Death Stranding is without a doubt my personal “Game of the Year” and one of the best new releases of recent time, right there next to Red Dead Redemption 2. It was destined to be a divisive game amongst players simply because Hideo Kojima wanted to go somewhere no video game went before. The game is unique without a doubt, but I would actually push back on some of that talk in that with Death Stranding, Kojima essentially created a new genre or genre-less type of game. I say, at its core, Death Stranding is still very much akin to other massive open world single player games. I don’t make that comparison in any attempt towards negativity, but rather to explain to any hesitant potential players out there to give the game a try.
—-RANT WARNING: Addressing the undeserved hate some of the gaming community is lodging in Death Stranding’s direction in the following paragraphs. Skip until it’s over, if you prefer to just read about why the game is so wonderful rather than witnessing me defend it to death.—–
To elaborate further on that topic and address some of the unwarranted criticisms that they game has received, I will break down some of the game’s mechanics without going into any spoiler territory. As in most open world RPG type games, there are quests, side quests, etc., and the goal of the majority of the time boils down to some sort of retrieve and deliver item, just decorated differently depending on the game’s lore. Think of quests in Skyrim, to retrieve some relic in a massive dungeon crawl with enemies to eventually return the relic to the quest giver. The above example is simply a vague one I made up but it still expands on the fact that the entire idea of retrieval and deliver tasks exist in almost the majority if not all of these types of video games, (open world, single player, RPG). What Death Stranding did was take that type of mission task and made it the game’s core component and did not dress up the fact. In that regard, some have criticized the main character Sam played by Norman Reedus as being a glorified mailman. While that criticism breaks down the profession to its simplest terms, they are not taking into consideration the context of the in game world. Porters (the in game profession name) are actually very revered and legendary, because of the danger and risk they undertake and the importance of their job in delivering supplies to the different settlements. They are essentially the life force that keeps these separated communities going. So Sam, is so much more than your average mailman.
Another criticism I have to address, is people calling this a “walking simulator”, which is 100% false. I get that their intent might be to imply there isn’t much to do in the game besides walk, but that is also not true, nor does it fit what is widely defined as a walking simulator. The term “walking simulator” is fairly new and as of my knowledge has not been officially used by any game developers in describing their games, however that hasn’t stopped it from taking on a life of its own and laying claim to a new genre of gaming. What makes a game a walking simulator is when the only gameplay function available in a game is to walk and explore (interacting with various objects), that’s it. Mostly they are story driven, hence why the gameplay is so minimal. When you think of walking simulators, think of games like “What Remains of Edith Finch”, “Everybody’s Gone to the Rapture”, “Gone Home”, “Firewatch”, etc. Death Stranding is not among them. In fact, once the player reaches episode 3 in the game (which isn’t too long of a wait, depending on how much “standard orders” {side quests} you do), you really don’t have to walk again. The world of Death Stranding really opens up at the point, and bikes, trucks, and zip lines become available, making traveling much easier, but still with enough obstacles to make deciding on how to make the journey a thought provoking challenge. What I mean by challenge, is the different types of terrain you will encounter as well as enemies. While the game is not a shooter, another aspect that differentiates it from the walking simulator genre, is your ability to engage said enemies. There is a whole arsenal of weapons available in the game, and you can take on enemies head on or in stealth which is a Kojima specialty.
—-There is a lot more to this game than meets the eye of these naysayers. But that will be the end of my rant against some of the criticisms of the game for the time being.—–END OF RANT
Back to a more positive note, Death Stranding comes equipped with an impeccable graphic design, with luscious landscapes, photorealistic captures of the actors, and just all around gorgeous visuals. Sound design is also noteworthy, not only for the non diegetic variety (like a sound track that introduced me to a band featured prominently in the game, Low Roar), but also in game sound from BB’s lovely baby laughs, and uplifting voices of automation trying their best to encourage you in a world of humanity separated (“Keep on, Keeping on”). The game also has great humor and a lot of little Easter eggs to it as well. For instance, there is so many fourth wall breaks between the player and Norman Reedus in his private room that can be activated by things you interact with or where you are pointing the in game camera. As far as game mechanics and the game’s HUD, it seems similarly designed to Kojima’s parting game with Konami, MGSV Phantom Pain. The performance and control of the gameplay is even similar to Phantom Pain in terms of combat, movement, etc. One last note, this is a cinephile’s game, from one appreciating art form to another. The crossover of mediums is quite apparent, not only given the fact that Kojima himself is a film buff who is known for his long cinematic cut scenes, but of who he chose to be apart of this game. There are two prolific film directors that play really hefty and significant roles in the game in Guillermo Del Toro and Nicolas Winding Refn. Then you have the formidable Mads Mikkelsen alongside Norman Reedus, and the great Léa Seydoux of “Blue is the Warmest Color” fame. It’s pure star power galore, and they all do such excellent jobs at breathing life into these characters.
Stepping away from the fundamentals of the game’s design among other things and wrapping up this review, I want to talk about the story of Death Stranding as best that I can without divulging any spoiler information. Death Stranding is full of various themes. At front and center, it is simply about reconnecting humanity in a disconnected world. Both metaphorically and physically since given the events of Death Stranding (the apocalyptic disaster that the game is named after), humanity is scattered across the country in small communities without communication or connection. There is definitely something to be said of Kojima’s use of reconnecting to our fellow man in contrast to today’s political climate as well. A catch phrase of “Make America Whole Again” is even used, which is a direct connotation to Trump’s own slogan as well as his politics of dividing people including building walls rather than in the game, the goal is to build bridges instead.
Which, if I am to get sidetracked for a moment, I should interject here at this point how great the online aspect of the game is, with building that same sense of community and connection among players. So while Death Stranding is not a MMO to where you can visibly see other players in action, you instead “connect” between worlds and see the structures and items they leave behind. It really fulfills the game’s theme of hope and being in this together, especially as so many in the game’s community have already commented on how vital it has been in utilizing other online player’s vehicles, gear, structures, etc., to get out of a bind. As if it was there meant for us all along, a good deed in the right place at the right time. The same goes for the structures that you lay down, as you get the sense of helping out others. The game makes you feel like a pioneer in this sense, venturing out into uncharted lands, carving the way for the next person to follow.
Back to the story, and definitely on an ending note here, the themes in the game go far beyond just reconnecting society. There is also a great deal of metaphysical material as well, exploring life and death, as well as the meaning of each. There is not really anything theological about the game and instead a lot of the supernatural elements are explained via pseudo science, which served its purpose but I’ll admit it was my least favorite aspect in the story. However, the talk of “beaches” (sort of like everyone’s personal landscape in the afterlife, like your own private heaven) and BB’s “Bridge Babies” (existing between life and death) really becomes fascinating with the lore that Kojima builds around it. With each passing episode, the story becomes more intense, and the player more invested. It is definitely a story with a well built arc narrative, and rising to a brilliant climax. The ending literally left me in tears, and I know that is just some obligatory response to display how emotional attached I became with the game but it was true. The characters all had well written progression and fully fleshed out to the max, even little BB kind of became the star of the show for me. The game was an experience unlike any other and is certainly cemented itself a spot on my list of favorites.
https://themadnessofdionysus.wordpress.com/2019/12/17/death-stranding-2019/
—-RANT WARNING: Addressing the undeserved hate some of the gaming community is lodging in Death Stranding’s direction in the following paragraphs. Skip until it’s over, if you prefer to just read about why the game is so wonderful rather than witnessing me defend it to death.—–
To elaborate further on that topic and address some of the unwarranted criticisms that they game has received, I will break down some of the game’s mechanics without going into any spoiler territory. As in most open world RPG type games, there are quests, side quests, etc., and the goal of the majority of the time boils down to some sort of retrieve and deliver item, just decorated differently depending on the game’s lore. Think of quests in Skyrim, to retrieve some relic in a massive dungeon crawl with enemies to eventually return the relic to the quest giver. The above example is simply a vague one I made up but it still expands on the fact that the entire idea of retrieval and deliver tasks exist in almost the majority if not all of these types of video games, (open world, single player, RPG). What Death Stranding did was take that type of mission task and made it the game’s core component and did not dress up the fact. In that regard, some have criticized the main character Sam played by Norman Reedus as being a glorified mailman. While that criticism breaks down the profession to its simplest terms, they are not taking into consideration the context of the in game world. Porters (the in game profession name) are actually very revered and legendary, because of the danger and risk they undertake and the importance of their job in delivering supplies to the different settlements. They are essentially the life force that keeps these separated communities going. So Sam, is so much more than your average mailman.
Another criticism I have to address, is people calling this a “walking simulator”, which is 100% false. I get that their intent might be to imply there isn’t much to do in the game besides walk, but that is also not true, nor does it fit what is widely defined as a walking simulator. The term “walking simulator” is fairly new and as of my knowledge has not been officially used by any game developers in describing their games, however that hasn’t stopped it from taking on a life of its own and laying claim to a new genre of gaming. What makes a game a walking simulator is when the only gameplay function available in a game is to walk and explore (interacting with various objects), that’s it. Mostly they are story driven, hence why the gameplay is so minimal. When you think of walking simulators, think of games like “What Remains of Edith Finch”, “Everybody’s Gone to the Rapture”, “Gone Home”, “Firewatch”, etc. Death Stranding is not among them. In fact, once the player reaches episode 3 in the game (which isn’t too long of a wait, depending on how much “standard orders” {side quests} you do), you really don’t have to walk again. The world of Death Stranding really opens up at the point, and bikes, trucks, and zip lines become available, making traveling much easier, but still with enough obstacles to make deciding on how to make the journey a thought provoking challenge. What I mean by challenge, is the different types of terrain you will encounter as well as enemies. While the game is not a shooter, another aspect that differentiates it from the walking simulator genre, is your ability to engage said enemies. There is a whole arsenal of weapons available in the game, and you can take on enemies head on or in stealth which is a Kojima specialty.
—-There is a lot more to this game than meets the eye of these naysayers. But that will be the end of my rant against some of the criticisms of the game for the time being.—–END OF RANT
Back to a more positive note, Death Stranding comes equipped with an impeccable graphic design, with luscious landscapes, photorealistic captures of the actors, and just all around gorgeous visuals. Sound design is also noteworthy, not only for the non diegetic variety (like a sound track that introduced me to a band featured prominently in the game, Low Roar), but also in game sound from BB’s lovely baby laughs, and uplifting voices of automation trying their best to encourage you in a world of humanity separated (“Keep on, Keeping on”). The game also has great humor and a lot of little Easter eggs to it as well. For instance, there is so many fourth wall breaks between the player and Norman Reedus in his private room that can be activated by things you interact with or where you are pointing the in game camera. As far as game mechanics and the game’s HUD, it seems similarly designed to Kojima’s parting game with Konami, MGSV Phantom Pain. The performance and control of the gameplay is even similar to Phantom Pain in terms of combat, movement, etc. One last note, this is a cinephile’s game, from one appreciating art form to another. The crossover of mediums is quite apparent, not only given the fact that Kojima himself is a film buff who is known for his long cinematic cut scenes, but of who he chose to be apart of this game. There are two prolific film directors that play really hefty and significant roles in the game in Guillermo Del Toro and Nicolas Winding Refn. Then you have the formidable Mads Mikkelsen alongside Norman Reedus, and the great Léa Seydoux of “Blue is the Warmest Color” fame. It’s pure star power galore, and they all do such excellent jobs at breathing life into these characters.
Stepping away from the fundamentals of the game’s design among other things and wrapping up this review, I want to talk about the story of Death Stranding as best that I can without divulging any spoiler information. Death Stranding is full of various themes. At front and center, it is simply about reconnecting humanity in a disconnected world. Both metaphorically and physically since given the events of Death Stranding (the apocalyptic disaster that the game is named after), humanity is scattered across the country in small communities without communication or connection. There is definitely something to be said of Kojima’s use of reconnecting to our fellow man in contrast to today’s political climate as well. A catch phrase of “Make America Whole Again” is even used, which is a direct connotation to Trump’s own slogan as well as his politics of dividing people including building walls rather than in the game, the goal is to build bridges instead.
Which, if I am to get sidetracked for a moment, I should interject here at this point how great the online aspect of the game is, with building that same sense of community and connection among players. So while Death Stranding is not a MMO to where you can visibly see other players in action, you instead “connect” between worlds and see the structures and items they leave behind. It really fulfills the game’s theme of hope and being in this together, especially as so many in the game’s community have already commented on how vital it has been in utilizing other online player’s vehicles, gear, structures, etc., to get out of a bind. As if it was there meant for us all along, a good deed in the right place at the right time. The same goes for the structures that you lay down, as you get the sense of helping out others. The game makes you feel like a pioneer in this sense, venturing out into uncharted lands, carving the way for the next person to follow.
Back to the story, and definitely on an ending note here, the themes in the game go far beyond just reconnecting society. There is also a great deal of metaphysical material as well, exploring life and death, as well as the meaning of each. There is not really anything theological about the game and instead a lot of the supernatural elements are explained via pseudo science, which served its purpose but I’ll admit it was my least favorite aspect in the story. However, the talk of “beaches” (sort of like everyone’s personal landscape in the afterlife, like your own private heaven) and BB’s “Bridge Babies” (existing between life and death) really becomes fascinating with the lore that Kojima builds around it. With each passing episode, the story becomes more intense, and the player more invested. It is definitely a story with a well built arc narrative, and rising to a brilliant climax. The ending literally left me in tears, and I know that is just some obligatory response to display how emotional attached I became with the game but it was true. The characters all had well written progression and fully fleshed out to the max, even little BB kind of became the star of the show for me. The game was an experience unlike any other and is certainly cemented itself a spot on my list of favorites.
https://themadnessofdionysus.wordpress.com/2019/12/17/death-stranding-2019/