Back in 2015, Konami shocked the gaming world by abandoning AAA game development and letting go of Hideo Kojima, one of the industries most celebrated auteurs. The unceremonious firing was tragic, but Kojima picked up the pieces, marched on, and formed a new studio which quickly got to work on a new title. The fruits of Kojima Production's labor finally came to fruition this November with Death Stranding, the unique, enigmatic open-world adventure game.
The title was shrouded in mystery up until its release, and people are still going through the massive campaign and discovering all its secrets. For those on the fence about a purchase, here are ten spoiler-free details that'll hopefully convince an indecisive gamer to take the plunge into this magnificent experience. A couple of these may have been revealed pre-release in interviews and hands-on impressions, but not in the trailers.
10 The Strand Genre
Hideo Kojima had a hard time explaining exactly what he meant with his new strand genre. With the game now in people's hands, it is easier to see the innovation. Players progressively rebuild the infrastructure of the world together. Any ladder, rope, or bridge one lays down can show up in someone else's world to help them along.
The process goes both ways and players show their appreciation by giving out likes. The small gesture is a magical feeling and contributes to the game's theme of connection.
9 BB In The Controller
When traveling, players can stumble, causing their BB, or Beach Baby, to get upset and start crying. By default, its noises are set to come from the DualShock 4. Like a baby's cry in real life, it causes stress and makes one immediately want to comfort it.
Adversely, its squeaks of joy will also come through the controller when Sam Bridges is doing something to make BB happy.
8 Progression System
The progression system takes a few of its cues from Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain. In the 2015 title, upgrades came naturally as the game went on. In Death Stranding, one needs to pay more attention to the side activities in the form of Standard Orders.
As one completes more of these for a given outpost or city, the people will dole out upgrades to existing equipment or provide entirely new methods of travel. Instead of simply acquiring enough materials or a blueprint, it is now all about helping people and getting assistance in return.
7 Emails And Interviews
Interviews are typically accumulated after major story events and help flesh out the lore and world. Emails come at almost any time from any of the cities and shelters Sam has already visited.
Sometimes someone will send an email after a delivery; other times they will send one just to update the player on their life. It helps make the world feel alive and drive home the impact Sam's actions are having on the world as he completes deliveries and reconnects more of the United States.
6 Sam Is Special
Sam's unique attributes are revealed early in the game. He is a repatriate and also has something called DOOMS. He is unable to die, and upon losing all their health players are transported to another place where they must reconnect with their body to resume progress.
In this way, traditional game overs are a thing of the past. The only time players restart from a checkpoint is when a story mission fails because an important package breaks.
5 Sam And The BB
All the greatest games in history establish relationships between characters through gameplay mechanics rather than cutscenes. Like Agro and The Wanderer's wordless bond solidified through the hours spent traversing the barren lands in Shadow of the Colossus, Sam and BB grow closer as he depends on it for detecting BTs, or Beach Things.
He also gives it words of encouragement as they are traveling together alone. The player similarly starts to feel for BB and care for its well-being as if it were a real child. We just hope actual parents playing the game aren't neglecting their own children while wandering the post-apocalyptic United States with BB.
4 Music
The original soundtrack is stellar. Most of the ambient tunes slowly creep up during cutscenes and hit a culmination at the perfect dramatic moment. Additionally, long walks to new destinations are often topped off with a licensed tune kicking in as a new vista reveals itself.
While a majority of the gameplay is meditative, these moments of discovery are more than worth the slow burn beforehand. Kojima's games have always had particularly great music from several different composers, and Death Stranding is no different.
3 Side Quests
Every outpost has a star rating which increases as Sam makes more deliveries. As his reputation rises with a particular location, they get more materials for construction and offer upgrades to the porter. The side quests, or Standard Orders, all contribute to the number of stars Sam has for the outpost or city, and one will usually reach five long before doing all the orders for a particular spot.
The stars don't always come easy, but the sheer number of Standard Orders available ensures that one will reach five stars eventually even if they botch a few deliveries. The main path alone will take dozens of hours, but packing in side activities along the way easily doubles the playtime.
2 Gamification Of Traveling
Some may have been turned off by the main mechanics dealing with traveling. Shooting and stealth are a part of it, but the majority of gameplay is walking and driving. It's easy to dismiss the game because of it, but one doesn't know how rewarding it feels to conquer new areas until they have done it themselves. It's not as easy as pushing up on the analog stick.
One has to think about which items to bring with them and use them tactfully, lest they want to be stuck in the middle of nowhere with no items.
1 Cameos
A couple of trailers revealed a cameo or two, but the final game includes way more than anticipated. We don't want to spoil them all here, but one can expect to run into several video game developers along with a few talented people known for their work outside the medium.
It speaks to just how much control Kojima had over this game's production. He can just call up a few of his friends, scan them into the game, and have them be on their merry way. Most of these appearances are in hologram form, but it doesn't make them any less joyful to see.