Death Stranding

Death Stranding is an auteur game by Hideo Kojima, a realistic walking and logistics simulator with elements of action, survival, and stealth, viewed from a third-person perspective. The player travels in a post-apocalyptic world, finding survivors, restoring fragmented society, and creating a unified network between cities.

The plot is presented through numerous excellently directed scenes in the format of a chamber thriller. All cutscenes feature famous Hollywood actors and are recorded using advanced motion capture technology. The philosophy of the game is to understand the true value of establishing relationships between people.

In the near future, a catastrophic event occurred — the "Death Stranding," due to which our dimension of living people became intertwined with the dimension of the dead and demons.

A grand apocalypse took place, the USA ceased to exist, people are disconnected and scattered across its territory, while what happens in other corners of the planet is unknown. The few survivors have taken refuge in cities deep underground.

In our world, chiral creatures have broken through — restless souls of people, as well as various demons (serving as bosses). When a chiral entity absorbs a person, alive or dead, a vortex forms, pulling all matter into another dimension, leaving a huge crater in our world.

Chiral rain poses a great danger, as its drops, like a time machine, accelerate the passage of biological life — a person caught in such rain ages rapidly. It also causes corrosion of metals and degradation of plastics, gradually eating away everything it touches.

The story of Death Stranding is presented unconventionally. Initially, the player is dynamically immersed in the essence of events in the first two chapters, after which, until the entire map is revealed, the narrative gradually introduces new characters and tells their backstories.

A strong point of the plot includes missions where the player travels to the battlefields of the First and Second World Wars, as well as the Vietnam War — but it's better to experience them firsthand.

Only after the middle does the plot unfold fully: the picture of what happened begins to fill with new details, characters develop story arcs, intrigues unfold, several exciting plot twists occur, and the number of dialogues and cutscenes, as well as their length, increases.

The main character, Sam Bridges (Norman Reedus), successfully masters the role of a courier, and his sensitivity to the dimension of the dead and ability to return to our world after death help him navigate the most hopeless situations.

Therefore, the President of the United States entrusts Sam with transporting cargo between survivors, winning their trust, and connecting them to the Chiral Network, the "spiritual successor of the internet." The network will unite all cities and settlements in the USA, allowing data transfer, sharing experiences, and solving the problem of world interconnection.

There are many characters, they are interesting to talk to, and the star-studded cast and cool direction keep the player's attention until the very end. At the same time, the game is linear, and actions will not affect the ending — Death Stranding is not a role-playing game.

Chiral rains have literally wiped out human civilization — in cities, there are only mountains of rubble and garbage, while barren stones, mountains, rivers, and snowy peaks surround them. In this regard, Death Stranding has a dead game world — no simulation of life, static placement of dangerous and safe locations, absence of side quests and NPCs.

Formally, the locations are small, but they consist entirely of uneven terrain of varying degrees of difficulty, making the game world simply vast. There are no direct routes or sprinting; you have to find paths for climbing and descending, detours and fords, descend by rope or climb ladders.

The surface itself in Death Stranding serves as a playground, and the main gameplay mechanic is walking and controlling it. While Sam moves from point to point, the player constantly controls the direction, speed, and balance of the character. You can trip over a rock, lose balance from a shove, and fall, breaking the cargo and failing the mission.

An excellent physics engine changes the character's position, taking into account the slope of the surface, whether it's flat or bumpy, what lies on it, grass and snow, whether the hero is ascending or descending, as well as the current speed and depth of the water. Strong currents can simply sweep Sam away, and the cargo may sink or be lost.

At the same time, the player needs to maintain a balance between mobility and the weight being carried. Carrying more is beneficial, but a character with a tower of cargo on their back slows down and struggles to keep their balance. Additionally, they need to sleep, eat, use the restroom, wash, and take care of their footwear.

Moving boxes from point "A" to point "B" makes up a large part of the 100-hour gameplay. The process becomes more varied due to threats. The first threat is the crazed couriers, MULEs, who will attempt to steal the protagonist's cargo if they detect him. You can run away, knock them out in a fistfight, or stun them with a shocker.

The second danger is the chiral creatures, capable of sensing the player and dragging them into their dimension — then the player will end up in an otherworldly realm from which they must escape. You can either hide from the creatures or engage them in battle with special weapons (grenades or firearms).

For delivering cargo and completing story missions, Sam receives likes, which accumulate into levels and points. The latter are spent on minor character upgrades. As you progress, more content becomes available — delivery robots, levitating platforms, motorcycles, and even cars. The ability to build structures in the open world emerges.

The main development is intended for advancing through the story and connecting cities to the Network — for this, players are rewarded with resources, gameplay opportunities , and gear, such as an exoskeleton for the legs.

With the connection of this area to the network, asynchronous multiplayer is activated, where players help each other while each is in their own world. Gameplay opportunities expand; for example, if you lose cargo, another courier might deliver it. You can build a passage through the pass that other players will use in their world.

In return, you receive likes that encourage the character — increasing stamina, the amount of cargo carried, and improving movement-related stats.

In such an asynchronous game, it is much easier to construct buildings — bridges, roads, car charging stations, rest points, and generally improve the game world. The more there is of all this, the easier it is to progress in the game — you can enter a world where wide roads are laid, cars are scattered, and charging stations are available. Under the influence of chiral rains, this also deteriorates, but not very quickly.