Battlestate Games has announced that its extraction shooter Escape from Tarkov will hit its 1.0 release sometime this year, and that a Steam version of the game is also planned, although we don't know when that's coming.
In a livestream held over the weekend (with a handy summary by the wonderfully-named ResetEra user Saucycarpdog), Battlestate confirms that Escape from Tarkov 1.0 is coming in 2025, and that a Steam version is coming after that release.
Additionally, the spinoff game Escape from Tarkov: Arena will also be arriving on Steam, and that one is due to land on Valve's platform before the big 1.0 release of the main game. Again, though, no concrete release dates or windows were announced.
Before the 1.0 release, though, at least three more updates are planned. The first, in May, will bring a number of optimizations and improvements, while the second is due in June, bringing more gameplay tweaks and improvements to audio.
July's update will bring revamped gunshots for both players and AI opponents (that's CPU enemies, not generative AI), while August's patch will optimize the Interchange location and bring a new event with it.
All of this means that the 1.0 release probably won't arrive before September at the very earliest, and that's assuming it doesn't get delayed. Hopefully, though, we'll see Escape from Tarkov leave the murky confines of its closed beta before the year is through.
The PvE mode, which was the subject of some controversy back when it was first being discussed, will apparently also be coming to Steam after Escape from Tarkov's 1.0 release, and it'll be getting just one wipe before launch to level the playing field.
When Tarkov 1.0 does arrive, it'll face stiff competition from a growing number of extraction shooters, including Bungie's Marathon, which will be launching in September. Heck, even Elden Ring and Dark Souls developer FromSoftware is getting in on the action.
For now, though, you can pick up Escape from Tarkov and Escape from Tarkov: Arena on PC via the games' official website.
