An alleged interview withBattlestate Games' Nikita Buyanov has appeared on Reddit as theEscape From Tarkovdeveloper doubles down on the controversial $250 ‘Unheard’ edition.
Earlier this week, Escape From Tarkov developer Battlestate Games launched a new edition titled ‘The Unheard’. Priced at an eye-watering $250, this special edition of Escape From Tarkov includes access to a new PvE co-op mode with persistent progression, enhanced stash size, access to all subsequent DLCs, and more.
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Unfortunately, its release set the Escape From Tarkov community on fire asfans took to social media to express their outrageat the ludicrously priced edition. But it wasn’t just the price that had fans irked, it was the pay-to-win elements such as a larger stash size and the “increased fence standing,” which prevents the player from being shot at by AI scavengers if their reputation level is high enough.
On top of the pay-to-win elements included in the Unheard edition, fans were outraged that a previous (and now delisted) Edge of Darkness edition promised access to all future DLC releases, but Battlestate Games has now locked the upcoming PvE mode behind this $250 pricetag. The studio insists that the new mode is not classified as DLC, but fans believe otherwise.
Escape From Tarkov Alleged Interview Has Fans Heated
A new post appeared on the Escape From Tarkov subreddit earlier today, alleging to be an interview with the game’s lead developer Nikita Buyanov. A community manager for Battlestate Gamesresponded to the post, claiming the interview hadn’t been faked. “Sadly leaks happen and no one likes them no matter to whom they happen,” the community manager said. They also noted that the interview is not the final and official stance, as the Q&A between Nikita and emissaries still needed to be polished to add further context where it’s missing.
Nevertheless, fans are outraged over the studio’s refusal to back down on the game’s Unheard edition, with the developer’s recent interview only adding further fuel to this roaring fire.
The interview is rather lengthy, but there are some important takeaways from some of the questions. Most notably, when a suggestion was made to make a second statement on the controversy and admit the mistake, Nikita replied by saying, “Mistake? This is not [a] mistake.” The dev then continued by saying “It’s time to understand who are the true believers” and noting that nobody is being forced into buying the Unheard edition.
Nikita was also asked if there was any chance that the price of the Unheard edition would be lowered for Edge of Darkness edition owners, to which he simply said, “thinking about it.”
As you may imagine, the interview didn’t go down too well with fans. “It’s important to know BSG’s honest take with unheard. And sadly, it shows that they are no better than scammers and liars,“one usersaid.While another said, “This isn’t a game release - it’s a funeral.”
Some fanseven believe that the release of the Unheard edition will lead to lawsuits. “The amount of balls Nikita has to piss on the face of everyone who bought EOD with the express promise we’d get every DLC is astounding. (BTW yes it is DLC, you can dance around it all you want but it’s DLC.) I can’t wait for the lawsuits.”
But it wasone user who summed upthe situation perfectly, simply by saying, “this is how you ruin your business’s reputation forever.”
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