Xbox exclusivity payment exceeded S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2 development spending
Microsoft reportedly paid more than the entire development cost of S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2: Heart of Chornobyl to secure its timed Xbox console exclusivity. The claim comes from GSC Game World founder Sergiy Grygorovych in an interview with Ukrainian YouTuber OLDBoi.
Grygorovych said he remains under a non-disclosure agreement and cannot reveal the amount. However, he directly confirmed that the payment exceeded the money spent developing the game.
Sergiy Grygorovych: “I am also under an NDA, so I cannot disclose the details. But we received more from Xbox, from Microsoft, for releasing exclusively on Xbox than we spent on S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2.”
OLDBoi: “So you received more from Xbox than you spent on S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2?”
Grygorovych: “Yes.”
OLDBoi: “So it had paid for itself before the first day, before it even went on sale?”
Grygorovych: “Yes.”
The agreement covered console exclusivity rather than a complete Xbox platform exclusive. S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2 launched for PC and Xbox Series X|S on November 20, 2024, with day-one availability through Xbox Game Pass.
© Oldboi Grygorovych also claimed that Microsoft became interested after seeing the view count for an early S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2 trailer. According to him, Microsoft approached GSC and prepared the required documents for signing within approximately one week.
The PlayStation 5 version arrived on November 20, 2025, exactly one year after the PC and Xbox release. This confirms that the console exclusivity period lasted one year.
Source via Insider Gaming :
