The Pre-Order Trailer for Death Stranding 2: On the Beach recently dropped, and I’m hyped! We’ve got a bunch of new faces (Solid Snake?!), action-packed combat, and some monsters that give my sleep paralysis demons a run for their money. Luckily, we don’t have to wait too much longer, as we’ve finally got a release date: June 26, 2025.
Check out the trailer below!
If you didn’t play the first game, I’m sure you’re wondering what the hell you just watched. Well, you’re not alone. Even as someone who thoroughly enjoyed the first game in the series, I’m asking myself the same thing! While I may not have the answers to all of your questions about what the hell you just watched, I can give you a very basic breakdown of what the first game is about and why I’m excited for this next entry.
The lore and story of the first Death Stranding is unique. Some might even say insane. It takes place in a post-apocalyptic America, where most of the land is uninhabitable and destroyed due to massive voidouts caused by these ghost-like creatures called Beached Things. There’s also a rain called Timefall that ages everything, including people, at a rapid rate. You play as Sam Porter Bridges (Norman Reedus), who has been tasked with reconnecting a post-apocalyptic America to a communication system called the Chiral Network. Sam also has a genetically engineered baby strapped to his chest, which helps him identify those BTs and other dangers.I’m sure all this did was just create even more confusion, but you know what? The confusion is what makes Death Stranding so engaging. You never know what the hell is about to happen next!
At the time of release, though, Death Stranding was met with mixed reviews. For starters, there’s a lot of walking in this game, and I mean A LOT of walking. I would say 90% of the game is delivering packages via foot from point A to point B. When you are not walking there are some sections of combat that involve shooting, stealth and hand to hand combat. While it looks cool it’s actually a bit clunky, and not nearly as creative, or intuitive as other Kojima games. Lastly, the game is just weird, and all over the place. Not everyone wants to feel like they’ve had a bad acid trip after a long day of work, some just want to shut their brain off and play a more easy going, straight forward multiplayer game. I know for myself, my after work de-stressor is NBA 2K. You know, saying that out loud makes me realize that I need a new vice. I can’t make a jumpshot to save my life!
Anyways, back to the UPS simulator… A lot of these are valid complaints and criticisms. However, the magic of this game lies in its atmosphere. If you can get past some of the clunkiness and just get lost in the world and start to feel for all the characters, it really begins to click. Once engrossed, you’ll be delivering packages to your next destination, in awe of some crazy Mars-looking landscape, with the backing of a moody soundtrack. My first time playing this game was comparable to Breath of the Wild, when you start piecing the map together and discovering new and interesting landscapes. Both are pretty bare games, but there’s a certain peace and tranquility that comes with the exploration aspect.
One of the biggest reasons this game stuck with me so much is due to when I played it. There were two games I played the most during the 2020 lock-downs, Animal Crossing: New Horizons, and Death Stranding. While Animal Crossing was a peaceful escape and distraction from the chaos of the current state of affairs, Death Stranding almost felt like a reflection of the COVID shutdowns. In Death Stranding, there’s lack of human connections, feelings of uncertainty, and the an eerie sense of isolation. Sound familiar? Just like I wanted to reconnect and get back to a normal way of life, playing as Sam, my goal was to reconnect America. It gave me a great sense of accomplishment to connect the fragmented U.S. in the game, and I’m sure a lot of it had to do with my desire at the time to reconnect and get back to being with friends, family, and my community.
As you can probably tell, the first entry left a huge impact on me. Those miles I walked as Sam Porter Bridges was a fascinating experience, and one I wish I could replay again for the first time. While I’m sure a good chunk of this second game will be a lot more walking, I can't wait to get completely lost in this insane world that Kojima has created.
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