Shafir
1 review liked by Shafir
Death Stranding
2019
"What will become of us now, at the end of time? We'll be fine, you and I..."
I was introduced to Kojima's work back in 2014 when I played through the Metal Gear saga for the first time ever, and immediately fell in love with this man's work. While some of the games in the saga didn't hit as well as others, Hideo Kojima is absolutely a film, music, and video game nerd at heart. After leaving Konami and announcing his new story of Death Stranding, I was ecstatic to see Kojima return to a non-Metal Gear title since Zone of the Enders and Policenauts. This game is a rare example of the final product actually overexceeding my hype.
Death Stranding is unlike anything I have ever experienced within the medium. It tells the story of Sam Porter Bridges, a deliveryman with DOOMS, an ability to sense supernatural beings inhabiting this post-apocalyptic world. From a distance, it's a simple story about restoring the world after a major catastrophe and ultimately preventing something bad from happening again. But when you dig deeper, this is a story about the deep emotions of what it takes to be a human being, as well as the connections we must make with each other in order for us to survive as one race. The great thing too is that, unlike Kojima's Metal Gear saga, this story is not complex or convoluted at all. The creative world that he envisioned with this story may intimidate some at first, but all the details are naturally fed to the viewer through dialogue and collectibles.
The performances are absolutely phenomenal all around, with a cast that includes Norman Reedus, Mads Mikkelsen, Lea Seydoux, Margaret Qualley, and others. And, of course, the use of the Decima engine makes this one of the most gorgeous games running on PS4 hardware. It's truly a cinematic experience that Kojima is known for...including long cutscenes.
As an actual video game, it is kinda tricky to review. Much like the Metal Gear saga pioneered the "stealth game" genre, Kojima set out to create Death Stranding under a new "strand game" genre. Needless to say, there really is no other game like this, so let me explain as best as I possibly can.
With the story involving making connections and restoring the world, the player travels across the various post-apocalyptic (and beautiful) landscapes in order to deliver packages. Along Sam's path, he must avoid lots of obstacles along the way, from the aggressive MULEs to the ghostly BTs, and prevent damaging the packages. The "strand" system comes into play, however, when the player expands the network coverage within the world, asynchronously linking their own game to those of other players. This, in turn, can allow the player to use structures and facilities that others have already built (as well as leave "likes" as a sign of acknowledgement). Again, nothing like this has every been done before in the medium, so I can't necessarily compare it to anything else. That being said, the "strand" system definitely helps immerse the player into the story and world being showcased, giving them a sense of making connections with others in what seems like an empty land. It just works!
This is a game that I will being thinking about time and time again. With its badass story and gameplay, I would even say this is Kojima's best work by far.
I'm glad that a game like Death Stranding exists. I believe this game is 100% accessible for those who love films and/or video games, and Hideo Kojima deserves to be acknowledged within the film community, as passionate he is about both mediums.
I was introduced to Kojima's work back in 2014 when I played through the Metal Gear saga for the first time ever, and immediately fell in love with this man's work. While some of the games in the saga didn't hit as well as others, Hideo Kojima is absolutely a film, music, and video game nerd at heart. After leaving Konami and announcing his new story of Death Stranding, I was ecstatic to see Kojima return to a non-Metal Gear title since Zone of the Enders and Policenauts. This game is a rare example of the final product actually overexceeding my hype.
Death Stranding is unlike anything I have ever experienced within the medium. It tells the story of Sam Porter Bridges, a deliveryman with DOOMS, an ability to sense supernatural beings inhabiting this post-apocalyptic world. From a distance, it's a simple story about restoring the world after a major catastrophe and ultimately preventing something bad from happening again. But when you dig deeper, this is a story about the deep emotions of what it takes to be a human being, as well as the connections we must make with each other in order for us to survive as one race. The great thing too is that, unlike Kojima's Metal Gear saga, this story is not complex or convoluted at all. The creative world that he envisioned with this story may intimidate some at first, but all the details are naturally fed to the viewer through dialogue and collectibles.
The performances are absolutely phenomenal all around, with a cast that includes Norman Reedus, Mads Mikkelsen, Lea Seydoux, Margaret Qualley, and others. And, of course, the use of the Decima engine makes this one of the most gorgeous games running on PS4 hardware. It's truly a cinematic experience that Kojima is known for...including long cutscenes.
As an actual video game, it is kinda tricky to review. Much like the Metal Gear saga pioneered the "stealth game" genre, Kojima set out to create Death Stranding under a new "strand game" genre. Needless to say, there really is no other game like this, so let me explain as best as I possibly can.
With the story involving making connections and restoring the world, the player travels across the various post-apocalyptic (and beautiful) landscapes in order to deliver packages. Along Sam's path, he must avoid lots of obstacles along the way, from the aggressive MULEs to the ghostly BTs, and prevent damaging the packages. The "strand" system comes into play, however, when the player expands the network coverage within the world, asynchronously linking their own game to those of other players. This, in turn, can allow the player to use structures and facilities that others have already built (as well as leave "likes" as a sign of acknowledgement). Again, nothing like this has every been done before in the medium, so I can't necessarily compare it to anything else. That being said, the "strand" system definitely helps immerse the player into the story and world being showcased, giving them a sense of making connections with others in what seems like an empty land. It just works!
This is a game that I will being thinking about time and time again. With its badass story and gameplay, I would even say this is Kojima's best work by far.
I'm glad that a game like Death Stranding exists. I believe this game is 100% accessible for those who love films and/or video games, and Hideo Kojima deserves to be acknowledged within the film community, as passionate he is about both mediums.
