The hardcore shooter Escape from Tarkov is considered one of the most realistic games in the genre. Now, a Tarkov player shared a clip on Reddit showcasing his recent discovery: He found a phone number on his rifle, called it, and hung up in panic when someone actually answered the call.
What is shown in the video? Reddit user u/JudgeDreddMain is in the middle of a raid in the shooter Escape from Tarkov while recording the video. He takes a closer look at his equipped rifle. He discovers a phone number and finds that it looks very realistic.
The player does not hesitate long and decides to call the phone number from the rifle in real life. It turns out that the phone number not only looks real – it is.
After several seconds of ringing, a woman’s voice answers the phone and asks what she can do for the caller. The player realizes that this is the actual customer service phone number of the American firearms manufacturer “Knight’s Armament Company.”
The video ends with the player’s astonished reaction, who ends the call in a panic. At the same time, his teammate, who could hear the call on speaker, says to him: “Hang up.” The calling player then replied laughing, “I did.”
If you’re interested in how the call went, you can watch the video from Reddit user u/JudgeDreddMain here:
After the call: Players have questions for customer service
What does the player say about his experience? The player writes in the Reddit post with the video: “I know that Battlestate Games [Note: developer studio of Escape from Tarkov] is trying to make a very realistic shooter, but this might be a bit too realistic.”
In the comments on Reddit, there were numerous suggestions about what the caller should have asked support. However, u/JudgeDreddMain responded to one of those suggestions by saying he didn’t want to waste customer service’s time.
How did the EFT community react? The Reddit community of Escape from Tarkov had fun with the video. While some players expressed ideas with questions for support and wanted to joke around, others found the caller’s panicked reaction amusing.
But the level of realism shown in the call also sparked discussion. MeinMMO presents a selection of comments that the video received:
- u/FetusMeatloaf via Reddit: “You should have asked about the weight of the handguard to see if it corresponds with the weight in-game.”
- u/Immortal_Crab via Reddit: “Hahaha, I love this level of curiosity. And then the total panic and fear of wasting their time, lol. So funny. BattleState Games goes all in.”
- u/VoodooSweet via Reddit: “So it’s actually the phone number of the real Knight’s Armament Company – pretty cool! They must be wondering: ‘Who the hell is Nikita [Note: Nikita Buyanov is the lead developer of Escape from Tarkov] and why are all these people asking when the wipe is?'”
- u/jasonalloyd via Reddit: “You should have told them that you’re having problems with your rifle and need support. Then you turn up your volume and start shooting, lol.”
EFT: Hardcore shooter with long-term motivation
What is Escape from Tarkov? The hardcore shooter Escape from Tarkov developed by Battlestate Games focuses on realism. Besides various mechanics that aim to depict real-life movements and weapon handling, the sound design of the shooter stands out especially.
The gameplay of Tarkov even establishes a new genre term among shooter fans: EFT-Like. These are shooters that, like Escape from Tarkov, focus on raids where PvEvP is played. The goal is to collect equipment and continually upgrade one’s possessions and base.
MeinMMO summarizes some core aspects of EFT or EFT-like games:
- No shrinking zone: The map remains unchanged throughout the entire raid.
- You can bring equipment into a raid that you’ve collected, purchased, and potentially upgraded in previous raids.
- While in a Battle Royale the goal is to win the round (the last survivor wins), in EFT the progress over a longer period matters.
- Long-term motivation through wipes that reset all progress of the past months and remove collected equipment from a player’s possession.
Escape from Tarkov has been a successful shooter for several years, regularly exciting its fans. On the streaming platform Twitch, EFT is also a real viewer magnet.
After the last wipe in December 2021, EFT averaged 125,000 viewers in January 2022 (via SullyGnome.com)
If the realism of EFT appeals to you and you’re wondering how and where you can buy Escape from Tarkov, MeinMMO editor Benedict Grothaus has compiled all the information you need.
