STALKER 2 is already profitable and will receive expansions, studio owner says

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Image: GSC Game World

Ian Walker loves exploring niche communities and researching the development of classic video games.

GSC Game World owner Maxim Krippa recently spoke to Forbes Ukraine about STALKER 2: Heart of Chornobyl’s profitability and the studio’s plans for future expansion, ITC.ua reports.

“We have already sold enough to make the project profitable,” Krippa said, according to ITC’s translation. “The team worked almost 24/7 before the release. They lived this project, especially against the backdrop of war. We wanted to give the country hope and pride, to show everyone that Ukrainians can make projects of such a high level.”

STALKER 2 cost GSC Game World tens of millions of dollars, the vast majority of which was spent on core development with very little apportioned for marketing, according to the report. The game’s biggest market is the United States, but it was also so popular in Ukraine that downloads strained the country’s internet.

Because of this success, Krippa added, STALKER 2 will receive at least two expansions as well as multiplayer. No further details were provided. Krippa also believes GSC Game World can use the STALKER franchise to elevate Ukraine much like CD Projekt Red put Poland on the map with The Witcher.

“I would like us to get the series on Netflix,” Krippa said. “Some negotiations are underway, but the issue has not yet been resolved.”

Despite a rough Nov. 20 launch, the STALKER 2 experience has been slowly improved with a series of substantial bug-fixing patches.

“It’s not perfect, we need to fix everything, it has some problems,” STALKER 2 creative director Mariia Grygorovych told Eurogamer in a story published on Dec. 4. “But it’s a game! It’s a game with soul, with feelings there, with love there. Even the problems, you can’t fix them if you don’t have a game.”