Tarkov’s Full Release – 30 Days Later

(Intro)

We have now crossed the thirty-day mark on the full release of Tarkov 1.0. And over the last year or so with any large change to the game, I like to come back after about a month or so has passed and reflect on what it’s been like, have the changes felt substantial to the game’s core loop and whether or not it was worth the wait. And while some of the additions have been incredibly interesting to experience and see come to fruition, it isn’t that the things added were bad per say; it’s that at least speaking only for myself, I was expecting a little more. More of the little changes; touch ups here and there, polishing up some of the mess that was left behind. But sadly, we haven’t quite gotten there yet. But we’re getting ahead of ourselves, let’s have a conversation about 1.0 and how after a month, it’s pretty much what I expected, even though my imagination ran wild with the prospect of 1.0 for years. The full release did what it needed to, but I wish there was more done.

(What’s new)

The biggest change or addition is of course the main story quests and the in-engine traders. The entire main story's questline is gigantic. As far as I’m aware, at the time of writing, less than ten people have reached an ending or some sort. There are apparently four endings depending on the choices you make during the main story. But the fact there is enough content that only a handful of people have completed it is impressive. Regarding my own progression, I’m barely even two chapters into the story. I personally wanted to get my traders to level two for the most part and do a bunch of the quests we’re accustomed to before trying to dive into the story. But I remember seeing screenshots from other players where there are like seven or eight tabs on the main story section of the quests log. So, at least there will be a ton to do for those who enjoy taking the game at a slower pace. It’s definitely the one aspect of the game they focused on the most compared to pretty much everything else, which I understand why. The main story in their eyes was what separated Tarkov from being 1.0. Granted, I’m sure a lot of us would’ve loved to see some other things changed and iterated on throughout the game, but hey if BSG wanted to wait for 1.0 until the main story was done, then that’s fine. And besides, if you pay attention to the conversations being had by the traders, the story is interesting. You’d think just trying to escape would be pretty cut and dry, but there is a ton of nuance to it, which I personally appreciate a lot. I do plan on trying to escape, but I don’t know how long it’s going to take. Hopefully I can get it done before the game wipes for the first time after 1.0. Other than the new quests, there is a ton of new equipment to use which is always appreciated, but par for the course with any update. Although I will give an honorable mention to the level action rifle. It has become the communities' new favorite weapon because the powerful ammo associated with it was available at the traders for a while before it was removed, a BSG classic. So, most people knowing this bought what I would imagine, thousands of rounds to use it for questing. Ah, old habits die hard, don’t they? We got the interchange expansion which we talked about recently. I love it and feel like it’s one of the better additions to any map they’ve released. Other than that, the game is more or less the same. Which kind of begs the question: should BSG have added more with 1.0?

(What’s the same)

When looking at the list of things in the game we were hoping we would see some attention, sadly that didn’t really end up happening across many of them. The biggest one, at least for me personally, was some more optimization across many places in the game. There are still maps and certain spots that just nuke frame rates feel awful. It could be time for some PC upgrades (well maybe not with the cost of things), but it’s sad to see that places like Customs and Streets just didn't get the attention they so desperately need. Especially Streets; I did a few scav runs and man, I hate that map so much, just because it runs bad. On paper, it’s awesome, but keep me away from that map as long as possible please. But how we interact with the traders is the same; most of the now side quests are the same, and for anyone who has stuck around for years or just not taken a wipe off, the game feels largely familiar with some new additions and moments sprinkled in here and there. In this particular instance, BSG was simply hellbent on getting the main story in the game because that’s what they felt was the biggest mission component before 1.0 could be released. It was also probably a degree of them feeling like they were running out of time to get this project done, and also a bit of burnout which I honestly wouldn’t blame them if that was the case. Over a decade's worth of work. And while it didn’t launch the way any of us would’ve liked it (the server’s instability and anything else in between), they can at least now say the game is out. If they wanted to stop, they could. We know they won’t, at least for the time being, but for how long that continues remains to be seen. We have the final version now; it is what it is. But something I and many who have played this game think even to this day is, what if?

(What it could’ve been)

I needed to remind myself and be realistic about what was going to come with 1.0. For years, many of us and I let our imaginations run wild with what 1.0 could be, and it was only more recently where the reality of what 1.0 will be starting to set in. I don’t blame anyone for dreaming of more, in fact, I’m glad we did. It’s partially what kept some players around; we’ve talked briefly about the potential that Tarkov had and honestly still does to some extent, because it was always so fun to come up with all these different features and mechanics that could be included in a game like this. Imagine this game as an open world game? Where each map is connected and you can spend hours going from one corner of Tarkov to the other. How would it work? What if there were ways to revive downed teammates or even enemies? What if you can leave the map and go into your hideout and walk around, gear up and use the computer for many of your needs before heading out? Tons of questions and hypotheticals; so much your imagination can run with if you let it. And again, I say let it. Sure, we have the final version, but that doesn’t mean people won’t stop bringing new ideas to life. In the version of Tarkov that shall not be named (if you know you know), we’ve seen so many of these ideas brought into reality. Even a helicopter extraction in real time. It’s crazy what this game could’ve been if ideas and expectations had been locked in years ago. If there was less floundering around what BSG truly wanted this game to be. At least how the game opens now is pretty much beat for beat what I thought it would be. Which makes me happy. Either way, no matter how you look at it, Tarkov is what it is. An instance-based extraction shooter that’s tough as nails and is the only one on the market right now to still get me stressed out. Which for the genre is exactly what it should be doing. I said this in previous videos, but I am still interested to see where it goes even just six months from now. Will it look vastly different? Will the performance be better? Who knows; guess we’ll just have to wait and see for ourselves.

(Outro)

Tarkov’s full release has been out for one month. And within that time, some people have managed to escape from Tarkov proper and see what some of the endings are like. We’ve got a lot of main story quests to complete, the usual assortment of what are now called side quests which we know and love or hate depending on who you are, and the rest of the game feeling pretty much the same from years prior. It wasn’t the best way of going about it, it wasn’t the cleanest execution, but we know what we’re dealing with at this point. But that still didn’t stop me the night before its release from just letting my brain run wild, and the small bit of hope in me think that the game was going to be wildly different. I knew the reality of the circumstances; I knew the game was going to be pretty much the same. But how unbelievable would it have been for the 1.0 release to feel like a literally different game? It would’ve shocked the world and put BSG in the greatest of all time studio status, but that didn’t happen. I still think in general, what they’ve done and the mark they have left on this industry will be felt for a very long time. It's just a shame they couldn’t cross the finish line in a faster or cleaner manner. But I’ll take what I can get and just hope their next project can go exactly how they envision it. Thank you very much for taking the time out of your day to watch this video. Let me know down in the comment section below your thoughts on the full release of the game a month after its launch, what were some of your unrealistic dream additions to the game and be sure to subscribe for more videos about what Tarkov could’ve been, what it should’ve been if made by anyone else, but ultimately is whether we like it or not. I hope to see you in future ones.