Earlier this month, Bohemia Interactive once again invited influencers and press out to their scenic home city of Prague to learn about the next big thing in DayZ. The developers are set to close out the four seasons, with Spring as the last one remaining. And to close out that theme, we are getting DayZ biggest map yet, set in the arid region of Takistan, but built from the ground up with new gameplay mechanics, equipment, animals, and survival gameplay. Prepare your canteens and repair your boots. Badlands is coming in 2026 and we got to learn all about it directly from the devs in a closed-door preview.
A familiar place made fresh
The centerpiece of the DayZ Badlands expansion is going to be the Nasdara map. The map is set in the western end of Takistan, which fans may recognize from Arma 2: Operation Arrowhead and various community-made maps. However, Nasdara is an entirely new creation, being built from the ground up with a mix of completely original assets and upgraded and reworked materials from Arma. It鈥檚 DayZ鈥檚 biggest official map yet, coming in at around 267 square kilometers (Chernarus is 225 square kilometers).
Being set in the region of Takistan, Nasdara is a mix of desert, rocks, and the occasional oasis and patches of green terrain and precious water. In terms of human influence, it鈥檚 full of scattered Middle Eastern-inspired villages, towns, and infrastructure. As a zone of conflict between a variety of outside powers, it also features stray ruins of the British, US, and Soviet forces that once fought throughout the area for control. Moving across this terrain may be dangerous due to the openness of the desert, but within the towns and installations throughout Nasdara, players will find opportunities to ambush each other and make out like bandits.
A marquee landmark of this wide, ambitious map is a massive highway that runs from one side to the other. DayZ imagined this as a land that was once supposed to connect the Eastern and Western powers before conflict brought it to ruin. The highway is a North Star of sorts, easy to navigate to and from. It will be a spot that can be used to get your footing at certain points, and a dangerous area to avoid at others. For instance, there are ruins of vehicle inspection checkpoints along the highway from various powers. You鈥檙e bound to find some goods in there if you dare to risk it, but the high value of these areas means they鈥檙e also likely to be hot spots for conflict.
Of course, with all of this comes a variety of new encounters. The Bohemia Interactive developers were able to confirm a few different things about what we鈥檒l encounter in Nasdara. For one, there will be a mix of gear that dates back to the World War eras, and because Nasdara was a hot spot between various factions, those weapons will be of various make and influence, such as possible British and Soviet army inclusions. The same will go for clothing and gear.
Being the arid region that it is, high temperatures will introduce new threats and water will be precious, but don鈥檛 expect it to be an all-desert map. Spring is the theme, and there will be proper and reasonable vegetation scattered about. In the DayZ team鈥檚 own words, they 鈥渁re not making Dune.鈥 Meanwhile, new animals and weather events will give further life, though Bohemia couldn’t reveal anything about the new additions to these areas at this time.
There is a lot that will be revealed on the way to 2026, but in 2025, Bohemia is also updating the DayZ engine with new terrain blending. That upgrade will be applied to all existing maps, and is being used to build Nasdara.
Build, destroy, and control
One of the most interesting reveals of the DayZ Badlands expansion by far was the concept of buildable, beneficial structures that will debut in the new map. We鈥檝e had opportunities to build, craft, and fix in the past through things like vehicles, fencing, and the like, but this is sounding far more consequential.
The example given to us was that we may come across broken wells. If we gather materials suitable to repair a well, then we can restore it to working conditions. That means precious water as a reward. That said, a fixed structure may be destroyed again, forcing another repair. It sounds like the threat of raiders picking on thirsty travelers and groups that would guard such a precious installation with their lives seems very probable.
It’s still far too early to know how this would catch on or operate, plus it鈥檚 only one example of a new system that could appear in several forms throughout Nasdara. Will it be a permanent fix or one that deteriorates over time? Does that mean we should pack materials for repairs no matter where we go? How hard will it be to repair and destroy a structure? These are all questions we鈥檙e eager to learn more about, and hopefully Bohemia will have answers in the year ahead.
Journey into new lands
According to the developers, DayZ Badlands is planned to be priced at under $25 USD and will launch simultaneously on consoles and PC. It sounds ambitious, and that may be part of why it鈥檚 coming in 2026, but if Bohemia Interactive can make all the new pieces fit to make this big map compelling, then we may be in for a treat next year. The build system itself seems well worth watching as we learn more. That said, fans should keep their eyes out for the free update that will upgrade the terrain system this year as it improves the game we already have and sets the stage for one Bohemia Interactive鈥檚 biggest expansions yet.
This preview is based on a hands-off briefing of early concepts and visuals given by the DayZ developers. DayZ Badlands will come to PC and consoles in 2026 at a planned price of under $25 USD.