"Don't peek". We have all heard it many times from team mates, in game. So what does it really mean?! Why shouldn't you peek?
Most of the time, you hear this being yelled in voice chat when a round comes to an end. It's a typical mistake to see a friendly defender peeking when there is just 15 seconds left on the clock, when he could have stayed hidden and forced the enemy to commit to a rush, giving him a better advantage from both cover and sound. This is commonly known, and most people realize this mistake. But... what about all those other situations, when no one is spectating you and telling you what to do? What about those situations where you die, and you wonder "what did I do wrong?"

The mistake: Using your vision to gather information.

We humans are desperately trying to see everything. I mean, we build billion dollar telescopes to look at galaxies far far away... So what does it have to do with R6? Well, we are all humans, and when you sit alone in that objective room with your hearth pounding like an engine, it is very tempting to stand up and look. So, is it really the best move to follow our human instinct?

Your vision provides the quickest and most accurate information.

If you look around a corner (not ADS), you gather a ton of information, but... If you know the map and the area around that corner, then what do you really get from this peek? The whole question boils down to; "is there an enemy there, or not?".

Your vision only provides information from the area that you can see.

If that question is the only reason to peek, then why should you? You get 1 life per round and every time you expose yourself to an uncleared area, you are risking this one and only life you got.

Whenever you peek you expose the one and only life you get, that round

The difference: If a high rank player sits close to the objective and wants to hold a corner or know what's on the other side, he would often find other ways to do this than to peek it. Depending on time, place and enemies left, he will use cameras or an helpful Echo to get this information, but what if those alternatives are out of the picture? Well, then you still got sound. The most underrated feature at lower ranks! These are just 3 ways to gather information without exposing your life.

Other ways to gather information does not necessarily expose your life.

Let's say he get nothing from listening for a few seconds, then what does he do? peek it? I'd like to answer that by asking; Does he have to peek it?

You have to assess every situation and figure if this peek is worth risking your life for, because there may be both smarter and safer solutions.

And this is where the "Don't peek" comes from. The reason you hear this is because a team mate figures that you don't have to peek. I mean, you may as well find a narrow angle towards the corner, take a sip of your soda and sit back while you're ADS'ed and holding the corner. Remember this: Impatience is the most common death.

The tip:Vision provides the quickest and most accurate information, but your vision only provides information from the area that you can see. Whenever you peek you expose the one and only life you get, that round. Other ways to gather information does not necessarily expose your life. Therefore, you have to assess every situation and figure if this peek is worth risking your life for, because there may be both smarter and safer solutions.

To peek or not to peek, that's the big question.

Check out my new guide - Multitasking - Staying critical to your next position.