Death Stranding seemed to cause way more division that we thought it would when it released back in 2019. Some folk found it boring and bland, others were confused by the (confusing) plot, nonplussed by the lack of action, whilst more still just sorta thought it was way too long and ponderous.
Make no mistake, it still reviewed really well, it wasn't hard done by. It's just there was a lot of negative discourse swirling around it post-release, whilst we've never personally viewed it as anything less than one of Kojima's absolute best. We demand that Metascore be corrected to 100, if you please! Because Sam Porter's odyssey really is a once-in-a-lifetime sort of thing; a relentlessly bleak and haunting experience that also manages to be deeply personal, touching and beautiful in all the right ways. It sticks with you, even years later, there's parts of our brains, memories, scattered around the rugged terrain that envelops you as you boot into it. Not many games do that, mate.
We aren't gonna start explaining your Die Hardmen and all that caper here - you probably know it all already, and the plot in Death Stranding is so wild we just do not have the inclination right now. Honestly, we'd be Googling names until bedtime. But all you need to know, without spoilers, is that it does all the good Kojima stuff you expect, all the wild characters and long conversations, incredible cutscenes and best-in-class weirdness. It also has some phenomenal boss fights that are amongst the strangest and coolest things we've witnessed. It does all this, but this time around it feels so much more personal.
Sam's tale is one that demands you consider things about yourself, your future, your purpose and predicament as a human skin-bag, that you'd rather not. This isn't some post-apocalyptic tale that makes you wanna survive and thrive because it's all sexy lasers and cool shoes. It's a futuristic wasteland that bears the scars of man's mistakes, of real pain, the solitude of living in a world where connections have been torn asunder and everything you do requires a battle against the elements, alongside careful planning and perseverance. Oh, and it's also haunted AF. So prepare for some scares, too. It makes a perfect playground for gruff Sam as he goes about fixing the world, one job at a time. It also makes for one of the most unforgettable video-game environments we've yet to experience.
Why can we remember so many little nooks and crevices that are dotted about this hugely monotonous and damp landscape, whilst so many more readable and flashy game worlds pass us by in a blur of blandness? It's because Sam's mission, in both its critical and personal aspects, is one that ties you to this landscape at every twist and turn. It makes you work, forge paths, remember routes, mark points that need fixing and improving, to make a connection, directly, with the world around you.
There's the whole ingenious multiplayer aspect too; as you connect more and more of this shattered United States, you begin to open up ways to connect to other players. From leaving behind equipment and supplies, to building actual bridges and climbing supports. It brings every rock, every waterfall and stunning vista that you clamber up, over and toward, to life in such a hypnotically beautiful way.
The cast is sublime. Of course they are. The writing is sublime (when it makes sense), and although it does veer off into full-on chaos at points, the kind of chaos only Kojima can bring, it's never less than electric because there's much haunting beauty and meaning in everything that's going on at any particular moment. Yes, a lot of it is nonsensical bulls**t too, there's always that aspect to the man, but really, who cares when the bulls**t looks and tastes this good? Mmmm..., delicious bulls**t.
In all honesty, and being straight and proper with you, we were gunning to give this one a 10 as soon as we knew it was coming our way, 100% locked and loaded on a perfect score. It was all just a matter of whether or not the performance side of things held up on Xbox. Which it does! Oh yes. In both the performance and quality modes, everything looks and feels perfect, to the point we've actually settled on playing our full Xbox campaign (our third playthrough of Death Stranding overall) in the quality mode, for the all little extra shinies. You can check out our video comparison on performance too, for more deets on this aspect of the game.
But yeah, overall, this is one of our top three faves from Kojima, blasting onto Xbox consoles in top form and complete in terms of content. There's never been anything else like it. Death Stranding is, quite simply, a singular and monumental bit of storytelling and world-building. It's mechanically sublime too, not just in Sam's stumbling around and balancing of cargo, and the associated constant gauging of terrain - which is oddly mesmerising - but also in how it expertly drip-feeds upgrades and sexy new tech at a perfect rate, in how it introduces new threats just as things start to feel samey. It's a bonus that it also gives us enough demented, haunting, thought-provoking Kojima-san weirdness to last us up to, and well past, whenever it is his next joint decides to drop.
Conclusion
Death Stranding Director's Cut is a phenomenal experience that, five years on, is still as incredible, mechanically, narratively and graphically, as ever. A top-notch cast do their best with what is an admittedly bonkers story (bonkers in all the best Kojima ways, you understand), whilst this incredibly haunting world, this emotional tale and its incredible characters, absolutely hook you in for one of the most memorable journeys of the past few console cycles. It's so good to see this masterpiece finally arrive on Xbox.
Comments 34
Agree 100% with the 10/10 rating. A true masterpiece of a game. It is one of 2 games I've ever bothered to plat twice and a game I keep coming back to just for "one more" delivery.
I got this the day it shadowdropped last week. I’ve played a little bit into chapter 2, and this game is legit. A lot of it is walking so far, yes, but that gives you more time to appreciate the world you’re in. It’s freakin gorgeous. The music is fantastic. I had my first encounter with the enemy in this game, everything gets instantly dialed up to 11. Very well made game from what I’ve seen. Please buy if you like more chill and atmospheric games!
(For the quick resume bug, I recommend just playing this game old school and manually saving during parts like when you get to where you are supposed to be for your quest. If you continue off of quick resume, your game can’t manually save. So if it gets closed, you’ll have hours of progress gone.)
Great to see that Xbox owners are finally able to play this amazing game! It was easily the best game on the PS4 for me, typical Kojima brilliance!! Played it twice and both times was a very refreshing experience! Loved the (crazy) story and can’t wait for the sequel next year. Hopefully that won’t be as far away for Xbox owners. The more people that play kojimas games, the better!!
Great that Xbox owners get to experience my absolute favorite game of all time! The 10/10 is absolutely warranted.
I'm having a great time gaming at the moment. I'll throw myself into a few games of BlackOps multiplayer, then wind down the rest of the evening with a few package deliveries... 🤣
Great for those who like this game but I found it to be incredibly boring.
Keep on keeping on
I played it on PS4/5 and loved it. I found it a chilled out experience for the most part, and loved negotiating the barren landscape. But I completely get why some people would find it boring though. Can’t wait for DS2!
So good to see the DS lovers coming out of the woodwork here. Yassss
Played the DC on PS5, great game.
A steal at £17.50 on the Series.
Oh, and it wasn't that many hours in that I managed to unlock the motorbike things, made zipping around all the more fun.
I've always said this: if you think Death Stranding is boring and monotonous, I totally get it. If you think it's incredible....I totally get it. I'm in the latter camp. The idea of the traversal in the game BEING the gameplay ( in most games it's an afterthought) is genius to me. No yellow handholds, quest markers only if YOU put them on your map, having to thoughtfully manage your encumberance (no magic pockets lol). I absolutely love this game, but i understand it's not for everyone 😄
I wonder if the sequel will come to XBOX too eventually. Really happy to finally be able to play this and with such a great performance and price!
@armondo36 Great comment. (I'm in the latter camp also).
I loved the game after having pre-ordered it on the PS4, and played it for over 100 hours. Loved it enough to buy it again on the Xbox as soon as it became available last week. I totally get why it is a marmite game, but there is nothing quite like trying to scale a mountain with packages piled ridiculously high, and then succeeding at your endeavours. It's a beautiful game that I look forward to diving back into once I've finished with Dragon Age...
I tried the first few hours of it last year on PS Premium. Couldn't get into it. Maybe I should give it another go.
I’m like the majority here who’s a fan of the game. I hear people saying it’s boring, it’s just a walking simulator etc but imo there’s nothing else out there like it, it’s so unique in its own way and I absolutely love it. I only just got past the first chapter but I’m looking forward to continuing my journey through the game after playing other upcoming games like MFS 2024 and S.T.A.L.K.E.R 2, also got Black Ops 6 campaign to finish.
I don't think I'll ever be able to see eye to eye with any man, woman or child that gives this dross 10/10.
The BEST version has finally arrived!
👍😁👍
Bought this after it dropped and it's so much more than a walking sim. Plotting routes out and making sure you take the right equipment. The sense of accomplishment getting a delivery done without damaging it is great. I haven't played a game this zen since Talos Principle 1.
Oh wow, another PJ review I highly disagree with. I thought this game was incredibly overrated and overhyped back when it first released and I bought it just because it was so hyped. When I played the game again on my PS5 with the director's cut upgrade I was like "yeah, this is the same awful game only slightly better graphics." I mean I guess some people love it apparently, and good for them, but it's totally not for everyone.
Just to balance things out in the comments section I played the game for a bit on Playstation until it got so boring doing all the walking I quit the game. The first hours were really cool and very Kojima but the gameplay mechanics just weren’t for me. Think its a very much love or hate kind of game!
Glad it's available for those that want it but I absolutely hated this on ps5. The story is a load of bollocks and the gameplay is almost non-existent...
Huh maybe I’ll have to give it a shot then
I`ve lost one and half hour of gameplay due the quick resume bug, just close the game every time you quit playing and you'd be fine. 10/10 well deserved.
I played it on game pass PC last year and it is a fantastic game, probably my third favourite from kojima.
I thought this game looked so stupid and boring. The only reason I gave it a shot was because Chris on Sacred Symbols was in the same boat as me and he raved about it, him and I seem to have very similar tastes. I grabbed it on sale and absolutely loved it. It’s such a unique game, the music is fantastic, and the story is intriguing. I can’t recommend it enough.
@luke88 As Jeremy Clarkson would say:
“Oh no! Anyway…”
@dskatter 😂
Not my type of game, but i seen on the store it was over a 1000 reviews already, so i think it’s selling fairly well with the Xbox crowd. Not sure anything pulls me off Black ops 6 and Diablo 4 for the rest of the year. But this is one of those games that for those that like it, i am happy it’s now on Xbox. We need less and less 3rd party games tied to one box. I think slowly it is starting to be known to devs to put their games on all devices.
Truly one of my favorite games and glad to finally have It on Xbox. Replaying it and trying to hammer the achievements this time. A couple tips. Set performance mode to Quality and be sure it's set to widescreen. The latter makes a huge difference. PS. Don't miss the Luden Fan mission in the first map!!
For those who've never played, it gets sh*t on because the cut scenes can be long, especially in the beginning.
I played for a while on PS4 when it was released.
I couldn't finish it for wtvr reason though I liked it.
I just repurchased it and got hooked on the lore of the game, to the point of buying the first book.
I don't know if it's a gem cause I haven't played that much yet but it is something different and that is saying a whole lot in the gaming industry.
Lol 10/10 for a walking simulation 😂
I played this for a while on PS4 a couple of years ago and really couldn't get on with it. That didn't stop me just buying it again though!! Maybe I'm more Zen for it this time, I hope so, its a beautiful looking game and I would love to see the whole story.
I've owned this on PlayStation since Day 1 and later bought it on PC and always wondered why I never bothered to actually play it. I assumed it was because MGS was once my all-time favorite game and this was just so radically different that I didn't want to face potential disappointment. Nope. It turns out I really just wanted it to be an Xbox title (not unlike Hellblade all those years ago). Truly a masterpiece. A weird as hell masterpiece, but a masterpiece nonetheless.
Show Comments
Leave A Comment
Hold on there, you need to login to post a comment...