Nikita Reflects on Ten Years of Tarkov: ‘It’s a Miracle We’ve Made it Playable’

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After ten years in development, Escape from Tarkov officially launched in November 2025, a huge achievement for Battlestate Games and a particularly significant moment for the game’s creator, Nikita Buyanov. As the public face of Escape from Tarkov, Buyanov has experienced both strong support and harsh criticism over the years, and this takes a toll on him.

So, I was reading an interview with the head of Battlestate Games, and it was pretty interesting. He was talking about ten years of Escape from Tarkov, and he basically said they never set out to make everyone happy with the game. He honestly doesn’t get why people are always trying to knock Tarkov off the top spot in the extraction genre, and he admitted that just getting the game to a point where it was playable was a huge struggle. It’s cool to hear that honesty, honestly.

Escape from Tarkov Isn’t For Everyone

Battlestate Games’ lead, Nikita Buyanov, recently shared ten years’ worth of behind-the-scenes stories in an interview with GamesRadar, following his appearance on the Access Granted podcast.

Nikita addressed the long-standing problem of cheaters in Escape from Tarkov, explaining the challenges Battlestate Games faced when initially releasing the game.

This game has been incredibly challenging to develop, and honestly, it’s amazing we’ve gotten it working given how complex it is.

Many fans see Nikita Buyanov as the public face of Escape from Tarkov. While Battlestate Games has a large development team of over 400 people, Buyanov is uniquely known as the creator and driving force behind the game’s innovative ‘extraction shooter’ concept – a role he readily recognizes.

I believe it’s important for me to be directly involved and lead the charge. I think this benefits Battlestate Games, as it reinforces my position as a leader. We originally created this game to bring people together, but unfortunately, it often leads to conflict. Players seem to use it as an outlet for frustration, directing negativity towards both the game and me. Perhaps that’s the core of what Tarkov really is – it’s more than just a game; it’s a social experiment that encompasses everything, even the negative aspects.

Nikita shared that Escape from Tarkov has completely consumed the last ten years of his life. He’s dedicated all his time to the game, leaving him with no personal time and feeling, ironically, unable to step away from it.

Escape from Tarkov has become a huge part of my life – I don’t know what I’d do without it. I’ve been through a lot, both professionally and personally, and while I’ve gained experience, it hasn’t necessarily brought me happiness. I’ve come to accept that life is challenging, and that’s just how it’s going to be – a constant struggle, as long as I live.

Escape from Tarkov is widely recognized as the game that truly started the ‘extraction shooter’ genre. Many other games have tried to copy its unique style since it came out. It essentially created a path to success for titles like ARC Raiders, and remains the most popular game of its kind.

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2026-01-01 10:20