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''Death Stranding'' is a 2019
action game An action game is a video game genre that emphasizes physical challenges, including hand–eye coordination and reaction-time. The genre includes a large variety of sub-genres, such as fighting games, beat 'em ups, shooter games, and platform gam ...
developed by
Kojima Productions Kojima Productions Co., Ltd. is a Japanese Video game developer, video game development studio founded in 2015 by video game designer Hideo Kojima, creator of the ''Metal Gear'' series. It is the spiritual successor to a production team inside K ...
and published by
Sony Interactive Entertainment Sony Interactive Entertainment (SIE), formerly known as Sony Computer Entertainment (SCE), is a multinational video game industry, video game and digital entertainment company wholly owned by multinational conglomerate Sony. The SIE Group is ma ...
for the
PlayStation 4 The PlayStation 4 (PS4) is a home video game console developed by Sony Interactive Entertainment. Announced as the successor to the PlayStation 3 in February 2013, it was launched on November 15, 2013, in North America, November 29, 2013 in ...
. It is the first game from director
Hideo Kojima is a Japanese video game designer, director, producer and writer. He is regarded as an auteur of video games. He developed a strong passion for action/adventure cinema and literature during his childhood and adolescence. In 1986, he was hired ...
and Kojima Productions after their split from
Konami , is a Japanese Multinational corporation, multinational video game company, video game and entertainment company headquartered in Chūō, Tokyo, Chūō, Tokyo, it also produces and distributes trading cards, anime, tokusatsu, pachinko machin ...
in 2015. A
Microsoft Windows Windows is a group of several proprietary graphical operating system families developed and marketed by Microsoft. Each family caters to a certain sector of the computing industry. For example, Windows NT for consumers, Windows Server for serv ...
port licensed by Sony was released by
505 Games 505 Games S.p.A. is an Italian video game publisher based in Milan. It was founded in 2006 as a subsidiary of Milan-based Digital Bros. History 505 Games was founded in 2006 in Milan as a subsidiary of Digital Bros. The company found its earl ...
in July 2020. A
director's cut A director's cut is an edited version of a film (or video game, television episode, music video, or commercial) that is supposed to represent the director's own approved edit in contrast to the theatrical release. "Cut" explicitly refers to the ...
version was released for the
PlayStation 5 The PlayStation 5 (PS5) is a home video game console developed by Sony Interactive Entertainment. Announced as the successor to the PlayStation 4 in April 2019, it was launched on November 12, 2020, in Australia, Japan, New Zealand, North Ame ...
in September 2021, followed by a release for Windows in March 2022. The game is set in the United States following a cataclysmic event which caused destructive creatures to begin roaming the Earth. Players control Sam Porter Bridges (
Norman Reedus Norman Mark Reedus (born January 6, 1969) is an American actor best known for starring as Daryl Dixon in the AMC (TV channel), AMC horror drama series ''The Walking Dead (TV series), The Walking Dead'' (2010–2022). He also starred as Murphy Mac ...
), a courier tasked with delivering supplies to isolated colonies and reconnecting them via a wireless communications network. Alongside Reedus, the game features actors
Mads Mikkelsen Mads Dittmann Mikkelsen, (; born 22 November 1965) is a Danish actor. Originally a gymnast and dancer, he rose to fame in Denmark as an actor for his roles such as Tonny in the first two films of the ''Pusher'' film trilogy (1996, 2004), Det ...
,
Léa Seydoux Léa Hélène Seydoux-Fornier de Clausonne (; born 1 July 1985) is a French actor. Known for her roles in both French cinema and in Hollywood she's received various accolades including the Cannes Film Festival's Trophée Chopard in 2009 as well ...
,
Margaret Qualley Sarah Margaret Qualley (born October 23, 1994) is an American actress and model. A daughter of actress Andie MacDowell, she trained as a ballerina in her youth. She made her acting debut with a minor role in the 2013 drama film ''Palo Alto'', a ...
,
Troy Baker Troy Baker (born April 1, 1976) is an American voice actor and musician. Baker is known for his video game roles, including Joel Miller in ''The Last of Us'' (2013) and its sequel (2020), Booker DeWitt in ''BioShock Infinite'' (2013), Samuel ...
, Tommie Earl Jenkins, and
Lindsay Wagner Lindsay Jean Wagner (born June 22, 1949) is an American film and television actress, model, author, singer, and acting coach. Wagner is best known for her leading role in the American science-fiction television series '' The Bionic Woman'' (197 ...
, in addition to the likenesses of film directors
Guillermo del Toro Guillermo del Toro Gómez (; born October 9, 1964) is a Mexican filmmaker, author, and actor. He directed the Academy Award–winning fantasy films ''Pan's Labyrinth'' (2006) and ''The Shape of Water'' (2017), winning the Academy Awards for Be ...
and
Nicolas Winding Refn Nicolas Winding Refn (; born 29 September 1970), also known as Jang, is a Danish film director, screenwriter, and producer. He is known for his collaborations with Mads Mikkelsen, Tom Hardy and Ryan Gosling. He gained great success early in ...
as supporting characters. ''Death Stranding'' received generally positive reviews, with critics praising its voice acting, soundtrack, and visuals, with more mixed opinions regarding its gameplay and story. The game was nominated for and won several awards, including for
game of the year Game of the Year (GotY) is an award given by various award events and media publications to a video game that they feel represented the pinnacle of gaming that year. Events and ceremonies British Academy Games Awards (BAFTA Games Awards) ...
. By July 2021, the game had sold copies worldwide. Numerous commentators later noted that elements of the game resembled the
COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identif ...
, which began within a month of its original release. A sequel, ''Death Stranding 2'', is in development for PlayStation 5. A film adaptation is also in the works.


Gameplay

''Death Stranding'' is an
action game An action game is a video game genre that emphasizes physical challenges, including hand–eye coordination and reaction-time. The genre includes a large variety of sub-genres, such as fighting games, beat 'em ups, shooter games, and platform gam ...
set in an open world, and includes asynchronous
online In computer technology and telecommunications, online indicates a state of connectivity and offline indicates a disconnected state. In modern terminology, this usually refers to an Internet connection, but (especially when expressed "on line" or ...
functions. Kojima refers to ''Death Stranding'' as the first "strand game", an original genre characterized by the game's incorporation of social elements. Kojima compared this genre to how his earlier game ''
Metal Gear is a series of techno-thriller stealth games created by Hideo Kojima. Developed and published by Konami, the first game, ''Metal Gear'', was released in 1987 for MSX home computers. The player often takes control of a special forces operativ ...
''—now considered a
stealth game A stealth game is a type of video game in which the player primarily uses ''stealth'' to avoid or overcome opponents. Games in the genre typically allow the player to remain undetected by hiding, sneaking, or using disguises. Some games allow th ...
—was called an action game during its release because the stealth genre had not been established. The player controls Sam Bridges, a porter for a company known as BRIDGES. The player is tasked with delivering supply cargo to various isolated cities known as KNOTs, as well as isolated researchers and survivalists, while also connecting them to a communications system known as the
Chiral Chirality is a property of asymmetry important in several branches of science. The word ''chirality'' is derived from the Greek (''kheir''), "hand", a familiar chiral object. An object or a system is ''chiral'' if it is distinguishable from ...
Network. The player is evaluated by the company and recipients based on their performance (including via " likes" similar to social networks), including whether the cargo was delivered, and if it is intact among other factors. These merits are, in turn, used to level up the player's statistics, such as stability and weight capacity, and increase their standing with individual locations and characters (which can improve rewards). How cargo is packed by the player, and the overall weight being carried, affect Sam's ability to navigate through the environments. The game extensively uses licensed music, most often from the bands
Silent Poets Silent Poets is a Japanese electronic duo (now solo project). They have released six original albums and more than seven remix albums/EPs until now. Gaining international recognition, Silent Poets has been featured in countless music/fashion mag ...
and
Low Roar Low Roar was an Icelandic post-rock/electronica project founded by the late American immigrant Ryan Karazija. Originally a solo act, the band later added Leifur Björnsson and Logi Guðmundsson. History After leading the California-based indie ...
, to score and enhance specific set-pieces and moments of traversal. When speaking on the use of music, Kojima said the music "would match this harsh but beautiful and pure environmental setting. I also felt somewhat of a connection to Low Roar and the game, the matching of Low Roar's acoustic but digital futuristic sound and the concept of ''Death Stranding''." After the passing of Low Roar's front-man Ryan Karazija in 2022, Kojima said, "Without ow Roar ''Death Stranding'' would not have been born." The player's main enemies include otherworldly creatures known as "beached things" (BTs), MULE (a cult of rogue, bandit-like porters influenced by an obsession with cargo, who attempt to steal deliveries so they can deliver it themselves), and Demens, MULEs who have begun killing porters to claim their cargo. BTs are surrounded by a rain known as "timefall", which damages the player's armor and cargo by speeding up their deterioration. BTs are normally invisible, but Sam's suit is equipped with a robotic sensor referred to in-game as an " odradek" that points towards nearby BTs, and the player can then scan the area to reveal them. As Sam is a "Repatriate", he is taken to an underwater world known as the "Seam" if he is killed, where he can "swim" back to his body to revive himself. However, being killed and consumed by a BT also results in a destructive explosion known as a "voidout", which permanently damages the location of the death with an untraversable crater. As players expand the coverage of the Chiral Network, they can access maps of areas, and use blueprints to produce consumable items and structures with the Portable Chiral Constructor (PCC, a device similar to a
3D printer 3D printing or additive manufacturing is the Manufacturing, construction of a three-dimensional object from a computer-aided design, CAD model or a digital 3D modeling, 3D model. It can be done in a variety of processes in which material is ...
), including ropes, bridges, and power generators used for charging battery-powered equipment. The Network is also used as the basis for the game's online functionality, where players can leave supplies, structures, and messages that can be viewed and used by other players, although structures will eventually be destroyed by Timefall after some time. The player can also recover cargo lost by other players to complete their delivery. The player does not directly encounter other players in the world.


Synopsis


Setting

The game is set in an apocalyptic United States, where a cataclysmic event known as the "Death Stranding" caused "Beached Things" ("BTs")—invisible creatures originating from the "Beach," lands thought to be unique to each person that is typically visited during near-death experiences and are said to be the link to the
afterlife The afterlife (also referred to as life after death) is a purported existence in which the essential part of an individual's identity or their stream of consciousness continues to live after the death of their physical body. The surviving ess ...
—to begin roaming the Earth. BTs are created from the dead via
necrosis Necrosis () is a form of cell injury which results in the premature death of cells in living tissue by autolysis. Necrosis is caused by factors external to the cell or tissue, such as infection, or trauma which result in the unregulated dige ...
, and when they consume a living human being, they create an explosion on the scale of a nuclear bomb, known as a "voidout." They also produce rain known as "Timefall" that rapidly ages and deteriorates whatever it hits. These events damaged the country's infrastructure, leading its remaining population to confine themselves to remote colonies known as "Knot Cities," which form the remaining "United Cities of America". These colonies have since relied on the services of a company known as BRIDGES, whose porters brave the BTs, bandits, and terrorists to deliver supplies to the cities. Bridges also performs various governmental functions on behalf of the UCA. If they achieve a mental connection to a "Bridge Baby" (a "BB")—a
premature Premature may refer to: * ''Premature'' (2014 film), an American comedy film * ''Premature'' (2019 film), an American romantic drama film * '' PREMature'', a 2015 British television drama miniseries See also * Premature aging, of an organism * ...
child reflecting a state between life and death—it is possible for a person to sense the presence of a BT. Porters carry a BB with them, stored in a pod simulating the womb of a "stillmother." Depending on its severity, a condition known as "DOOMS" also allows a person to naturally sense, see, or even control a BT, as well as granting a variety of powers, such as teleportation or travel to other people's Beaches. There are also individuals known as "repatriates" who can travel back from "the Seam"—a place between the world of the living and the Beach—upon death. As such, these individuals can effectively return from death, though their deaths will still cause voidouts if killed during contact with a BT.


Plot

Freelance courier Sam Porter Bridges (
Norman Reedus Norman Mark Reedus (born January 6, 1969) is an American actor best known for starring as Daryl Dixon in the AMC (TV channel), AMC horror drama series ''The Walking Dead (TV series), The Walking Dead'' (2010–2022). He also starred as Murphy Mac ...
) is transporting cargo to Central Knot City but is interrupted by Timefall and takes shelter. He receives assistance from Fragile (
Léa Seydoux Léa Hélène Seydoux-Fornier de Clausonne (; born 1 July 1985) is a French actor. Known for her roles in both French cinema and in Hollywood she's received various accolades including the Cannes Film Festival's Trophée Chopard in 2009 as well ...
) in evading a BT. Sam arrives at his destination, where a citizen has committed suicide, with the corpse on the verge of necrosis. Due to being both a repatriate and having DOOMS, Sam is given an emergency assignment to accompany the disposal team to an incinerator to dispose of the corpse. However, an encounter with BTs causes a voidout that destroys Central Knot City. Sam revives in Capital Knot City and meets Deadman (
Guillermo del Toro Guillermo del Toro Gómez (; born October 9, 1964) is a Mexican filmmaker, author, and actor. He directed the Academy Award–winning fantasy films ''Pan's Labyrinth'' (2006) and ''The Shape of Water'' (2017), winning the Academy Awards for Be ...
/
Jesse Corti Jesse Corti (born July 3, 1955) is an American actor and theater director best known for playing Courfeyrac in the original Broadway show ''Les Misérables'' and for voicing LeFou in ''Beauty and the Beast''. Career Corti also voiced the Span ...
), a doctor from BRIDGES who has Sam deliver morphine to the dying President of the UCA: Sam's adoptive mother, Bridget Strand (
Lindsay Wagner Lindsay Jean Wagner (born June 22, 1949) is an American film and television actress, model, author, singer, and acting coach. Wagner is best known for her leading role in the American science-fiction television series '' The Bionic Woman'' (197 ...
/
Emily O'Brien Emily Roya O'Brien (born 28 May 1985) is an English three-time Daytime Emmy-nominated actress and writer who is known for her five-year series regular role of Jana Hawkes Fisher on ''The Young and the Restless'' from 2006–2011. She portrayed ...
). Bridget pleads with Sam to rejoin BRIDGES and help realize her dream of "reforming America" before succumbing to her illness. Sam takes her body for incineration but refuses to incinerate a Bridge Baby involved in the Central Knot City voidout. With the baby's assistance, Sam evades a horde of BTs and decides to adopt it as his own Bridge Baby; against UCA instructions to treat Bridge Babies as pieces of equipment, Sam gradually forms an emotional bond with it and nicknames it "Lou." Upon his return to Capital Knot City, Sam receives a message from his estranged sister Amelie Strand (also Wagner/O'Brien). She tells him that over the past three years, she led an expedition across what is left of the continental United States, making contact with isolated cities and settlements and setting up terminals that would connect them to the Chiral Network: a system that facilitates instant communication and data transfer across vast distances through the Beach. However, upon reaching the last city on the West Coast (Edge Knot City), Amelie was captured by a terrorist group to guarantee Edge Knot City's independence. She pleads for Sam to follow her expedition and complete the Chiral Network, thus "reforming America." As this pilgrimage ends at Edge Knot City, Sam can then rescue Amelie, and she can take Bridget's place as the President of the UCA. Sam reluctantly accepts the mission. Following the instructions of Die-Hardman ( Tommie Earl Jenkins), Bridget's personal aide and Director of BRIDGES, Sam begins his journey from the east to the west coast of North America. Along the way, he delivers valuable cargo to various Knot Cities and settlements; helps research the Death Stranding with BRIDGES staff such as Mama and her twin sister Lockne (
Margaret Qualley Sarah Margaret Qualley (born October 23, 1994) is an American actress and model. A daughter of actress Andie MacDowell, she trained as a ballerina in her youth. She made her acting debut with a minor role in the 2013 drama film ''Palo Alto'', a ...
), Heartman (
Nicolas Winding Refn Nicolas Winding Refn (; born 29 September 1970), also known as Jang, is a Danish film director, screenwriter, and producer. He is known for his collaborations with Mads Mikkelsen, Tom Hardy and Ryan Gosling. He gained great success early in ...
/Darren Jacobs); and thwarts deadly plots by terrorists and their leader, Higgs Monaghan (
Troy Baker Troy Baker (born April 1, 1976) is an American voice actor and musician. Baker is known for his video game roles, including Joel Miller in ''The Last of Us'' (2013) and its sequel (2020), Booker DeWitt in ''BioShock Infinite'' (2013), Samuel ...
). While connected to Lou, he occasionally experiences memories depicting Clifford Unger (
Mads Mikkelsen Mads Dittmann Mikkelsen, (; born 22 November 1965) is a Danish actor. Originally a gymnast and dancer, he rose to fame in Denmark as an actor for his roles such as Tonny in the first two films of the ''Pusher'' film trilogy (1996, 2004), Det ...
) and his hospitalized wife and BB child. Sam is pulled into Clifford's Beach; there, he fights a BT manifestation of Clifford, who seeks his lost BB. After reaching Edge Knot City, Sam fights and defeats Higgs at Amelie's Beach. Higgs reveals that Amelie is an Extinction Entity: a godlike being manifested by the universe to trigger mass
extinction events An extinction event (also known as a mass extinction or biotic crisis) is a widespread and rapid decrease in the biodiversity on Earth. Such an event is identified by a sharp change in the diversity and abundance of multicellular organisms. It ...
. Amelie is revealed as the true leader of Homo Demens, having conceived the Chiral Network to enable the Last Stranding, the end of life on Earth. It is also revealed that Amelie and Bridget are the same person; Bridget's soul separated from her body during early experiments into the Beaches and used the alias "Amelie" as a cover. However, Amelie is conflicted over her cosmological duties, finding the Last Stranding more humane than perpetual cycles of growth and extinction. With the help of allies made on his journey, Sam reaches Amelie and convinces her to delay the Last Stranding. Moved, she accepts but must separate herself and her Beach from the world forever. Sam is rescued by his BRIDGES allies, returning to the living. Die-Hardman becomes President of the UCA, and Fragile resolves to rebuild her company. However, Sam is told that Lou is dying. Although UCA law demands dying BBs are incinerated, Sam follows Deadman's advice and removes Lou from its pod in hopes of saving its life. In doing so, Sam connects with Lou one last time and discovers the memories he has viewed are his own: he is Clifford Unger's son, who Bridget Strand had transformed into one of the first BBs, accidentally killed alongside Clifford during a botched escape attempt, and resurrected by Amelie (which triggered the Death Stranding). The spirits of deceased BBs help save Lou's life, and Sam destroys his UCA cufflinks, going "off the grid" to live a peaceful life raising "Louise."


Development

After a lengthy corporate conflict with
Konami , is a Japanese Multinational corporation, multinational video game company, video game and entertainment company headquartered in Chūō, Tokyo, Chūō, Tokyo, it also produces and distributes trading cards, anime, tokusatsu, pachinko machin ...
as a restricted subsidiary,
Kojima Productions Kojima Productions Co., Ltd. is a Japanese Video game developer, video game development studio founded in 2015 by video game designer Hideo Kojima, creator of the ''Metal Gear'' series. It is the spiritual successor to a production team inside K ...
closed in July 2015 and reformed as an
independent Independent or Independents may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Artist groups * Independents (artist group), a group of modernist painters based in the New Hope, Pennsylvania, area of the United States during the early 1930s * Independ ...
video game developer A video game developer is a broad term for a software developer specializing in video game development – the process and related disciplines of creating video games. A game developer can range from one person who undertakes all tasks to a large ...
and studio in December. The same month,
Hideo Kojima is a Japanese video game designer, director, producer and writer. He is regarded as an auteur of video games. He developed a strong passion for action/adventure cinema and literature during his childhood and adolescence. In 1986, he was hired ...
announced his partnership with
Sony Interactive Entertainment Sony Interactive Entertainment (SIE), formerly known as Sony Computer Entertainment (SCE), is a multinational video game industry, video game and digital entertainment company wholly owned by multinational conglomerate Sony. The SIE Group is ma ...
, at the time led by
Andrew House Andrew House (born 23 January 1965) is a Welsh businessman and the former chair of Sony Interactive Entertainment (SIE). He previously served as President and Global CEO of SIE. House started working for Sony Computer Corporation in 1990, working ...
, to make a new PlayStation game. Kojima revealed the game at Sony's conference during
E3 2016 The Electronic Entertainment Expo 2016 (E3 2016) was the 22nd E3, during which several hardware manufacturers and software developers and publishers from the video game industry presented new and upcoming products to the attendees, primarily re ...
with a
teaser trailer A teaser (or more specifically teaser trailer) is a mini- trailer and a form of teaser campaign advertising that focuses on film and television programming. It is a videography pre-release move or television show advertisement. Short in length, te ...
featuring music from
Low Roar Low Roar was an Icelandic post-rock/electronica project founded by the late American immigrant Ryan Karazija. Originally a solo act, the band later added Leifur Björnsson and Logi Guðmundsson. History After leading the California-based indie ...
, whose music would later be used in the final game. The trailer was made possible with the technology of
photogrammetry Photogrammetry is the science and technology of obtaining reliable information about physical objects and the environment through the process of recording, measuring and interpreting photographic images and patterns of electromagnetic radiant ima ...
and
motion capture Motion capture (sometimes referred as mo-cap or mocap, for short) is the process of recording the movement of objects or people. It is used in military, entertainment, sports, medical applications, and for validation of computer vision and robo ...
. It featured
Norman Reedus Norman Mark Reedus (born January 6, 1969) is an American actor best known for starring as Daryl Dixon in the AMC (TV channel), AMC horror drama series ''The Walking Dead (TV series), The Walking Dead'' (2010–2022). He also starred as Murphy Mac ...
, who served as the basis for the protagonist. The game is the second collaboration between Kojima and Reedus, following the cancelled ''
Silent Hills is a cancelled horror game developed by Kojima Productions that was to be published by Konami for the PlayStation 4. It was in development since 2012 until its cancellation in 2015. It was to be the ninth main installment in the ''Silent Hill'' ...
''. Kojima and
Mark Cerny Mark Evan Cerny (born August 24, 1964) is an American video game designer, programmer, producer and media proprietor. Raised in the San Francisco Bay Area, Cerny attended UC Berkeley before dropping out to pursue a career in video games. In hi ...
, lead system architect of the
PlayStation 4 The PlayStation 4 (PS4) is a home video game console developed by Sony Interactive Entertainment. Announced as the successor to the PlayStation 3 in February 2013, it was launched on November 15, 2013, in North America, November 29, 2013 in ...
, spent two weeks in January 2016 looking for a
game engine A game engine is a software framework primarily designed for the development of video games and generally includes relevant libraries and support programs. The "engine" terminology is similar to the term "software engine" used in the software i ...
on which to develop the game. One candidate was used to develop a teaser trailer.
Guerrilla Games Guerrilla B.V. (trade name: Guerrilla Games) is a Dutch First-party developer, first-party video game developer based in Amsterdam and part of PlayStation Studios. The company was founded as Lost Boys Games in January 2000 through the merger of ...
would later be announced as a collaborator on the development of the game, as it was providing their proprietary game engine, Decima. Kojima Productions' meeting room was recreated in the engine as a reference of accuracy, and for the purpose of testing physically-based lighting. The game entered full development in 2017. A few days before
E3 2017 The Electronic Entertainment Expo 2017 (E3 2017) was the 23rd E3, during which hardware manufacturers and software developers and publishers from the video game industry presented new and upcoming products to the attendees, primarily retailers a ...
, Kojima announced that the game would not appear during the usual Sony conference. In June, information came from
Shawn Layden Shawn Layden (born June 25, 1961) is an American businessman and was the Chairman of SIE Worldwide Studios. Previously, he served as the president and CEO of Sony Interactive Entertainment America (SIEA), executive vice president and COO of So ...
, president of Sony Interactive Entertainment America, affirming that ''Death Stranding'' was in fact in a playable
alpha version A software release life cycle is the sum of the stages of development and maturity for a piece of computer software ranging from its initial development to its eventual release, and including updated versions of the released version to help impro ...
, but he had not been able to categorize the game in a specific genre. The official soundtrack of the game, '' Death Stranding: Timefall'', was released through
RCA Records RCA Records is an American record label currently owned by Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America. It is one of Sony Music's four flagship labels, alongside RCA's former long-time rival Columbia Records; also A ...
and
Sony Interactive Entertainment Sony Interactive Entertainment (SIE), formerly known as Sony Computer Entertainment (SCE), is a multinational video game industry, video game and digital entertainment company wholly owned by multinational conglomerate Sony. The SIE Group is ma ...
on November 7, 2019, and features artists such as
Chvrches Chvrches (stylised CHVRCHΞS and pronounced "Churches") are a Scottish pop band from Glasgow, formed in September 2011. The band consists of Lauren Mayberry, Iain Cook, Martin Doherty and, unofficially since 2018, Jonny Scott. Mostly deriving f ...
,
The Neighbourhood The Neighbourhood (sometimes rendered as "THE NBHD") is an American rock band formed in Newbury Park, California, in 2011. The band is composed of vocalist Jesse Rutherford, guitarists Jeremy Freedman and Zach Abels, and bassist Mikey Margot. ...
,
Major Lazer Major Lazer is an American electronic dance music DJ trio, which includes record producer Diplo, and DJs Walshy Fire and Ape Drums. It originates from Kingston, Jamaica, and was founded in 2008 by Diplo and Switch, with Switch leaving after t ...
, and
Bring Me the Horizon Bring Me the Horizon (often abbreviated as BMTH) are a British rock band formed in Sheffield in 2004. The group consists of lead vocalist Oliver Sykes, guitarist Lee Malia, bassist Matt Kean, drummer Matt Nicholls and keyboardist Jordan Fis ...
. A teaser was presented during
The Game Awards 2017 The Game Awards 2017 was an award show that honored the best video games of 2017, and took place at the Microsoft Theater in Los Angeles on December 7, 2017. The event was hosted by Geoff Keighley, and was live streamed around the world across ...
in December, where Kojima, Reedus and del Toro made appearances. Kojima also revealed that the team was unable to do any performance capture or voice-over for the third trailer in time for E3 2017 due to the 2016–17 video game voice actor strike, so it was delayed until the Game Awards. In February 2018,
Emily O'Brien Emily Roya O'Brien (born 28 May 1985) is an English three-time Daytime Emmy-nominated actress and writer who is known for her five-year series regular role of Jana Hawkes Fisher on ''The Young and the Restless'' from 2006–2011. She portrayed ...
and
Troy Baker Troy Baker (born April 1, 1976) is an American voice actor and musician. Baker is known for his video game roles, including Joel Miller in ''The Last of Us'' (2013) and its sequel (2020), Booker DeWitt in ''BioShock Infinite'' (2013), Samuel ...
joined the cast for the game. At the event, a new trailer was shown, showing gameplay for the first time. It also revealed that actresses
Léa Seydoux Léa Hélène Seydoux-Fornier de Clausonne (; born 1 July 1985) is a French actor. Known for her roles in both French cinema and in Hollywood she's received various accolades including the Cannes Film Festival's Trophée Chopard in 2009 as well ...
and
Lindsay Wagner Lindsay Jean Wagner (born June 22, 1949) is an American film and television actress, model, author, singer, and acting coach. Wagner is best known for her leading role in the American science-fiction television series '' The Bionic Woman'' (197 ...
were to be a part of the cast. On September 18, it was announced at
Tokyo Game Show , commonly known as TGS, is a video game expo / convention held annually in September in the Makuhari Messe, in Chiba, Japan. It is presented by the Computer Entertainment Supplier's Association (CESA) and Nikkei Business Publications, Inc. The ...
2018 that Tommie Earl Jenkins would portray a key character in the game, and that
Akio Ōtsuka is a Japanese actor, voice actor and narrator from the Tokyo Metropolitan area. He is attached to Mausu Promotion. The astringent and calm quality of his deep voice has landed him many roles in films, dubbing, animation, and video games. He is ...
,
Kikuko Inoue is a Japanese voice actress, singer and narrator. She has been part of the singing groups DoCo and Goddess Family Club. She is the founder and manager of her voice-acting company, Office Anemone. Inoue tends to play the " perfect girlfriend" o ...
,
Nana Mizuki is a Japanese voice actress, singer and narrator from Niihama, Ehime. She is represented by the agency StarCrew. Mizuki was trained as an enka singer, releasing one single under her birth name, Nana Kondō, in 1993 and made her debut as a voice ...
and
Satoshi Mikami is a Japanese actor and voice actor from Tokyo. He is the best known official dubbing roles for Benedict Cumberbatch, especially in ''Doctor Strange'' and ''Avengers'' film series. Filmography Television dramas *''Bakuryū Sentai Abaranger'' ( ...
, veterans of the ''
Metal Gear is a series of techno-thriller stealth games created by Hideo Kojima. Developed and published by Konami, the first game, ''Metal Gear'', was released in 1987 for MSX home computers. The player often takes control of a special forces operativ ...
'' series, along with
Kenjiro Tsuda is a Japanese actor, voice actor, narrator, and film director. He works at ANDSTIR. Some of his roles as a voice actor include Seto Kaiba in ''Yu-Gi-Oh!'', Sadahara Inui in ''Shin Tennis no Ouji-sama'', Kazama Chikage in ''Hakuoki'', Ryuga in ' ...
, had joined the game's Japanese voice cast. In March 2019, Hideo Kojima said that ''Death Stranding'' was slightly behind its release date schedule, and that he himself was testing and adjusting the gameplay, day by day, defining that phase of development as "critical". A trailer released in May 2019 introduced
Margaret Qualley Sarah Margaret Qualley (born October 23, 1994) is an American actress and model. A daughter of actress Andie MacDowell, she trained as a ballerina in her youth. She made her acting debut with a minor role in the 2013 drama film ''Palo Alto'', a ...
as Mama and
Nicolas Winding Refn Nicolas Winding Refn (; born 29 September 1970), also known as Jang, is a Danish film director, screenwriter, and producer. He is known for his collaborations with Mads Mikkelsen, Tom Hardy and Ryan Gosling. He gained great success early in ...
as Heartman. Several character names were also revealed: Cliff (Mikkelsen), Fragile (Seydoux), Deadman (Del Toro), Die-Hardman (Jenkins), Higgs (Baker) and Amelie (Wagner). O'Brien,
Jesse Corti Jesse Corti (born July 3, 1955) is an American actor and theater director best known for playing Courfeyrac in the original Broadway show ''Les Misérables'' and for voicing LeFou in ''Beauty and the Beast''. Career Corti also voiced the Span ...
and Darren Jacobs are credited for
voice-over Voice-over (also known as off-camera or off-stage commentary) is a production technique where a voice—that is not part of the narrative (non-Diegetic#Film sound and music, diegetic)—is used in a radio, television production, filmmaking, th ...
work in the trailer. Del Toro and Winding Refn both received a "Special Appearance" credit, with Kojima later explaining that their likenesses were only used and their voice and motion capture are performed by other actors. The same trailer also revealed the release date of November 8, 2019. In an accompanying blog post, Kojima explained that the game's core theme was "the true importance of forging connections with others", referring to the player's goal of "reconnecting" an isolated and fractured society, to bridge its divides, and to "create new bonds or 'Strands' with other players around the globe." Certain themes and elements of the story were influenced by Kojima's childhood and the deaths of his parents. During
Gamescom Gamescom (stylized as gamescom) is a trade fair for video games held annually at the Koelnmesse in Cologne, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. Since 2018, it has been organised by ''game – Verband der deutschen Games-Branche'' (English: Associa ...
that year, two more trailers were shown: the first showed one of the key elements of the video game, a ''BB'' (Bridge Baby), with the participation of the character "Deadman", played by Guillermo del Toro, the second introduces the character "Mama", played by Margaret Qualley. Furthermore, a 6-minute gameplay trailer was shown, which introduces in detail various game mechanics, such as the possibility of urinating and delivering packages to isolated delivery stations. This video also features the participation of
Geoff Keighley Geoff Keighley () is a Canadian video game journalist and television presenter. He was most known for hosting the video game show '' GameTrailers TV'', and for co-hosting the now-defunct '' G4tv.com''. Keighley is also a freelance writer whose ...
, Canadian journalist and video critic, as a hologram that interacts with the main character Sam in the delivery station. Japanese writer
Junji Ito is a Japanese horror manga artist. Some of his most notable works include ''Tomie'', a series chronicling an immortal girl who drives her stricken admirers to madness; ''Uzumaki'', a three-volume series about a town obsessed with spirals; and ...
appears as the model of the Engineer, which is voiced by
Yuri Lowenthal Yuri Lowenthal (born March 5, 1971)Birthday references: * * * is an American voice actor, producer and screenwriter known chiefly for his work in cartoons, anime and video games. Some of his prominent roles in animations and anime include S ...
. The film director was modelled after
Jordan Vogt-Roberts Jordan Charles Vogt-Roberts (born September 22, 1984) is an American film director, film producer, screenwriter, and television director. His feature directorial debut, ''The Kings of Summer'', screened at the 2013 Sundance Film Festival. The film ...
, while director
Edgar Wright Edgar Howard Wright (born 18 April 1974) is an English filmmaker. He is known for his fast-paced and kinetic, satirical genre films, which feature extensive utilisation of expressive popular music, Steadicam tracking shots, dolly zooms and a ...
provided his likeness for Thomas Southerland.
Hirokazu Hamamura , former ''Weekly Famitsu'' chief editor, now is president of Enterbrain. He is also the director of Kadokawa Group Holdings, Kadokawa Group Publishing, Kadokawa Games and Walker Books. His pen name A pen name, also called a ''nom de plume'' or a ...
also made an appearance as the Collector.
Liam O'Brien Liam Christopher O'Brien (born May 28, 1976) is an American voice actor, writer, and director. He is a regular cast member of the ''Dungeons & Dragons'' actual play series ''Critical Role,'' playing Vax'ildan ("Vax"), Caleb Widogast, and Orym. ...
and
Sam Lake Sami Antero Järvi (born in 1970), better known by his artist name Sam Lake ('Järvi' is Finnish for lake), is a Finnish video game writer. He is the creative director at Remedy Entertainment, known for his writing (as well as his likeness) on t ...
were credited as the voice actor and model of Veteran Porter, respectively. Phillip North is portrayed by
Tommy Wirkola Tommy Wirkola (born 6 December 1979) is a Norwegian film director and writer. Career His first film was 2007's '' Kill Buljo'', which he co-wrote with Stig Frode Henriksen. They later made the 2009 horror comedy ''Dead Snow''. In 2010 they agai ...
. During the Tokyo Game Show conference, Kojima showed and commented live a 83-minute video dedicated entirely to the general features of the gameplay of the game. There Kojima proclaimed that he was open to developing a sequel to further solidify the "strand game" genre. On September 26, 2019,
Kojima Productions Kojima Productions Co., Ltd. is a Japanese Video game developer, video game development studio founded in 2015 by video game designer Hideo Kojima, creator of the ''Metal Gear'' series. It is the spiritual successor to a production team inside K ...
announced that the game had gone gold, meaning that development on it had finished. In October 2019, it was announced that the game would be released on
Microsoft Windows Windows is a group of several proprietary graphical operating system families developed and marketed by Microsoft. Each family caters to a certain sector of the computing industry. For example, Windows NT for consumers, Windows Server for serv ...
in mid-2020 by
505 Games 505 Games S.p.A. is an Italian video game publisher based in Milan. It was founded in 2006 as a subsidiary of Milan-based Digital Bros. History 505 Games was founded in 2006 in Milan as a subsidiary of Digital Bros. The company found its earl ...
, confirming rumors about a PC version that had existed as early as 2015. It was released on July 14, 2020. The same month during a segment of '' Conan'', comedian
Conan O'Brien Conan Christopher O'Brien (born April 18, 1963) is an American television host, comedian, writer, and producer. He is best known for having hosted late-night talk shows for almost 28 years, beginning with ''Late Night with Conan O'Brien'' (19 ...
revealed that there is a character modeled after him in-game, with O'Brien having been digitally modeled during a visit to Kojima Productions' studio. A
director's cut A director's cut is an edited version of a film (or video game, television episode, music video, or commercial) that is supposed to represent the director's own approved edit in contrast to the theatrical release. "Cut" explicitly refers to the ...
version of the game featuring new gameplay additions was released for the
PlayStation 5 The PlayStation 5 (PS5) is a home video game console developed by Sony Interactive Entertainment. Announced as the successor to the PlayStation 4 in April 2019, it was launched on November 12, 2020, in Australia, Japan, New Zealand, North Ame ...
on September 24, 2021, followed by a release for Windows on March 30, 2022. The base game released on
PC Game Pass Xbox Game Pass and PC Game Pass are video game subscription services from Microsoft. Both services grant users access to a rotating catalog of games from a range of publishers and other premium services, including Xbox Live Gold and EA Play, fo ...
on August 23, 2022, and features several unlockable items.


Reception

The game's announcement at
E3 2016 The Electronic Entertainment Expo 2016 (E3 2016) was the 22nd E3, during which several hardware manufacturers and software developers and publishers from the video game industry presented new and upcoming products to the attendees, primarily re ...
was met with a positive reception. In 2017, ''Death Stranding'' was nominated by
Golden Joystick Awards The Golden Joystick Awards, also known as the People's Gaming Awards, is a video game award ceremony; it awards the best video games of the year, as voted for originally by the British general public, but is now a global event that can be voted ...
in the category "Most Wanted Game". In June 2018, during the days following the E3 press conferences, ''Death Stranding'' reached the top ten in the most watched video game trailers on YouTube, with more than 4.5 million views. Upon release, ''Death Stranding'' received "generally favorable" reviews, according to
review aggregator A review aggregator is a system that collects reviews of products and services (such as films, books, video games, software, hardware, and cars). This system stores the reviews and uses them for purposes such as supporting a website where users ...
Metacritic Metacritic is a website that review aggregator, aggregates reviews of films, TV shows, music albums, video games and formerly, books. For each product, the scores from each review are averaged (a weighted arithmetic mean, weighted average). M ...
. Publications noted a range of reactions from reviewers across the board, with the game being praised for its unique concepts, lasting appeal, graphics, voice acting, and soundtrack, but also being considered to be bloated, frustrating, and slow-paced. Russ Frushtick of ''Polygon'' described ''Death Stranding'' as "the most advanced
walking simulator An adventure game is a video game genre in which the player assumes the role of a protagonist in an interactive story driven by exploration and/or puzzle-solving. The genre's focus on story allows it to draw heavily from other narrative-based m ...
the world has ever seen", and as being "composed entirely of fetch quests", but that it was "pretty damn fun once it gets out of its own way". Frushtick argued that the game "felt like two games in one", consisting of "a wholly unique open-world adventure with asynchronous cooperative multiplayer that allows me to feel like I'm part of a community, building a world from scratch" and "a long, confusing, deeply strange movie." Rating the game 7 out of 10, ''
Game Informer ''Game Informer'' (''GI'', most often stylized ''gameinformer'' from the 2010s onward) is an American monthly video game magazine featuring articles, news, strategy, and reviews of video games and associated consoles. It debuted in August 1991 w ...
''s Matthew Kato wrote that the gameplay "really is as simple as it appears to be, and the elements around it – the story, combat, and lackluster mission objectives – aren't satisfying enough to anchor the title and get players invested." Gaming journalist
Jim Sterling James Stephanie Sterling, also known as Jim Sterling, is an English-American freelance video game journalist, critic, pundit, YouTuber, and professional wrestler. Before becoming independent in September 2014, they were the review editor for ...
called ''Death Stranding'' "Hideo Kojima at peak indulgence" and found the game to be "annoying" and "boring", criticizing the game's intricate systems and details, which they felt did not enhance enjoyment but instead were implemented for the sake of realism or to "show off". Despite this, they praised the online social features, as well as certain segments that " uilda nice little atmosphere". It is the fourth Kojima-directed game but only the 26th overall to be awarded a perfect 40/40 score by Japanese video game magazine ''
Famitsu formerly ''Famicom Tsūshin'', is a line of Japanese video game magazines published by Kadokawa Game Linkage (previously known as Gzbrain), a subsidiary of Kadokawa. ''Famitsu'' is published in both weekly and monthly formats as well as in the fo ...
''. ''Death Stranding'' was also subject to
review bombing A review bomb is an Internet phenomenon in which a large number of people or a few people with multiple accounts post negative user reviews online in an attempt to harm the sales or popularity of a product, a service, or a business. While a large ...
on
Metacritic Metacritic is a website that review aggregator, aggregates reviews of films, TV shows, music albums, video games and formerly, books. For each product, the scores from each review are averaged (a weighted arithmetic mean, weighted average). M ...
. In December 2019, the website removed over 6,000 negative user reviews to prevent "potential score manipulation", judging them to be suspicious.


Sales

In its debut week, ''Death Stranding'' was the best-selling physical game in Japan, with ''Famitsu'' reporting that the game had sold 185,909 copies. This made it the most successful debut for a new intellectual property in Japan for the
eighth generation of video game consoles The eighth generation of video game consoles began in 2012, and consists of four home video game consoles: the Wii U released in 2012, the PlayStation 4 family in 2013, the Xbox One family in 2013, and the Nintendo Switch family in 2017. The gen ...
, overtaking previous record holder ''
Judgment Judgement (or US spelling judgment) is also known as ''adjudication'', which means the evaluation of evidence to decision-making, make a decision. Judgement is also the ability to make considered decisions. The term has at least five distinct u ...
''. ''Death Stranding'' remained in the ''Famitsu'' top 30 best-selling physical games chart for five weeks, until December 15, having reached over 253,000 physical copies sold at that point. , the game's sales in Japan have reached 262,827 physical copies and an estimated 136,279 digital copies, for an estimated total of 399,106 sales in Japan. In the UK, the title debuted at number two on the physical sales chart, outsold by '' Call of Duty: Modern Warfare''. Its sales made it the second biggest PlayStation exclusive debut of the year, behind ''
Days Gone ''Days Gone'' is a 2019 action-adventure video game developed by Bend Studio and published by Sony Interactive Entertainment for the PlayStation 4. A Windows port was released in May 2021. The game is set in post-apocalyptic Oregon two years ...
''. According to Media Create, ''Death Stranding'' also debuted at number one in the physical sales chart for both Taiwan and South Korea. The game also topped the Italian and French selling charts. It placed second in the Switzerland charts. On the
PlayStation Network PlayStation Network (PSN) is a digital media entertainment service provided by Sony Interactive Entertainment. Launched in November 2006, PSN was originally conceived for the PlayStation video game consoles, but soon extended to encompass smartp ...
, the game has reached an estimated total of 3million players, including an estimated 390,000
monthly active users Active users is a measurement metric that is commonly used to measure the level of engagement for a particular product or object, by quantifying the number of active interactions from visitors within a relevant range of time (daily, weekly and m ...
, . According to
SuperData Research Nielsen Media Research (NMR) is an American firm that measures media audiences, including television, radio, theatre, films (via the AMC Theatres MAP program), and newspapers. Headquartered in New York City, it is best known for the Nielsen rati ...
's estimates ''Death Stranding'' sold 477,000 digital copies in its first month on
Steam Steam is a substance containing water in the gas phase, and sometimes also an aerosol of liquid water droplets, or air. This may occur due to evaporation or due to boiling, where heat is applied until water reaches the enthalpy of vaporization ...
. Kojima stated in May 2020 that the game had sold enough to recoup the development costs and turn a profit, securing funding for Kojima Production's next project. In April 2021, publisher
505 Games 505 Games S.p.A. is an Italian video game publisher based in Milan. It was founded in 2006 as a subsidiary of Milan-based Digital Bros. History 505 Games was founded in 2006 in Milan as a subsidiary of Digital Bros. The company found its earl ...
' parent organization Digital Bros announced in a financial that the PC release had generated () in revenue , making it the company's highest-grossing game in 2020. In October 2021, Digital Bros announced that the PC release had generated . , the game has sold copies worldwide for the PS4 and PC platforms.


Awards

The game won the award for "Best PS4 Exclusive" at the ''
IGN ''IGN'' (formerly ''Imagine Games Network'') is an American video game and entertainment media website operated by IGN Entertainment Inc., a subsidiary of Ziff Davis, Inc. The company's headquarters is located in San Francisco's SoMa distri ...
'' Game of the Awards 2019, whereas its other nominations were for "Best Music/Score" and "Best Art Direction".


Legacy

Numerous commentators noted that the game's story and gameplay resembled the
COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identif ...
. The game's prescient similarities to the coronavirus crisis has drawn comparisons to the way in which a previous Kojima game, '' Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty'' (2001), had anticipated 2010s phenomena such as
fake news Fake news is false or misleading information presented as news. Fake news often has the aim of damaging the reputation of a person or entity, or making money through advertising revenue.Schlesinger, Robert (April 14, 2017)"Fake news in reality ...
and echo chambers. A
parody A parody, also known as a spoof, a satire, a send-up, a take-off, a lampoon, a play on (something), or a caricature, is a creative work designed to imitate, comment on, and/or mock its subject by means of satiric or ironic imitation. Often its subj ...
game set in a post-apocalyptic world devastated by COVID-19, ''Walking Simulator'', was released in March 2020.


Sequel

A sequel was first revealed to be in development in May 2022, when
Norman Reedus Norman Mark Reedus (born January 6, 1969) is an American actor best known for starring as Daryl Dixon in the AMC (TV channel), AMC horror drama series ''The Walking Dead (TV series), The Walking Dead'' (2010–2022). He also starred as Murphy Mac ...
participated in an interview with the outlet ''Leo Edit'' to discuss his work on the game. Speaking to Ilaria Urbinati, Reedus exclaimed, "We just started work on the second one". Later in the interview, he would reminisce about how, "the game came out, and it just won all these awards, and it was a huge thing", before reiterating that the development team had "just started part two of that". In response, game writer and director
Hideo Kojima is a Japanese video game designer, director, producer and writer. He is regarded as an auteur of video games. He developed a strong passion for action/adventure cinema and literature during his childhood and adolescence. In 1986, he was hired ...
would post a series of photos on
Twitter Twitter is an online social media and social networking service owned and operated by American company Twitter, Inc., on which users post and interact with 280-character-long messages known as "tweets". Registered users can post, like, and ...
, cheekily depicting him punishing Reedus for confirming the game's existence while telling him, "Go to your private room, my friend". The sequel was teased with images revealed at numerous game expos featuring
Elle Fanning Mary Elle Fanning (born April 9, 1998) is an American actress. She made her film debut as the younger version of her sister Dakota Fanning's character in the drama film ''I Am Sam'' (2001). As a child actress, she appeared in several films, inc ...
,
Shioli Kutsuna is an Australian-born Japanese actress, known for her role as Ran Mori in ''Shinichi Kudo's Written Challenge!'', Minami Maho in ''Beck,'' Haru/Harumi in ''125 Years Memory,'' and Yukio in ''Deadpool 2''. She plays Mitsuki in the Apple TV+ s ...
, and
Léa Seydoux Léa Hélène Seydoux-Fornier de Clausonne (; born 1 July 1985) is a French actor. Known for her roles in both French cinema and in Hollywood she's received various accolades including the Cannes Film Festival's Trophée Chopard in 2009 as well ...
. A first trailer for ''Death Stranding 2'' (stylized as DS2 and clarified to be a working title) was revealed at The Game Awards 2022, with the aforementioned teased actors confirmed as well as
Troy Baker Troy Baker (born April 1, 1976) is an American voice actor and musician. Baker is known for his video game roles, including Joel Miller in ''The Last of Us'' (2013) and its sequel (2020), Booker DeWitt in ''BioShock Infinite'' (2013), Samuel ...
returning from the first game.


Film adaptation

On December 15, 2022, an film adaptation of ''Death Stranding'' was announced. Kojima Productions partnered with Alex Lebovici and his company Hammerstone Studios to produced the film alongside with
Allan Ungar Allan Ungar is a Canadian film director, producer, and screenwriter known for directing the true crime drama ''Bandit'', the ''Uncharted Live Action Fan Film'', and the Netflix action thriller '' Gridlocked''. Career When Ungar was 23 years o ...
as the executive producer.


Notes


References


External links

* * {{Hideo Kojima 2019 video games 505 Games games Action video games British Academy Games Award for Technical Achievement winners Decima (game engine) games Dystopian video games Golden Joystick Award winners Interactive Achievement Award winners Open-world video games PlayStation 4 games PlayStation 4 Pro enhanced games PlayStation 5 games Post-apocalyptic video games Science fiction video games Single-player video games Sony Interactive Entertainment games Video games set in the future Video games designed by Hideo Kojima Video games developed in Japan Video games directed by Hideo Kojima Video games postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic Video games produced by Hideo Kojima Video games set in the United States War video games Windows games