STALKER 2: Cost of Hope has been revealed, the first major expansion to STALKER 2 set to arrive across Xbox Series X|S, PlayStation 5 and PC this summer.
Cost of Hope will invite you back into the Zone, weaving a new chapter around the battle between Duty and Freedom. These two rival factions see the Zone as a threat that needs to be contained and a gift that needs to be explored and harnessed for good, and now the tentative peace between them has come to an end.
You’ll continue to play as Skif, the protagonist from STALKER 2, with the Cost of Hope DLC fed into the open world, freeform experience of the main game. A signal on the PDA will trigger the new storyline, and allows you to head off and dip in and out of events.
That’s because this DLC will take you to two new regions to explore: the Chornobyl Nuclear Power Plant that is now calling stalkers back in, and the Iron Forest, which is a maze of paths and uncharted locations. Each region has its own hub, quests and activities, while there’s new weapons and gear to stock up on.
GSC Game Worlds describe this as the “middle chapter of the ‘second trilogy’”, though where the first STALKER was three separate games, the story being told here will all be included in the same game. A future DLC story expansion will wrap up the tale.
STALKER 2: Heart of Chornobyl Review
In our STALKER 2: Heart of Chornobyl review, Miguel said, “STALKER 2: Heart of Chornobyl is an immersive experience like no other. It’s a tense shooter, a gripping survival experience, an immersive explorable sandbox, and a stunning piece of art come to life despite the harrowing circumstances of the team behind it all.”
Source: press release
