GSC Game World continues to keep most details about the Cost of Hope expansion for S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2: Heart of Chornobyl under wraps. So far, it is known that the DLC will take players back to the Chornobyl Nuclear Power Plant and the Iron Forest, while Skif will find himself caught between the interests of the Freedom and Duty factions.
New information has emerged from Mol1t, a moderator of the S.T.A.L.K.E.R. Discord community. According to him, one of the expansion’s central characters will be General Voronin of the Duty faction. The character will be voiced and physically modeled after renowned Ukrainian actor Oleksii Horbunov.
The moderator also revealed that the new sniper rifle spotted in the recent story trailer will be called the Self-Cocking Infantry Carbine (SPK). It will use 7.62×54mm ammunition.
A small gameplay addition has also been disclosed. Players will be able to use a side-mounted scope even without night vision equipment, although this feature is expected to arrive as part of a free update rather than the DLC itself.
Cost of Hope will also introduce Mavka, a character who has previously remained off-screen, and bring back Zulu, a familiar face from S.T.A.L.K.E.R.: Call of Pripyat.
The developers promise engaging quests, memorable characters, and answers to questions raised throughout both the latest entry and previous games in the series. After installing the DLC, Skif will receive a signal on his PDA that starts a new story arc seamlessly integrated into the main campaign of S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2: Heart of Chornobyl.
S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2: Cost of Hope is scheduled to launch in summer 2026 for PC, Xbox Series, and PlayStation 5.
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