playing the game for the first time in the later months of the wipe can be overly difficult for new players.

So with wipes, Battlestate Games refreshes the game and makes it exciting again, and allows new players to catch up with the rest of the player base more easily. The player count is at its high at the beginning of the wipe, and at its low, in the late wipe before a new wipe is announced, and before pre-wipe events start.

Early wipe features the usage of multiple weapons compared to everyone using most efficient few weapons late-wipe

How often do wipes occur?

Even though there is no specific timeline and intervals for wipes, it is usually every 6 months. The least amount of time between two wipes was 2 months, but that was a one-time thing. For the last couple of years, the wipes came 5 to 6 months after one another.

WIll wipes continue to happen when the game is released?

On the latest podcast with the most famous EFT player Pestily, Nikita, the C.E.O. of Battlestate games said that the plan is to have two "versions" of the game. One will continue to have wipes regularly, same as now, and the other with no wipes, where you will basically be able to level up to infinity, without having your gear and equipment reset.

His biggest worry is how to make the second version of the game more exciting, how to keep the player base engaged and interested over longer periods of time, as he acknowledges the problem of losing player's interest a couple of months into the wipe.

When will Tarkov be finished?

There is no date set for the release of Escape from Tarkov. There are speculations that it will move from BETA state with the release of their most ambitious map Streets of Tarkov.

Nikita also mentioned that there are a lot of changes and improvements that will be in the final release of the game but won't feature in any of the earlier releases. Some of them are to be developed, some of them are already finished and sitting on shelves waiting for the release.

When will Streets of Tarkov be released

Same as for the game, there is no date set for the release of the map Streets of Tarkov.However, the map has been in development for some time and Battlestate games released many teasers with the footage from the new map.

It is safe to assume that the map will be dropped after the second release of the Lighthouse map. so late 2022/early 2023. Watch the latest teaser below:

If this is your first wipe, and need tips on leveling up fast, be sure to check out our guide for beginners.