S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2: Cost of Hope review: An expanded Zone that begs to be explored, even as its faction war fizzles

New Locations and Return to Chernobyl

The main story focuses on the rivalry between militiamen Duty and pseudo-anarchists Freedom. The expansion brings players back to the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant (CNPP), a previously unvisited location, and adds new regions: the Iron Forest, characterized by thick fog and electrical deathtraps, and the town of Lymansk. Lymansk is described as a survival horror area where physics are disregarded, requiring players to traverse impossible suburbs in the dark without light sources.

Unlike the standard mission loop of moving to crumbling Soviet facilities and shooting everyone inside, Cost of Hope offers more complex scenarios: a battle around an out-of-control centrifuge, ascending a silo while a mutant has a telekinetic tantrum, and a counter-sniping duel in the shadow of a vast psychic tree. However, the faction conflict is described as a "fizzling war," where many missions allow players to work with opposing sides until the final choice.

Faction Choice: Formality or Depth?

The expansion's storyline branches into two paths based on the choice between Duty and Freedom. While players often interact with neutral characters from both groups early on, the final choice leads to unique missions after the split. Developers have made the paths distinct: objectives and traversal routes are mixed even when storylines converge.

Critics note that the lack of deep political intrigue and the ability to retroactively change decisions might reduce the value of the choice, but the process of completing both branches is considered engaging due to the atmosphere and combat quality.