Escape From Tarkov is, at its core, one of the most challenging games ever created. It’s a borderline Milsim title with severe PvPvE warfare designed to test a player’s limits. From the intricate weight and health management systems to the realistic weapon physics, it’s no surprise that Escape From Tarkov has a reputation for being a challenging game.
Escape From Tarkov Maps
In Escape From Tarkov, players explore multiple maps while looting, shooting, and completing objectives in a war-torn world. However, not every map is as tricky as the next, with some including somewhat easier layouts, opponent spawning, and extracts – spots where a player can depart the map once finished.
The Lab
The Lab is the most challenging map in Escape From Tarkov. It’s difficult to even get into, needing a keycard that only allows a player entrance once before they must track down or purchase another keycard. Once on the map, the player will be constrained by a highly protected environment, with the best stuff concealed behind closed doors.
There are no scans in The Lab. However, Raiders can spawn, which are fierce, sophisticated, scat-like adversaries with razor-sharp shooting abilities. It’s a PvP battlefield unlike any other, encouraging players to massacre one another for the greatest treasure, and with multiple floors and a difficult-to-understand architecture, it’s not at all hospitable to beginner players. If a PMC finds itself loading into The Lab, it must be prepared for a fierce battle.
Lighthouse
Lighthouse is one of Tarkov’s newest maps, having been released toward the end of 2021. It’s a big, sprawling setting with an industrial zone, a long beach, chalets, and impenetrable forests that are difficult to comprehend and conquer. There are numerous exfil sites, but they can be challenging to locate and can spawn some of the game’s most formidable foes.
There are lots of formidable foes to get into a fight with, from being a place frequented by The Goons – a trio of boss-like enemies – to boasting a community of Rogues. As of 2023, there is a new boss, Zryachiy, and the level is littered with landmines, challenging open spaces, and vicious scars. Lighthouse has a lot of chores to perform, but it doesn’t make it any less dangerous for even the most experienced gamers.
Reserve
The reserve is an abandoned military base stocked with extreme hardware and home to one of the game’s most difficult bosses. It’s a frightening environment with well-trained and capable adversaries known as Raiders – essentially advanced scans. Almost every extraction site on the map has limits, and it’s a popular spot for campers and ‘rat-style’ players.
If a player does nothing but complete their responsibilities, they will take a long time to achieve Reserve. When they do, practically any assignment can be deemed problematic, providing distinct scenarios that go beyond simply eliminating scans in specific locations throughout the battlefield. It’s difficult, frightening, and absolutely not hospitable to newcomers.
Interchange
Even though it’s not difficult to learn how to use, Interchange is a relatively dangerous map. It’s a dark, dense setting that appears to encourage player-vs.-player fighting, and there’s a challenging boss – Killa – who can spawn practically anywhere on the map, making his actions incredibly difficult to predict.
Interchange is a challenging map, with scars that appear out of nowhere and a long drive to most extraction sites. There are specific locations on the map where players will congregate as soon they enter, which can end a conflict in minutes.
Furthermore, with a combination of long and short sight lines, it’s challenging to determine what kind of weapon a PMC should use, particularly if they’re a new player.
Shoreline
Shoreline is a challenging, wide-open setting with a competent boss, a spawn spot for The Goons – a trio of bosses – and some of the best opportunities to combat players. The resort is a ‘central place’ on the map where practically every player will be fighting for the best prizes.
Numerous early-game missions will send players to Shoreline early on, but it can be a daunting map. Due to the open nature of the field, the battle is frequently ended in a matter of seconds, with players being picked off as they cross significant gaps between cover. Extraction sites are generally easy to spot. However, they are pretty far away from where a player will naturally find themselves plundering.
Streets of Tarkov
Streets of Tarkov is the game’s most recent map, having debuted with the 0.13 update in December 2022. It’s a densely packed metropolitan setting, full of stores, residential buildings, hotels, and broad, winding avenues filled with abandoned automobiles and trams. It doesn’t appear very comforting at first, but the map isn’t all that challenging.
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Killa and Gluhar are two bosses that can spawn on the Streets of Tarkov. However, their spawn rates are relatively low. Streets of Tarkov is an easy map to comprehend because all of the extraction sites are positioned along the game’s perimeter – even if a player gets lost, they may skirt the map’s edge and, chances are, they’ll find one. Streets of Tarkov is tricky – because it’s new, of course – but it’s not impossible. It has more treasure places than any other map and plenty of cover and buildings to lose other players in.
Woods
Woods is another early-game map that players will discover when they begin their trip. It’s one of the most significant maps in Escape From Tarkov, with huge open fields, woodlands, and some critical areas of interest that provide excellent looting and shooting possibilities.
While there is a relatively tricky fight on Woods, he does not spawn very frequently and only appears in one spot. Aside from the scans that roam the map, there are few risks, as the immensity of the map makes colliding with other players uncommon. However, due to the map’s design, there are only a few areas worth visiting, which can lead to battle choke points. It’s a vast map, and players may struggle to learn it at first, making it a little more complicated.
Customs
Customs is the ‘welcome map’ in the game for many Escape From Tarkov gamers. It’s where many of the first jobs and objectives can be done, and it’s a generally harsh setting. It’s a vast map, yet it’s straightforward to master the layout in a short amount of time. There are a few spots of interest that provide fascinating battle scenarios, but it’s ultimately where most Tarkov gamers start their trip.
Customs, for the most part, is a constant in the lives of all Tarkov players throughout the game. It’s a map that can be revisited at any level, and it may be both profitable and beneficial to fast-rising through the ranks. There’s a boss on Customs that doesn’t appear very often, but he’s regarded as one of the easiest to defeat in the entire game.
Factory
Despite being expanded a long time ago, Factory is the oldest and smallest map in Escape From Tarkov. It’s a small-form world with a short play style that encourages players to jump right into player-vs-player combat.
Despite having a terrifying opponent and tons of dark, dreary hallways, Factory is really the most accessible map in Escape From Tarkov to master. There’s almost no loot to be obtained, the extracts are easy to find, and the map’s rapid-fire structure means players will only be in it for a few minutes at a time. It’s an excellent map for honing combat abilities, as that’s all there is to do there.
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