Escape from Tarkov is the most ambitious and popular extraction shooter ever made. It can be argued it has driven the genre’s growth since dropping into an alpha state almost a decade ago. The game has been in beta since 2016, which is a fact that often prompts users to ask: ‘When is Escape from Tarkov 1.0 being released?’
Technically, Escape from Tarkov hasn’t been released because it has been in a testing phase for almost ten years. It’ll be officially released when it’s a 1.0 product, which will only happen when the developer, Battlestate Games, feels like it’s ready to be classed as a full, finished game.
So, when is Escape from Tarkov being released? Let’s find out.
What is Tarkov 1.0?
Escape from Tarkov 1.0 will be the game’s version number when it becomes a fully released product. Until now, it has been numbered ‘0.15’, for example. That means there have been 15 major updates to the game since it entered a beta phase, but it is yet to be considered a full game.
When Tarkov 1.0 is released, the first major update will be ‘1.1’, and so on.
Sometimes, a game will have such a monumental overhaul that it’s considered a 2.0 product. For instance, in 2023, Cyberpunk 2077 underwent a phenomenal list of changes that made it feel like a whole new game – but it wasn’t. To describe that scenario, it was dubbed Cyberpunk 2077 2.0.
Related: Is Escape from Tarkov Coming to Steam?
What Will Be in Tarkov 1.0?
Battlestate Games has fleshed out the Escape from Tarkov platform so much over the years, but there are still plenty of changes lined up for the 1.0 release. For instance, the team endeavours to put in place a dedicated storyline that’ll see players actually escape from Tarkov. By doing this, they’ll wipe the game, reset their character, and start afresh.
If they repeatedly complete the game, they’ll go through a ‘Prestige’ system.
Elsewhere, Battlestate wants to add clans, alliances, and more factions to the game. Factions are rarely added to Escape from Tarkov, and for the most part, we’ve had the same units running around the game for almost ten years. The team also wants to introduce more DLC, further hideout expansions, a third-party API release, and more new maps.
That’s alongside all the usual changes that are added to the game: new weapons, new equipment, tweaked mechanics, and so on.
When is Tarkov 1.0 Being Released?
Presently, Tarkov 1.0 doesn’t have a release date, but in 2024, it dominated discussions related to the game. It’s expected that Tarkov 1.0 will arrive in 2026, as current roadmaps covering the game run until at least 2025. Like any new game, Battlestate will pour a huge amount of focus and money into marketing the release of Tarkov 1.0.
And that kind of thing takes a lot of time.
I’m predicting that Tarkov 1.0 will be released in 2026, and then the team will move on to focus on something else for the first time in more than a decade.
Need more Tarkov content? Find out when the next wipe is in Tarkov
