VGTimes Interview with Escape from Tarkov and Tarkov: Arena Developer at TGS 2024

This year, Battlestate Games studio went to Tokyo Game Show so that fans from Japan could not only look at Escape from Tarkov and Tarkov Arena, but also touch them. And they also showed the bustling updates in detail. The interview, conducted by our editor — Rodion Ilin — at this significant event with Dmitry Ogorodnikov, the head of the PR department of Battlestate Games, reveals what the studio showed.

VGTimes: So tell me, how did you end up at TGS?

Dmitry: This is our second year at TGS, and it's no coincidence. We have a very large number of players in this country.

VGTimes: In Japan?

Dmitry: Yes, in Japan. Japan is one of our largest markets. According to statistics, it regularly ranks in the top 3 in popularity of our game, sometimes even ahead of Russia. Especially after we localized the game and held a number of marketing events. The players here are very active in the life of our community: for example, over 50 cosplayers will perform at this stand over 4 days. Our wonderful cosplayers look as authentic as possible, like our bosses from the game, like our characters from the game. And everyone wants to take a photo with them. As you can see [shows the stage — editor's note], the guys really love this game.

VGTimes: It would be interesting to know the top regions/countries by popularity of the game, can you tell me?

Dmitry: Historically, the leader in the number of players is America (about 37%). Second place is usually shared by Europe (with Germany in the lead) and Russia. Japan and other Asian countries often take third place, but with active marketing campaigns they can rise higher.

VGTimes: Okay, but is Russia still in second place, not first? Or what place is Russia in anyway?

Dmitry: The situation changes from time to time. It depends on what we are doing specifically at the moment. When we do some activities here, marketing events, Japan comes out on top much, much higher. That is why we have been coming here for the second year already and I think we will come again.

VGTimes: I will ask a quasi-political question. What are the problems for distribution now?

Dmitry: No problems. We have this thing [takes out a sledgehammer from his wide trousers — editor's note]. We travel with it and show everyone what a cool game is, cosplay, and there are no problems with distribution if you make a cool game, if you have a cool community.

VGTimes: Tell us what's new in the game and what will appear soon?

Dmitry: The main focus of our participation in TGS is Escape from Tarkov: Arena. The Arena project is focused on eSports, and we are constantly working on its development. Over the past few months, we have released two major updates for Arena. In them, we added a new mode, integrated various game mechanics and created several new maps.

This year, we brought here an exclusive novelty — a new map that has not yet been released. It had its world premiere at TwitchCon in San Diego, and now we present it here. «The Fort» or «The Prison» as we call it inside the studio is a large location with many interesting places and opportunities for tactical maneuvers. We were inspired by Fort Boyard [in the Bay of Biscay in the south of France — ed.] and worked for a long time on the map design, came up with new game mechanics that will allow players to unleash its full potential. It is a perfect fit for our Black Gen mode, which was released this summer.

In the near future, we plan to add new mechanics to Arena, such as Molotov cocktails, and expand the possibilities for players.

VGTimes: And when can we expect a new feature in the game?

Dmitry: The release of the «Fort» map in Tarkov: Arena is scheduled for mid-October.

VGTimes: Global or by region?

Dmitry: The release will be carried out simultaneously in all regions.

Dmitry: You can take a photo here [talks about the fan zone — ed. [ed.] with our characters, you can «train» on the simulator [it doesn't look very difficult] before the «skating». The guys get different goodies for doing exercises on the simulator. Here [pointing to the stand with computers] everyone can play... We also have a stand in the merch hall, where you can buy special, exclusive merch in the Japanese style. For example, like mine...

VGTimes: Cool! Every company should have it like that!

Dmitry: Thank you!

VGTimes: How much does it cost to exhibit at TGS?

Dmitry: The cost of participating in TGS is quite reasonable, especially compared to gamescom. I won't reveal the numbers, but I will say that TGS is about half the price. Japan is more hospitable to developers in this regard. By the way, TGS is a gigantic exhibition, which is visited by about 250 thousand people over four days. This is an incredible audience, considering the scale of the exhibition — 11 huge pavilions. Gamescom cannot boast of this.

VGTimes: Will you come to the restored IgroMir, IgroMir 2.0?

Dmitry: We are considering the possibility of participating in IgroMir 2.0. We have several ideas for joint projects that we could implement at this exhibition. There have been no large gaming exhibitions in Russia for a long time, and we would like to communicate with the Russian audience, streamers and partners again. Last year, we held an independent event in St. Petersburg, and it was a success.

VGTimes: We were there!

Dmitry: Yes, I remember.

VGTimes: Is there any point in offline exhibitions in the times of online dominance?

Dmitry: Of course. Offline exhibitions like TGS are a unique opportunity to directly communicate with a huge audience that may not yet be familiar with your game. For example, look at this cosplayer [talking about a medic — editor's note] — so many people want to take a photo with him. In Japan, the culture of cosplay, tactical gear, and gaming subcultures is very developed. Our exhibition always gathers huge queues. In addition, offline events are a great way to find new partners, influencers, and expand your audience.

VGTimes: You've been on the market for a long time, but you haven't reached the release yet. How long has the development been going on?

Dmitry: If we talk about how long the game has been around, it was announced at the end of 2015, in November, with a trailer. And, accordingly, somewhere around 2015, maybe even in 2014, Nikita [Nikita Buyanov, head of the Battlestate Games studio — editor's note] and the first like-minded people started working on the game, prototyping it, and so on. So, it turns out that Tarkov has been around for about 10 years.

VGTimes: And still not in the release...

Dmitry: And still not in the release! But what is a release? Put the number 1.0, and that's it? What will change? Now the game has already implemented a huge amount of content and mechanics, it's already 1.0 and 2.0. The release could have been a year ago, two years ago. The point is different. We want to implement the concept of story quests, how they will work cool, and many other things inside the content. Including, of course, to the extent possible, to optimize all these things. The game will continue to develop after the so-called «release». We already have many plans for what will happen.

VGTimes: There was some hate from the community about monetization a while ago. What can you say about it, why was it, who is to blame and what to do?

Dmitry: No one is to blame, and nothing needs to be done about it. This is a natural development of the game. We released a new edition, and it really went well. Players really like it. We even have tokens with a key for the Unheard Edition on the back. Everyone should understand what the Unheard Edition is, because it plays an important role.

What is Unheard for the game? It is critical for the future story quests in Escape from Tarkov, which will reveal the reasons why we are actually leaving Tarkov and what we are trying to achieve. This was not a hard blow or hate for us. We continue to work on the game and make it no matter what. A huge number of fans around the world stay with us and continue to play because they like the game.

VGTimes: And can you give us any insight into what players can expect next?

Dmitry: We recently published a roadmap for both projects: Escape from Tarkov and Tarkov: Arena. In addition to several patches, there are a lot of interesting things ahead. Expect traditionally cool Halloween events. New content will be added to Escape from Tarkov by the end of the year. New modes and maps will appear in Arena. We continue to develop the eSports direction, holding many tournaments. In addition, the release of Escape from Tarkov is planned for next year, which Nikita has already confirmed.

VGTimes: Nikita Buyanov, are you answering?! [Here Rodion Ilyin seems to be addressing Nikita out loud, who is not actually at TGS — ed. [edit]

Dmitry: Unfortunately, Nikita is not with us today. He did not come here. He was in San Diego, he is very busy with work. But it seems like there is already a result! And next year Nikita will come to TGS!

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Friends, Escape from Tarkov and Escape from Tarkov: Arena seem to be doing well, and we, fans and players, can expect a lot of cool content ahead. TGS 2024 really looks incredible! What do you think about the event?! Share your opinions in the comments!

Interview conducted by Rodion Ilin.

VGTimes has been operating since 2011 and during this time has visited dozens of exhibitions and festivals, where our journalists have collected many exclusive materials. For example, in 2019 we got to a closed screening of Cyberpunk 2077 at gamescom, in 2017 we prepared a photo report from WG Fest, in 2020 we were at the largest gaming event in Central Asia CAGS, and also visited IgroMir several times, where we saw Hideo Kojima and other famous developers.