SCS shows Akureyri for ETS2: Will northern Iceland become the highlight of the new map DLC?

The announced Iceland DLC for Euro Truck Simulator 2 is receiving another clearly recognisable focus with Akureyri. SCS Software presented the town in greater detail in the game for the first time on June 17, 2026. Akureyri is regarded as Iceland’s fourth-largest town and is often called the “Capital of the North” because of its importance to the northern region. The town is located beside Eyjafjörður, the country’s longest fjord, beneath snow-covered mountains, and is crossed by the Glerá River. Akureyri is therefore intended to be more than another marker on the map in the DLC. The town combines urban traffic, harbour industry, regional supply, and the dramatic landscape of the north in one location.

Its position on Route 1 is particularly important. The road known as the Ring Road will run directly through the centre of Akureyri in the upcoming DLC. Roads will branch from there towards the harbour, industrial areas, and local food-processing facilities. The town is therefore not only intended to be driven through, but to provide several specific delivery opportunities. In the harbour district, SCS names a marine logistics centre, a shipyard, and an electronics manufacturing depot. In the real world, Akureyri is an important location for fishing, cruise ships, and cargo transport. This economic role is apparently intended to be reflected through different delivery destinations in the game.

This combination is likely to be more important to gameplay than the pure size of the town. When travelling along the Ring Road, you can use Akureyri as a stop during a longer journey. At the same time, the side roads lead into more compact urban and harbour areas, where manoeuvring, access routes, and choosing the correct entrance may become more important. SCS also mentions the possibility of buying a garage in Akureyri and establishing a northern branch of your company there. The town could therefore become a useful starting point for journeys through the north and the surrounding regions.

SCS is not focusing only on functional industrial areas when recreating the town. Recognisable landmarks include Akureyrarkirkja, whose real counterpart was designed by Icelandic architect Guðjón Samúelsson. The Hof Cultural and Conference Centre on the waterfront, the Akureyri Art Museum with its colourful entrance, and a local whale-watching centre are also included. These buildings do not need to offer playable functions, but they help distinguish Akureyri from other towns in the game. Colourful houses, the fjord, and the mountains are intended to ensure that you do not mistake it for an ordinary industrial location on the main European map.

The latest preview therefore fits into the basic concept of the Iceland DLC. On the official Steam page, SCS describes a scenic loop around the island, connecting several towns and remote settlements. The central backbone is the real Hringvegur, or Route 1. This Ring Road is approximately 1,400 kilometres long in reality. That number should not be understood as the confirmed length of the playable route because ETS2 recreates its countries at a reduced scale. However, it shows the importance of the road in real Iceland and why it is practically essential for a digital recreation.

SCS has already explained that Route 1 is intended to carry most longer journeys. It circles large parts of the island and connects regions that can only be reached through a limited number of road corridors because of mountains, lava fields, rivers, and fjords. The route includes numerous bridges and even an undersea tunnel. Branch roads and regional routes are intended to provide additional destinations, particularly in the south-west and more remote areas. You should therefore not expect a Central European motorway network where a new major city appears every few minutes. Iceland focuses more strongly on distance, scenery, and individual important transport routes.

The fjords in particular present the map team with a special challenge. In reality, these landscapes stretch across many kilometres. At ETS2’s reduced scale, the developers have to compress them while preserving their size and character. SCS has explained that drivers should travel longer distances along winding coastal roads while the opposite side of a fjord remains visible for an extended period. The road therefore does not simply lead directly to the next destination. It follows the shape of the land and requires you to travel around large sea inlets.

This could give the Iceland DLC a noticeably different pace from expansions with many motorways and closely spaced cities. Long bends, changing elevations, narrow road sections, and open views across water and mountains could have a stronger influence on how a journey feels. However, this should not automatically be taken to mean that every route will be especially difficult or dangerous. So far, SCS has mainly shown the scenery and road layout. How narrow individual sections will be and which specific challenges are actually included can only be assessed from the finished version.

The coastline also plays a central role. SCS has shown black-sand beaches, rugged cliffs, glacial rivers, lagoons, and rock formations. Locations presented include Reynisdrangar near the famous black beach of Reynisfjara. In the north-west, Route 60 is intended to lead through the Westfjords, while rivers in the south-east carry sediment from glacial regions towards the coast. These areas are more than decorative backgrounds. They determine how roads are routed, where bridges are required, and why some locations can only be reached through lengthy detours.

To prevent the DLC from becoming purely a scenic drive, SCS is also developing special industrial depots. The largest location presented so far is a silicon metal factory, which the developer says is being created as an accurate 1:1 recreation of a real facility. It will be home to a new fictional company called Kísilverksmiðja. Players are intended to drive to several sections of the large complex and load or unload at different points depending on the cargo. Dynamic loading of logs has also been mentioned because timber plays an important role in the production represented there.

Three custom quarries are also being developed in Selfoss, Patreksfjörður, and Blönduós. These locations are intended to belong to the company MS Stein, already known from ETS2, but they receive their own facilities adapted to the Icelandic environment. Two quarries are located beneath high cliffs, while one of them also overlooks the sea. Such depots show that SCS is not simply placing standard facilities between new landscapes. The economic destinations are intended to fit the island spatially and visually.

Keflavík has also already been presented. The town on the Reykjanes Peninsula is closely connected to the international airport. The airport is intended to serve as an industrial destination in the game because a significant share of Icelandic air cargo is handled there. Drivers should see the passenger terminal in the distance before being directed towards the cargo terminal. Keflavík therefore adds another logistics sector alongside the harbours and heavy industry. Together with Akureyri, the quarries, and the silicon metal factory, a clearer picture is gradually forming of the types of jobs that may be available in Iceland.

The locations known so far also show that SCS does not want to focus exclusively on Reykjavík. According to the Steam page, the capital will be one of the main destinations, but Akureyri and Keflavík are also receiving clearly recognisable functions. Smaller towns and remote settlements will be included as well. The exact number of driveable towns, villages, and companies in the final DLC has not yet been fully listed. A complete road map has also not been published.

It also remains unclear how players will reach Iceland from the existing ETS2 map. A specific connection, harbour, or possible ferry route should only be regarded as confirmed once SCS presents it officially. Weather-specific features, possible road closures, seasons, or special vehicle requirements have not yet been confirmed in detail either. Real Iceland offers enough material for such ideas, but the final gameplay scope should not be assumed from the landscape alone.

It is therefore important that the expansion continues to be labelled as work in progress. The screenshots and descriptions shown come from an ongoing development process. Models, lighting, road details, and individual areas may change before release. A date remains unknown. The Steam page also does not currently list an official price. The DLC can already be added to the wishlist, but nothing more can be stated with certainty about its release.

Nevertheless, the information available so far reveals a clear direction. Iceland is not intended to be a map that stands out purely through the highest possible number of cities and motorway junctions. The expansion focuses on the Ring Road as its main axis, long distances, clearly recognisable landforms, and depots closely connected to fishing, harbour logistics, air cargo, construction materials, and industry. Akureyri fits this concept precisely: an important town, but not a huge metropolis; a major harbour combined directly with a fjord, mountains, and regional roads.

For players, this could create a map that lives more strongly from the journey itself. In densely populated regions of ETS2, one motorway junction often follows the next. In Iceland, longer sections between destinations, open views, and travelling around large fjords could create a calmer but not necessarily boring pace. The decisive point will be whether SCS combines scenery and distance with enough variety in roads, companies, and delivery destinations.

Akureyri is a strong example of this. You travel along the Ring Road through the centre, can turn towards the harbour, deliver to several companies, discover recognisable buildings, and potentially buy a garage. The town therefore becomes more than a background for screenshots and instead acts as a hub for journeys in the north. Whether it actually becomes one of the most popular locations in the finished DLC will depend on its road connections, available jobs, and final design.

In the end, the new Akureyri preview shows that the Iceland DLC now has a recognisable structure. Route 1 connects the island, regional roads lead to harbours, airports, quarries, and special industrial facilities, while fjords, coastlines, and volcanic landscapes are intended to define the character of the journeys. Many important questions nevertheless remain open: the complete map size, the exact number of destinations, the connection to the rest of Europe, the price, and above all the release date.

Are you more excited about Akureyri and the new industries in the Iceland DLC, or about long journeys along the fjords and the Ring Road?