GSC Game World has confirmed that STALKER 2: Heart of Chornobyl’s first major story expansion, Cost of Hope, will launch on August 20, 2026. The paid expansion will arrive on PC, PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X|S alongside the free Update 2.0.
Cost of Hope adds a new campaign that continues Skif’s story during the events of the base game. A strange PDA signal draws him into a new conflict between Duty and Freedom as their peace falls apart.
The expansion focuses on the different beliefs held by two of the Zone’s best-known factions. Duty wants to destroy the Zone because of the danger it poses, while Freedom wants people to study it and live without government control.
Skif will work with returning characters Zulu and Mavka while investigating the cause of the new conflict. Player choices will change how the story develops and influence the future of the Zone beyond the expansion’s main missions.
Cost of Hope adds the Chornobyl Nuclear Power Plant as a fully explorable region. The location has remained inaccessible in STALKER 2, despite being one of the most recognisable places in the wider series.
Players can also enter the Iron Forest, a maze-like region filled with hidden paths, quests and optional activities. Both areas include new hubs, characters, enemies, weapons, equipment, mutants and anomalies.
GSC Game World describes Cost of Hope as a large nonlinear expansion with dozens of hours of content. Players will need the base version of STALKER 2: Heart of Chornobyl to access it.
Update 2.0 will launch for all STALKER 2 owners on the same day as the expansion. The update includes changes to the game’s Unreal Engine technology, along with new content and improvements to performance and stability.
GSC Game World has not shared the complete Update 2.0 patch notes yet. More information about its new systems, technical changes and gameplay additions will be revealed before the August release.
Cost of Hope is a single-player expansion and will be sold separately on supported platforms. It is also included with the Ultimate Edition and the related edition upgrade for players who already own the base game.
The Steam version requires 160GB of SSD space, with 16GB of RAM listed as the minimum and 32GB recommended. Cost of Hope and Update 2.0 will both become available on August 20.
