The best game of 2017 is getting a huge expansion this November - here's everything we know

When "The Frozen Wilds" arrives on November 7, Hulst says it's "gonna be very substantial." At $19.99, players will no doubt expect a lot. From the sound of things, Guerrilla is prepared to meet those expectations. 

If you're interested enough that you're willing to put down money early, PlayStation Plus subscribers can pre-order the expansion at a slight discount: $14.99 instead of $19.99, right here.

As you see above, Aloy's going after that crazy-looking mountain (astride a mechanical beast, per usual). It appears that she knows something we don't; perhaps there's a massive facility inside of that mountain, as so many were in the game's main story? That's not clear. What is clear is that Aloy will apparently have to face down a massive (presumably new) beast in order to access the mountain.

Some fans are speculating that the mountain is actually the result of Yellowstone's famous "Caldera" — "a volcanic caldera and supervolcano located in Yellowstone National Park in the United States, sometimes referred to as the Yellowstone Supervolcano," as Wikipedia puts it. Here's hoping for a supervolcano eruption mid-game!

And, ya know, it looks an awful lot like photos of the real Grand Prismatic Spring. Like this one:

From the shots we've seen so far, it looks like "The Frozen Wilds" will be as beautiful as the original game. Beyond being fun to play, and beyond the great story, "Horizon Zero Dawn" is a downright gorgeous game — it's a genuine accomplishment that Guerrilla Games got the game to look so good, and run so smoothly, on the PlayStation 4 (a piece of technology released in 2013).

"Horizon Zero Dawn" is set in a future Earth, in a deserted Colorado that's been retaken by nature. Colorado, as you know, can be cold and snowy. It's neighbor to the north, Wyoming, can be even colder and snowier — and Wyoming appears to be the setting for "The Frozen Wilds."

One of the best things about "Horizon Zero Dawn" is its surprisingly deep, interesting narrative. Many games try, and most games fail, to marry strong gameplay and strong storytelling — "Horizon Zero Dawn" is a rare standout in this regard.

The game's development studio is advancing that narrative in "The Frozen Wilds." Rather than telling a side-story, or exploring an alternate "what if?" scenario, the new expansion will continue Aloy's journey of self-discovery. 

The "Frozen Wilds" is a reference to where you're going, of course — the "Banuk" territory, north of the mountain range that would otherwise have stopped you in the original game.

As a result, the expansion is essentially a condensed version of the original game: There's an entirely new map, with new weapons and animals and a new culture to explore (the Banuk peoples). Here's the managing director of Guerrilla Games, Hermen Hulst, giving an overview of the expansion from an interview back in June:

"We start with a new territory. We go across the northern mountain range into the territory of the Banuk, the tribespeople of the Banuk. They are very hearty. They live in these wild lands. It's so cold, and it's very hard to survive there. It's very beefy, it's a good-sized map. There will be plenty of new stuff in there."