The chaos of Tarkov’s Unheard Edition is taking over the gaming community like a hurricane. The game is known for its hardcore brutal first-person shooter features. The main root of the chaos is the “Unheard Edition” has a hefty price tag of $250. To make things worse the the PvE feature of the game is only available if players purchase the Unheard Edition.
What is Escape from Tarkov?
The game is set on a fictional area known as Norvinsk region in the northwestern part of Russian. Due to economic crisis a war broke out between two factions. The story unfolds more as you progress through the game.
Players needs to scavenge for loots across the map while they fight off the enemies who are known as the Scavs. The game’s unforgiving playstyle and brutality has made it popular among the players. The main goal of escape Tarkov while of course being alive.
The players were enjoying but they wanted to have a PvE mode to get better at the game. They requested this feature so they can learn the map more and experience with their gears. The developers did add the feature but in a very controversial way.
Edge of Darkness Betrayed?
Back when the players bough Edge of Darkness they had the idea that all future DLC will be free. Most players in the community feels betrayed by this move. The Edge of Darkness itself had a hefty price tag where players got starting resources, exclusive gears and additional stash space. However, with the arrival of Unheard Edition players feel they are being scammed by the developers. The PvE feature feels like a default feature that base game should come with according to the players.
Nikita Buyanov’s Balancing Act
The response of COO of Battlestate Games added more spice to the chaos. Nikita Buyanov defended the unheard edition by stating it is a not a downloadable content instead it is a entirely new product. In order to handle the chaos, he gave the Edge of Darkness players six months of grace period to access the PvE feature. However, of course it was not enough players still feel betrayed as they feel like they were misleading into spending huge amount of money.
Pay to Win or Pay to Experiment?
Apart from the PvE controversy the exclusive starting gears made the situation look like a “Pay to Win” scenario. Players feel that people who purchased Unheard Edition will have extra advantage due to starting out resources. Players feel that the Unheard Edition players will get more time to practice in PvE environment giving them an extra push. However, Battlestate Games refuted by saying the game is still skill based but the damage was done. The trust between the developers and players really went down the hill.
Beyond the Dollar Signs: Communication Breakdown
The players feel that the developers did poorly when it came to explaining their reasoning. The developers are accused of dodging actual explanation behind this move. The communication gap also fueled the speculation more making the community angrier.
The drama also spilled over reddit and YouTube. Many streamers and content creators gave their opinion and reaction towards this chaos. Some players were supporting Battlestate Games that they do have the right to monetize their games.
Lessons Learned: A Look Forward
The chaos teaches lesson to all the developers out there. Firstly, communication is very much important. It can be frustrating sometimes when the players think they are entitled to major changes. The developers reserve all right to make changes and monetize their games. However, it becomes unfair when there is communication gap.
In the case of Escape from Tarkov majority of the players were under the impression they do not need to pay any extra amount for future DLCs. They would probably still pay it if it didn’t have a price tag of $250. Moreover, the developers were lazy when it came to explaining the proper reasoning behind it. The PvE feature not that much of a premium feature to pay $250 for it. Hence, players are disappointed from this conflict.
It will take awhile for Battlestate Games to rebuild the trust with their community. They need to be more transparent with their players in future or else more conflicts will arise.
Conclusion
Apart from the drama it is would be a crime to deny Escape from Tarkov’s immersive game. The shooting game feels realistic and it pushes you to do better with its risk-reward system.
However, at the end of the day any sort of miscommunication can break the trust between developers and players. The damage is quite deep and it will take some time to fix this mess.
