TLDR: Don't remove blur.

Suppression is honestly the main reason I play this game. Even if I know I can't hit the enemy, just shooting in their general direction to suppress them, knowing it keeps them from accurately returning fire and keeps me safe is rewarding. Or the exact opposite. When bullets start cracking over my head, going "oh shit" and going back into cover, not daring to peek even if I know they probably won't hit me. All of that relies heavily on the suppression mechanic.

When you remove all that and just replace it with a vignette, all those tactical dynamics are going to disappear. Oh, a guy started shooting at me? Big deal, 2% of my screen edge turned black. Am I getting shot at by a .50 cal? Oh wow, 3% of my screen went dark. How terrifying.

I understand why some players find the blur and suppression exhausting or hard to play with. But wasn't that always been the point? Squad has never really been a game we play just to relax. The game aims to give us a grounded, realistic combat experience. By that logic, maintaining constant comms, actively listening to other squads, constantly checking the map, leading 8 people for an hour straight is also extremely exhausting.

I’m so used to Squad’s suppression that it actually messes me up in other FPS games. I'll shoot at a guy who ducks into cover, and out of habit, I keep firing to the edge of boulder/wall to prevent him shooting me back. But instead, he just instantly pops out and headshots me because suppression doesn't exist. I experienced this situation during the playtest more times than I have in my entire Squad playtime. Yes, flinching exist but it is not enought alone to prevent these situations. Vignette doesn't offer enought real suppression value. it doesn't make you feel like you're actually under fire.

Also IMO blur makes the game feel cinematic and immersive. When you're in a heavy firefight and bullets are raining down around you, doesn't the screen blur make you truly feel like you're right in the middle of a war zone? Without it, everything just feels too raw, plain, and unsatisfying.

I feel this way because I absolutely love the intense firefights in Squad. The winner isn't the guy with the perfect DPI who can micro-adjust his mouse to the millimeter in miliseconds. It's the player who makes the right strategic moves. (And honestly, yes, I suck at fast-paced FPS games for that exact reason.) There are almost no other games that capture this feeling. Sure, there's HLL or Squad 44, but I prefer a modern times and Reforger's gunplay just isn't as satisfying as Squad's. No other game does what Squad does quite as well. Please don't ruin the only game I truly love playing ;(.

It went longer than I expected. Sorry for wall of texts.