S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2: Heart of Chornobyl — patch notes and updates
Stored observation / content update:
Dated developer announcements recorded from Steam. Open the source for the complete update.
| Update | Date | Excerpt / source |
|---|---|---|
| Content Update Sealed Truth — a new questline for you to explore | 2026-04-14 | Sealed Truth is focused around the new questline. Explore the places of horrific experiments and find the answers. With calculated risks, you can get your hands on… Let’s not get ahead of ourselves. ☢️ What’s newExplore a new questline that starts when you talk to Diode.Fixed an issue causing overpopulation of strong mutant types in long campaigns.Fixed an issue where the mission 'Dark as a Dungeon' would immediately cancel if the player had already reached the point of no return.Added new loading screens. The update is available after completing the story quest "Hot on the Trail" and before starting the quest "A Minor Incident". ⚠️ WARNING T |
| 📢A free content update, Sealed Truth, is coming in April | 2026-04-06 | Stalkers!A free content update, Sealed Truth, is coming in April to celebrate the Cost of Hope DLC announcement — you will be able to open the door to X-18 Lab. And who knows what's hiding there in the darkness...Stay tuned. |
| Watchable Content | 2026-04-01 | |
| S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2: Cost of Hope — the first major expansion, coming Summer 2026 | 2026-03-26 | The fragile peace between Duty and Freedom stands on the brink of collapse. The heartlands of the Zone, forbidden for decades, now call to stalkers. New dangers — or perhaps wonders — begin to emerge.A chance to learn the Сost of Hope is upon us, stalkers. Wishlist S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2: Cost of Hope now |
| 🌱 -30% on S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2: Heart of Chornobyl this Spring Sale 🌱 | 2026-03-19 | The Spring Sale has started on Steam — a great chance to venture into the Zone in S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2: Heart of Chornobyl with a 30% discount or discover other worlds from GSC Game World with discounts of up to 80%.The sale runs from March 19 to March 26. |
| 📻 World Radio Day | 2026-02-13 | Even in the most remote corners, among rusty control panels and abandoned laboratories, music finds its audience. Radio is the voice of the Zone, which never falls silent. Its waves reach even those places where no living person has set foot for years.On World Radio Day, we picked up a signal from a place that had been silent for a long time. Only the bravest stalkers will be ready to go there and explore new places where every door hides its secrets.So keep your receiver tuned in — some new tracks from the upcoming expansion are already here. But these aren’t just tracks, if you ask me... |
| 🔥 S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2: Heart of Chornobyl -30% during GSC Publisher Sale | 2026-02-06 | Rumor has it from across the Perimeter: Professor Hermann’s truck is ready for more recruits, offering a 30% discount on the trip to the Zone.GSC Game World's sale is live on Steam from Feb 6–19! Get S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2: Heart of Chornobyl at 30% off, plus other titles with discounts up to 75%.So, let's go on a journey searching for the very heart of Chornobyl, shall we? https://store.steampowered.com/developer/GSC/sale/february-2026 |
| ☢️ Save 30% on Upgrade Packs! | 2026-01-23 | Even in the Zone you can have Friday vibes!Traders are in the good mood, and offering generous discounts on upgrading your weapons, bags and belts. They must be preparing for something big this year.While preparations are underway, this is your chance to jump in with -30% off.❗The offer is avaIlable January 22–29.Details and FAQ: https://www.stalker2.com/news/edition-upgrade-f-a-q |
| Something to look forward to in 2026. | 2025-12-30 | Happy New Year from the GSC Game World Team! |
| 🎄 New Year's Message from the GSC Game World Team to our community and friends. | 2025-12-30 | Dear Stalkers,2025 has been quite the adventure in the Zone for us — full of challenges, breakthroughs, and those long nights that somehow turned into something beautiful.We’ve been heads-down with the game all year, pouring our hearts into making it better every day. And it's really showing now: everything feels so much smoother and more reliable, it runs beautifully on PCs, and it shines on consoles. When we finally brought the PS5 version out in November, hearing your feedback put huge smiles on our faces, too.There’s still so much we want to share with you, and we can’t wait to dive into 2026 together. The first story DLC is coming along |
| Christmas Comes to the Zone! 🎄 | 2025-12-23 | Even in the Zone, there is an evening of unity — a time to meet old friends, celebrate, and dream about the year ahead.Cheers and the clinking of glasses can be heard from every window. Somewhere music is playing; elsewhere, stalkers are enjoying cozy, warm celebrations. The light snow falls on the majestic Christmas tree. This evening, no one is alone. Happy Holidays.GSC Game World team. |
| ❄ S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2: Heart of Chornobyl with 40% discount on Steam Winter Sale ❄ | 2025-12-18 | It’s that time of the year! ⛄The Zone is snowy, the artifacts are more expensive, and even traders are in a good (relatively good in Sidor’s case) mood.You can get S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2: Heart of Chornobyl 40% OFF from 18 Dec – 5 Jan. Perfect time to introduce your friends to the Zone, or finally grab it yourself.Good Christmas hunting, stalkers. |
| Stories Untold — Content update: new characters, missions, locations & more. | 2025-12-17 | Stalkers, welcome to Stories Untold, the free content update for S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2: Heart of Chornobyl. Let’s go through everything new you can find in your playthrough, starting with. NEW STORIESOver five hours of gameplay have been added, depending on your pace. Discover the mysterious transmission that gives stalkers headaches, nosebleeds, and even hallucinations. As the story unfolds, you can choose to help the stalkers and scientists figure out what’s going on. Make decisions, fight for what you believe in, search for answers, and more.You can catch a PDA message anywhere on the map, with the biggest chance around the Burnt Forest. How yo |
| ❄ Upgrade your edition with a discount! ❄ | 2025-12-11 | Starting on December 11 and up until December 18, it is a perfect opportunity to enhance your S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2: Heart of Chornobyl adventure with all the benefits of the Deluxe & Ultimate editions. With a discount of 40%, you can get your hands on exclusive in-game content such as unique weapons, suits, a bonus side mission, and many more.This is a limited offer. If you are keen to know more about the editions: Edition Upgrade F.A.Q ｜ S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2: Heart of Chornobyl — Official website |
| Stalkers! Patch 1.7.1 is ready to be downloaded. | 2025-12-08 | Hello, stalkers! In update 1.7.1, we exterminated some pesky anomalies, especially underground ones that were stealing artifacts from the Zone, and returned the missing power lines. Introduced fail-safe mechanism for cases where mod incompatibility prevents users from launching titleFixed an issue where the power lines could disappear on approach.Fixed an issue where the Ward NPC could teleport in the player's field of view after killing noontiders during the Wishful Thinking mission.Fixed an issue where the Ward soldiers could not help Skif to hold position during the Assault On The Duga mission.Fixed a massive performance drop on opening PD |
| Vote S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2: Heart of Chornobyl for Labor of Love! | 2025-11-26 | Stalkers, throughout the year, the Zone was developing, evolving, and constantly looking for your visits. If you think the Zone deserves it, you can nominate S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2: Heart of Chornobyl for Steam Awards!S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2: Heart of Chornobyl is competing in the Labor of Love category. Over the past year, the Zone has received new weapons, missions, night vision goggles, mutant loot, fights over the territory, as well as constant updates, optimization, and general improvements to the game. We continue to work on S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2: Heart of Chornobyl and hope you will enjoy the results. Thank you for your continued support, which helps us |
| GSC Game World — 30 years on the path | 2025-11-25 | Today, we mark a special date.Not just an anniversary, but another step on a path that began with a dream — and still runs on it.The formula has never changed: an idea, a team, and the conviction that games can be more than entertainment. This road, with all its insane challenges and unexpected turns, is what has shaped us.From S.T.A.L.K.E.R. to Cossacks, from Hover Ace to Heroes of Annihilated Empires, and every world in between — we build places where anyone can become a hero, where magic feels real, and where radioactive fog cradles legends.We create worlds. You are the ones who make them breathe.In these 30 years, we’ve done far more than |
| Discount 30% S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2: Heart of Chornobyl during update 1.7 Expedition | 2025-11-17 | Stalkers!With the release of update 1.7, S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2: Heart of Chornobyl is available at a 30% discount and ready to welcome new stalkers who want to test themselves at the Master difficulty level 😎 or embark on their first journey through the Zone.Read more about update 1.7 “Expedition” at: Discounts are available from November 17 to 20. |
| Update 1.7 Expedition | 2025-11-17 | Stalkers, welcome to the latest update of the S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2: Heart of Chornobyl, glad you are back and ready to see all the new shiny toys the Zone got. Let’s go through the changes, starting from the Highlights. ☢️ HighlightsFixes and improvements to the A-Life systemMaster Difficulty & Expedition Mode (This difficulty level can only be selected at the beginning of the game)NPC Vision & Combat UpdateInventory & Equipment Stats UpdateStamina and sprint reworkNew anomaliesController aim improvementsImmersive ModeLight Rainy weather scenarioSD Cards with coupons ⚠️ WARNING The Zone is ever-changing, and a new Update can shift Her structure. |
| The Art of S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2 Revealed | 2025-11-06 | The Zone Reveals Her ChroniclesThe Zone — not just a desolate landscape, whose real-world counterpart lies in the middle of Ukraine. It is a vast and living relic that means so much to so many. It symbolizes a near-post-apocalyptic reality, human error, and at the same time — the beauty and resilience of wild nature, and such human search for meaning amid chaos and desolation. We strived to bring this symbol to life in every detail of our game: in abandoned villages and rusting facilities, in inexplicable anomalies and ever-present tension, where lives and destinies are at stake. Throughout all the places in the world, there is only one that |