Death Stranding

"*Tomorrow is in your hands.*"
―Tagline.

Promotional key art used as the boxart, depicting protagonist Sam Porter Bridges with an active Odradek

### Developer

Kojima Productions
Guerrilla Games (additional support)

### Publisher

Sony Interactive Entertainment
505 Games (PC)

### Producer

Hideo Kojima
Kenichiro Imaizumi
James Vance
Ken Mendoza

### Platforms

PlayStation 4
PlayStation 5
PC (Microsoft Windows, macOS)
Mobile (iOS)

### Release

**PlayStation 4**:
November 8, 2019

**PC** (**Microsoft Windows**)
July 14, 2020<

**PlayStation 5**:
September 24, 2021

**PC** (**macOS**), **Mobile** (**iOS**)
2023

### Mode(s)

Single-player (with online elements)

***Death Stranding*** is a 2019 action-adventure video game developed by Kojima Productions and published by Sony Interactive Entertainment for the PlayStation 4. A Windows PC port published by 505 Games was released in 2020, while an expanded version called *Death Stranding: Director's Cut* was released in 2021 for the PlayStation 5 and 2022 for PC. A mobile port supporting iOS and a macOS PC port are slated to release in 2023. It is the first game produced by director Hideo Kojima following his departure from Konami in 2015.

The game follows protagonist Sam Porter Bridges in his job as a courier in a destroyed United States following a catalytic event referred to as the "Death Stranding", which caused a rift between the world of the living and the dead. Sam is tasked with reuniting the fragmented country by journeying into various settlements and connecting them to a wireless communications network. Set in a non-linear environment from a third-person perspective, in *Death Stranding* players can traverse through by vehicle or foot, with a variety of tools and gadgets to overcome the terrain and evade or take down hostiles. Sam is aided by a BB - a premature child whose connection to both life and death allows the player to spot Beached Things, supernatural entities awakened by the Death Stranding. *Death Stranding* features online capabilities in which players can support each other through supplies and structures left in the game's world.

Early development on *Death Stranding* began in 2016 following Kojima's publicized departure from Konami. The game resulted in from a partnership with Sony and collaboration with its subsidiary Guerrilla Games, which also provided the Decima engine for the game. Kojima described the game as developing a new genre, which he called "strand-type". Full development on the title began in 2017, with focus on the connection between life and death as the game's central theme. Reedus and Del Toro previously collaborated with Kojima on *Silent Hills* before Kojima's departure from Konami and the game's subsequent cancellation. *Death Stranding* was officially announced at E3 2016, while a PC port was announced in late 2019 prior to the game's initial launch.

*Death Stranding* received generally positive reviews, gaining praise for its art direction, visuals, vocal performances, soundtrack, map design and online functionalities. Its story, pacing and overall gameplay drew polarized responses, with critics divided on their quality and execution. *Death Stranding* was nominated for multiple end-year awards, winning a variety of them, particularly for its technical advancements and performances. The game sold over 5 million copies by July 2021. A sequel, tentatively titled as *Death Stranding 2*, was announced in 2022.

## Gameplay

*Death Stranding* is an action-adventure video game set in an open world map of a post-apocalyptic United States, and includes asynchronous online functions which director Hideo Kojima referred to as the "Social Strand System". In interviews, Kojima referred to *Death Stranding* as the first "strand"-type video game, and compared it to his work on the *Metal Gear* series, which was previously considered an action game before defining the stealth genre.

The game is played from non-fixed third-perspective camera. The player controls Sam Porter Bridges, a porter of a company called Bridges whose goal is to reunite the survivors within the United States - now a conglomerate of several areas called the United Cities of America. The player is tasked with delivering supply cargoes to isolated settlements and cities called KNOTs, as well as other abandoned facilities and individual residences. The player is evaluated by the company and recipients based on their performance (including via "likes" similar to social networks), depending on whether the cargo was delivered as well of its quality, damage and time of delivery.

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 in return 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. As the player roams through the environments, they may have to balance themselves during when walking or running. If Sam trips during his journey to delivery, the player may damage their cargo and supplies.

## Plot

### Characters and setting

*Death Stranding* takes place in a post-apocalyptic United States that was devastated by the titular phenomenon, which caused drastic alternation to the cycle of life and death. As a result, creatures known as "Beached Things" (BTs) started roaming the world, invisible beings who originate on the "Beach", a location believed to be linked to the afterlife and brings visitors who experienced near-death experiences. BTs are hostile to human beings, and when they consume humans, it results in a "voidout" - an explosion the size of a nuclear bomb. An additional phenomenon caused by the Death Stranding is the "Timefall", supernatural rain that rapidly ages and decays most beings and objects that come to contact with it. The Timefall severely damaged the US's infrastructure and relegated the country to the "United Cities of America", a collection of isolated colonies built underground.

## Development

*Death Stranding* was directed by Hideo Kojima, developed by Kojima Productions and published by Sony Interactive Entertainment, with technical support by Sony subsidiary Guerrilla Games, which shared its Decima game engine with Kojima Productions. Additional support was provided by Bend Studio and Insomniac Games.

### Marketing

*Death Stranding* was officially unveiled in June 2016 during Sony's E3 conference.

## Release

In 2016 following the game's reveal, Kojima stated that he hoped to release *Death Stranding* before the year in which 1988's cyberpunk movie *Akira* is set, 2019. In March 2019, Kojima admitted that the game "was behind release date schedule". In May of the same year, Kojima Productions unveiled a new trailer that revealed the game's release date as November 8, 2019.

In October 2019, Kojima confirmed that *Death Stranding* will release to personal computers, with 505 Games serving as publisher. The PC version was originally set to be released in June 2, 2020; due to the COVID pandemic, the release was pushed to July 14, 2020.

### Editions

The game was confirmed to have several editions to release as well as pre-order bonues:

* *Special Edition*:
	+ Steelbook case
	+ Special gold version of the following in-game item once earned through gameplay: “Ludens Mask” Sunglasses (Gold)
	+ *DEATH STRANDING: Timefall* (Original Music from the World Of *DEATH STRANDING*) – Digital Music Album
	+ *DEATH STRANDING: Timefall* - Behind the Scenes Making Of Digital Video
* *Collector's Edition*:
	+ Steelbook case
	+ Special gold version of the following in-game items once earned through gameplay: "Ludens Mask" Sunglasses (Gold); "Power Skeleton" (Gold); "Armor Plate" (Lv. 2 Gold); "All-Terrain Skeleton" (Gold)
	+ *DEATH STRANDING: Timefall* (Original Music from the World Of *DEATH STRANDING*) – Digital Music Album
	+ *Death Stranding* complete avatar set
	+ Nendoroid "More Ludens" mini figure
	+ Cargo case modeled after Bridges
	+ "BB Pod" statue

## Reception

### Reviews

* MetaCritic: 82/100
* Destructoid: 8/10
* EasyAllies: 8/10
* Eurogamer: Recommended (EN); 9/10 (IT)
* Famitsu: 40/40
* Game Informer: 7/10
* Game Revolution: 5/5
* GamesRadar: 3.5/5
* GameSpot: 9/10
* GiantBomb: 2/5
* Guardian: 4/5
* IGN: 6.8/10
* PlayStation LifeStyle: 9.5/10
* PlayStation Universe: 8/10
* Push Square: 10/10
* VideoGamer: 8/10

*Death Stranding* received generally positive reviews upon its release, though some described the critical reception as divisive or polarizing. It holds a score of 82/100 on MetaCritic based on 111 reviews, classified on the site as "generally favorable reviews".

### PC version

* MetaCritic: 86/100
* Eurogamer: 9/10 (Italy)
* Game Revolution: 5/5
* GameSpot: 9/10
* Metro: 7/10
* PC Gamer: 85/100
* PCMag: 3.5/5

### Sales

By November 2022, the PlayStation and PC versions of *Death Stranding* amassed a total of 10 million players. As of December 2023, *Death Stranding* surpassed 16 players across all platforms and versions.

## Legacy

References to *Death Stranding* were made in other PlayStation Studios titles, including *Days Gone* (2019), *Astro's Playroom* (2020), *Sackboy: A Big Adventure* (2020), *Horizon Forbidden West* (2022), *The Last of Us Part I* (2022) and *God of War Ragnarök* (2022).

## References

1. ↑ *Death Stranding* Critic Reviews for PlayStation 4, MetaCritic.
2. ↑ https://www.dualshockers.com/death-stranding-reaches-10-million-players/
3. ↑ https://gamingbolt.com/death-stranding-has-surpassed-16-million-players