GSC Game World has published a deep dive video for Cost of Hope, the first story expansion for S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2: Heart of Chornobyl, giving an early look at two areas of the Zone the base game keeps closed: Iron Forest and the Chornobyl Power Plant itself. Eurogamer reported on the video.
Both are described as previously unexplored parts of the Zone that stalkers will be able to access once the expansion launches, and the video is an extended look at them rather than a trailer. The plant shares its name with the base game’s subtitle and had not been opened to players in it.
What the expansion adds
- Two new regions, Iron Forest and the Chornobyl Power Plant
- New weapons and gear
- New hubs, quests and uncharted locations
GSC has previously said Cost of Hope contains dozens of hours of content, which would make it a substantial addition to a game Eurogamer describes as already massive. The studio has still not announced a price, and did not give one alongside the video.
The expansion is not a sequel or an epilogue. Players take the role of Skif through events that run alongside the campaign of Heart of Chornobyl rather than after it. In-game PDA notifications point to the expansion content as the main storyline progresses, which means a player working through the campaign is directed into the new material at the points where it belongs rather than reaching it from a separate menu.
Cost of Hope was announced at an Xbox Partner Showcase in March. It arrives on 20th August for PC, PS5 and Xbox Series X/S, putting roughly two weeks between the deep dive and release.
The release follows a difficult stretch of publicity for the studio. Last month GSC Game World founder Sergiy Grygorovych said in an interview that Microsoft paid a significant sum to keep the open-world shooter a timed Xbox exclusive.
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