With Escape From Tarkov 1.0's first week in the books, its director lays out what's next for the extraction game

Escape From Tarkov 1.0 has now been here for a week, and it's gone about as I expected. It might have been one of the first FPS games to lock down what's now become the hyper-popular extraction shooter or 'PvPvE' format, but Tarkov in 2025 has a lot more competition. While sentiment around the actual content of the 1.0 update has largely been positive, it's been overshadowed by everything from crashes and server struggles to rivals like Arc Raiders and, yes, even the solo alternative that is Escape From Duckov. But Battlestate COO Nikita Buyanov isn't too worried, and he's already lining up what's next.

The Escape From Tarkov director has long been an outspoken, and at times controversial, figure. He certainly didn't seem too concerned by the game's Steam review bomb, although he admits that the launch was a little more taxing than Battlestate might have hoped. "What a week," he writes in a post to social platform X. "This week was actual stress testing not only of our servers but also our mind and nerves for sure. But seeing you enjoy the game makes us feel better."

As for what's next on the list, Buyanov says, "We plan to use this couple of months to prioritize and get more and more fixes and improvements into the game." Servers might have stabilized somewhat, but Tarkov's 47%-positive Steam rating shows that there's still plenty of frustration, although gripes around the developer's "attitude towards users" and the decision to force existing owners to buy a fresh copy if they want to play on Steam are unlikely to be swayed by bug fixes and better stability.

Expect some new content in the run-up to the Scav Life DLC, as well, including the return of snow (cue a mix of cheers and groans). "There will be winter in Tarkov, new storyline quests, [and a] new event" Buyanov confirms. "Sometime after there will be the introduction of seasonal characters with the whole new seasons system." He says we'll get a full rundown of details in December courtesy of a comeback for the New Year Tarkov TV, and offers some freebies with a limited time code: 'SCAVYBOI.'

In the meantime, there's still a week left to get Escape From Tarkov on Steam at a 15% discount if you've been considering it. For all the many that have followed in its footsteps, from the likes of Arena Breakout Infinite and Gray Zone Warfare to more divergent offerings such as Arc Raiders, there's still a uniqueness to Tarkov that will make it hit differently for some.