What We Learned About Death Stranding 2: On the Beach

Last night, pre-orders for Death Stranding 2: On the Beach went live. To mark the occasion, Sony and Kojima Productions released a new ten-minute trailer, traditionally edited by Hideo Kojima himself. Even if you're a fan of the first game and are familiar with its complex story, this info-packed trailer will still leave you with plenty of questions — answers to which will hopefully come only after the sequel’s release. But we’ll still try to piece together what the industry’s leading visionary has shown us.

First, let’s briefly recall the events of the original Death Stranding, which you may have played back in 2019. The first game ended on a positive note, albeit with some caveats.

Sam Porter Bridges, played by Norman Reedus, managed to rebuild a semblance of a nation — the United Cities of America — across the former United States. He also prevented another mass extinction event by convincing the Extinction Entity, a being that serves as a catalyst for the annihilation of all life, not to commit global genocide. However, Sam learned that, over time, a new Extinction Entity would emerge, meaning the problem would return. In fact, the new Death Stranding 2 trailer directly states that the Sixth Extinction is still ongoing.

Additionally, the ending of the previous game hinted that the connection between the real world and the world of the dead was finally severed. However, as we now see, that is not the case. Perhaps contact was truly broken, but only temporarily, or maybe the nature of the connection changed without being completely cut off.

The sequel’s events take place 11 months after the finale of Death Stranding. The United Cities of America are doing well: couriers like Sam are no longer in high demand since they’ve been replaced by robots. Additionally, humanity has discovered a way to travel quickly between continents.

Sam Porter Bridges, along with his adopted daughter Lou, sets out to explore territories far beyond the United Cities of America. The mission’s goal is to spread civilization. He is assisted by a group of characters operating from their flying ship, the Magellan, which can cover vast distances rapidly.

One of Sam’s companions is Fragile, a familiar face from the first game, once again played by Léa Seydoux. From what we can tell, Fragile is now in a romantic relationship with Sam and also acts as a mother figure to Lou.

Fragile’s appearance raises some questions. As everyone who played Death Stranding knows, she suffered from Timefall exposure, causing her entire body — except for her head — to age rapidly. However, in the sequel’s trailer, she looks completely normal. Could humanity have found a way to reverse the effects of Timefall? Or perhaps all the scenes featuring Fragile are visions or dreams?

Death Stranding 2 introduces a new enigmatic faction — mysterious monks dressed in red robes. Their goals and beliefs remain unknown, but the religious undertones are hard to ignore: the sequel’s trailer presents them as pilgrims of some sort who seemingly revere Sam Bridges. It’s possible they are followers of Amelie Bridges from the previous game, who turned out to be the leader of a terrorist group seeking to accelerate the apocalypse. Amelie, notably, also favored red clothing.

Higgs Monaghan, one of the antagonists from the first game, also returns in the sequel. He, too, now wears red armor and even a mask bearing Amelie’s likeness. Most likely, Higgs — played once again by Troy Baker — is back to his old ways and planning humanity’s destruction. Whether he leads this new faction remains unclear.

Also unknown is the identity of the person attacking Fragile and Lou in the trailer. The mysterious figure with a pistol could be Higgs, but it’s just as possible that he is a new antagonist.

The biggest mystery revolves around a character named Nick, played by Italian actor Luca Marinelli. Despite the trailer highlighting him, it’s impossible to determine who Nick is, what his motivations are, or what role he plays.

Fans speculate that Nick will play a role similar to Mads Mikkelsen’s character in the first game. Like him, Nick is a soldier surrounded by ghostly comrades. Some theories suggest that he is Lou’s biological father trying to reclaim his child. It’s even possible that he is the one attacking Fragile in the trailer to take Lou away.

Another intriguing detail is connected to this new character. Kojima once admitted in an Instagram post that he thinks Luca Marinelli looks just like Solid Snake. And, surprise, surprise — in the Death Stranding 2 trailer, Nick wears a signature bandana. Obviously, he isn’t literally Solid Snake — Konami, not Kojima Productions, owns the Metal Gear rights. However, it’s hard to deny that the character is a direct nod to the legendary protagonist. Interestingly, some theories suggest that Nick may even be the main character of Physint, Kojima’s upcoming spy action game in the vein of MGS.

The Death Stranding 2 trailer showcases many new types of monsters, known as Beached Things. Some of them can even merge, forming truly massive creatures.

More interestingly, some Beached Things now appear to be under human control. For instance, the trailer features a giant octopus partially covered in red armor, which likely serves Higgs or the fanatical faction. Moreover, Beached Things aren’t only fighting for the villains — at one point, the Magellan fuses with an allied creature, forming a bizarre mech.

The first Death Stranding was criticized for its slow pace and lack of action. It seems Kojima took this feedback to heart: the sequel’s trailer is packed with action sequences. In a previous video, Sam was even seen in a weapon storage room with nearly twice as many guns on the wall compared to the first game.

Amusingly, in the new trailer, one character directly comments on the cultural significance of firearms in old America, stating that uniting people requires not only “ropes” but also “sticks.” This could be Kojima’s way of acknowledging player feedback.

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Objectively, we didn’t learn many concrete details about Death Stranding 2. However, what we saw is intriguing, and speculating about the trailer is a fun process in itself. It’s almost like a pre-release ritual for every new Hideo Kojima game.

Death Stranding 2: On the Beach launches on June 26 for PlayStation 5. Let us know in the comments what you think about the new trailer.