Escape from Tarkov Hotfix – What’s New for the New Year?

What's new and what's next in the capital of Tarkov?

escape from tarkov

A new Hotfix and Patch notes were rolled out for Escape from Tarkov.

Patch 0.12.12.10.16338 of Escape from Tarkov is a small patch that was implemented last December 27, 2021 which made a few changes with the AI behavior as well as fixed a few bugs.

This is a part of a string of regular smaller updates that followed the bigger 0.12.12 update back in December 12 which added quite a number of things such as the new Lighthouse map and the new Inertia mechanic, all of which are all listed in this post on the official forums.

Escape from Tarkov Patch 0.12.12.10.16338 Changes

  • Added a peaceful Santa Claus who can spawn on every map, except for the Laboratory. This Santa Claus will remain passive until he gets injured by a player. When approached during its peaceful state, he gives out presents to players. Killing Santa Claus as either a PMC or a Scav will incur a significant reputation penalty with Fence.
  • New gear and barter items.
    • So far, two new rigs have been added: FirstSpear “Strandhogg” plate carrier, and the Eagle Industries “MMAC” plate carrier.
  • New Year’s Events.
    • The Escape from Tarkov Twitch Drop that will happen on December 28, 2021 until January 8, 2022; no additional info announced yet if there will be other events coming out on New Year’s day.
Santa Claus in Escape from Tarkov
Santa Claus, credits to Fandom.com
  • AI changes
    • Santa will no longer attack players who attack other Scavs.
    • PMCs will no longer gain Fence reputation from killing players who killed bosses.
    • PMCs will no longer lose Fence reputation from killing player Scavs.
    • Player Scavs will no longer gain Fence reputation from killing PMCs who attacked Raiders.
  • Bug fixes
    • Corrected the animation of transition to a jammed state for MP133, KS-23, M870 and M590.
    • The barrel of the USP pistol now heats up correctly.
    • Fixed a bug which didn’t allow Scav bots use first aid kits picked up during a raid.
    • Fixed a bug that displayed a Scav instead of a PMC on the stats screen after the end of an offline raid.

Escape from Tarkov Christmas Gifts 2021

Escape from Tarkov are giving out Christmas presents for all its players. Just a few patches earlier, players of Escape from Tarkov were given surprise gifts just in time for the holidays.

How to Claim Escape from Tarkov Christmas Gifts 2021

All you have to do to claim yours is to go to the official Escape from Tarkov website and follow the steps below:

  • Step 1: Log in to your account with your credentials.
  • Step 2: Scroll down until you see the Mk 17 gift image with the attachment (paperclip) icon button.
  • Step 3: Click the attachment button on the image.

Click on the paperclip icon as shown below:

paperclip icon - button How to Claim Escape from Tarkov Christmas Gifts 2021

Once you log in to the game, you will get a message prompting you to accept the gift.

  • Step 4: In-game, you will have a message from SYSTEM.
  • Step 5: Open the message and click Receive Contents.
  • Step 6: The gifts you will be receiving will be listed on the screen.
  • Step 7: Click receive all to transfer them to your inventory.

Escape from Tarkov Christmas Gifts 2021 Contents

The gift box from Escape from Tarkov contains the following in-game items:

  • 3x M7290 Flashbang Grenades
  • 3x RGN Impact Grenades
  • 3x RGO Impact Grenades
  • Ammo Case
  • Keycards Case
  • MK 17
  • Santa Claus Beard
  • x120 M80 Bullets

You will receive a Santa beard, a keycard holder, 3 RGO grenades, 3 RGN grenades, 3 M7290 flashbang grenades, 3 stacks of M80 ammo, 4 Mk17 20-round mags, an ammo box, and a kitted FN SCAR-H assault rifle.

Escape from Tarkov Christmas Gifts 2021 Contents

Escape from Tarkov New Year Event Coming Soon?

Although it was mentioned in the patch logs that “New Year’s Events” were added, there’s no additional information given yet if there will be a separate event once 2022 comes, or if Battlestate Games is just referring to their ongoing Christmas event.

In their tweet about their Winter Holiday Sale, they also mentioned about the Christmas present referring to it as a New Year’s present.

Nevertheless, we will be on the lookout for more news about the game in 2022 and here’s to hoping more events that will keep the players busy in Tarkov.

If you want to spend the holidays running around in Tarkov hoping to bump into Santa, now’s the best time to do so while the Winter Holiday Sale is still ongoing. All versions of the game, from the Standard edition to the Edge of Darkness limited edition, currently are on sale with a 25% discount.

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Staff Writer