Death Stranding is not a game for everyone. Its controls are overly complex, its story is beyond confusing, and the main gameplay loop is moving from point A to point B. Although this review is ultimately positive, it is also a warning: this is a game that adheres to a vision despite that vision being good or bad. Now I can speak for hours about how Game Director seems to be a dying profession in video game development (looking at you BFV); but playing Death Stranding reminded me that there are Directors out there that do still care about their vision. Essentially what we have here is pure, unadulterated, Hideo Kojima. Hideo Kojima at his weirdest, Hideo Kojima at his best, and Hideo Kojima at his worst. At his best, he managed to create a thoroughly engaging game with unique mechanics, and an interesting world. At his worst he managed to create a convoluted story that is so confusing people are forced to watch youtubers explain it like it was End of Evangelion (Kojima is Anno confirmed). But at the end of the day, I think the overall message of Death Stranding is told well and gets the point across. Sure I may have not really understood what was going on at times, but once I learned how to play the game, and how well-crafted and interesting the world was, I knew I was on board. For better or worse, I was along for Kojima's wild ride. So, is Death Stranding for you? Maybe, if anything I just described sounds interesting to you or perhaps not if you're still unsure. For myself, I can say that I thoroughly enjoyed the experience, and I can't wait to see what Hideo Kojima comes up with next. But, like George Lucas while filming A New Hope, all good directors need good editors (One of them has to get an Oscar, looking at you 4-nom-George). I hope the reaction to this game has been a cautionary tale for Hideo Kojima, though after his departure from Konami I can understand his need to flex a little. Although at the time of this writing his next project is still yet to be announced, I think Death Stranding has given me enough confidence in the man to sit back and see what he comes up with.


Before wrapping up this review I do want to take a little bit more of your time by mentioning two crucial aspects that I fear are underrepresented in the majority of my review: the sound and imagery. Just as much as Kojima poured his all in to this game I also believe that his production studio (that largely followed him over from his old studio with Konami) and every other studio that worked to deliver this game and then port it have done outstanding work. The visuals are stunning, character animations are fluid, and everything from the crunch of dirt to the soundtrack itself is masterfully rendered. The people at work here are truly masters of their craft and deserve all the credit.