After years of operating outside Steam’s ecosystem, Escape from Tarkov is finally making its way to Valve’s storefront as it gears up for a long-awaited full release. Battlestate Games confirmed the news in a typically unconventional fashion—by posting a gif of an old guy with a “steam“ iron. That was all it took to set the community buzzing, with fans immediately recognizing the implication: Tarkov’s self-contained launcher era is ending.
The timing couldn’t be more significant. Tarkov, which has been in closed beta since 2017, has long been one of PC’s most hardcore and notoriously punishing shooters. The move to Steam signals that Battlestate is confident enough to shed the “early access” image and present Tarkov as a fully fledged release. It also lowers the barrier for new players who were put off by having to buy directly through the studio’s own launcher.
Details on how Battlestate will handle account migration, pricing, and whether existing owners get Steam keys remain unclear. The studio has said it wants the transition to be smooth, but as Tarkov veterans know, nothing in this game comes easy. Still, Steam integration means a vastly wider audience, easier discoverability, and features like cloud saves and workshop integration if supported.
For a game defined by brutal firefights, high-stakes looting, and extraction-based survival, Steam is both a new battlefield and a long-awaited refuge. And for a community that has stuck through wipes, controversies, and years of “soon™” promises, Tarkov’s move to Steam feels like the start of its next chapter on November 15, 2025.
