GSC Game World has officially refuted statements by its founder, Sergiy Grygorovych, who claimed Microsoft paid the studio more than the cost to develop Stalker 2 to secure timed exclusivity for Xbox. Grygorovych said, "We took more than the cost of Stalker 2. It paid for itself before the first day" [1, 2, 3].
However, GSC stated Grygorovych was not involved in the negotiations or development during the entire production cycle and his comments do not reflect the actual facts. The studio clarified that the majority of Stalker 2’s budget was funded by its current owner, Max Krippa, not Microsoft[ s1,s3].
Microsoft was reportedly impressed by the reveal trailer views and moved quickly to secure exclusivity, signing all documents within about a week [1, 2, 3].
Stalker 2 faced a difficult development amid Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and multiple delays. It finally launched on PC and Xbox Series X|S in November 2024, including day-one availability on Xbox Game Pass [2]. The game initially had technical issues but has received ongoing updates and a major story expansion called "Cost of Hope" released in summer 2026 [1, 2, 3].
The PlayStation 5 version arrived a year later in November 2025 [2]. Stalker 2 sold 1 million copies within two days of launch and has exceeded 6 million players to date [2].
Originally, Stalker 2 was due to release in late 2021, according to earlier documents [2].
The studio and Microsoft now appear at odds over exactly how much Microsoft paid for the Xbox timed exclusivity deal. GSC emphasizes its current management and funding structure differ significantly from the period Grygorovych described.
The "Cost of Hope" DLC launched this summer, marking the latest major content update for Stalker 2 [2, 3].
