Escape from Tarkov is already a punishing game on its own, like many games such as Elden Ring and Super Meat Boy. However, few games punish you when you're not even playing them.
In Tarkov, there's an in-game event called a "Wipe" which acts as a kill switch to the whole server.
Effectively, it takes all of your in-game levels, weapons, and progress and chucks them in an incinerator, forcing everyone to start back at square one in the name of game balance.
This is done, seemingly, to prevent players from breaking their controllers in half after being killed by high-level players over and over again.
When is the Next Escape From Tarkov Wipe?
Tarkov wipes are usually activated after a major patch update, which come out roughly six months apart. The last wipe was launched this past December 12, and odds are there won't be a new one until mid-summer. Since Tarkov doesn't want to frustrate its players by resetting their progress constantly, the wipes are used sparingly. So due to its activation in December 2021, it's likely to occur sometime between June and July of this year. For those who want to ease their way in, and have nothing to do this summer, keep an eye out for the server wipe, and jump in when everyone is at their weakest, and quests at the easiest.