Death Stranding Reviews
Death Stranding is one of the grandest, most optimistic adventures to be had in modern gaming. With its exploration of grief, loss, connection and resilience in the face of absolute adversity, the way the title effortlessly presents hope prevailing and the kindness of humanity continuing to exist even at the end of the world is beyond beautiful. Alongside gorgeous scenery, a stunning soundtrack accompanying your journey and even hot springs to be found along the way, Death Stranding is a sight worth seeing and losing yourself in. Maybe it’s just me, but it really is as wholesome and cosy as it is meaningful and well-intentioned.
Death Stranding is a unique once-in-a-generation experience which has to be experienced by everyone, even if just to see if you enjoy it. With relaxing gameplay, a beautiful story, unique multiplayer component and great music, it is an experiment that was worth taking by Kojima Productions. Why did you need to include an Alan Walker song, though, Kojima?
An interesting story, and solid gameplay, but not in a way that combines into a singular experience that players deserve for a 60 dollar title. Still it's worth checking out once the price drops.
Can I recommend Death Stranding? Not really.
I enjoyed discovering the world in Death Stranding and although the gameplay didn’t seem ‘special’ at first, it ended up being much more complex than I initially thought. Sadly, the story does take a while to pick up, however, as soon as my confusion got untangled it became more enjoyable for me. My favourite thing about this game is the stunning environmental and character graphics which made it a joy for me to traverse through the areas, even if I was mostly simply delivering cargo. That being said, Death Stranding is an entertaining game, with an interesting premise, which I recommend to anyone who is looking for something more unique to experience.
The first imagery we ever saw from our initial glimpse at Death Stranding, was a naked Daryl Dixon cradling a baby. No explanation, no story detail. But it was from Hideo Kojima, so naturally, hype arose. However, for me, I never really pushed to find out what the game was about or watch any more trailers over the years. It was for PS4, and as an Xbox player, I was never going to play it, so why bother?
Despite my qualms about the closing hours of Death Stranding, I truly enjoyed about 30 hours of it. There are plenty of moments where tone-setting music sets in and the vastness of the landscapes smothers you with solitude and despair. Collecting materials and contributing them to an online structure was engaging and even downright addictive. Moreover, the foundations of the plot intrigued me so much. I think that's what pains me so much about Death Stranding: I can see its potential, but the game went too far in too many disparate directions.
There’s a lot of things I think Death Stranding gets wrong. Many of them I’ve not even mentioned here because they’re small things, but things that add up. And yet I found myself thinking about playing Death Stranding even when I was doing other things. Despite everything, I was perfectly happy to fire the game up and spend a few hours building roads, dragging boxes up hills, delivering a pile of stuff in a truck and riding ziplines around. Along the way I thought about life and death, my own health and the state of the world, the people I love and my plans and so much more. Above all else, I thought about how crazy Kojima is and how I’m really glad he’s crazy and has the clout to make games like Death Stranding, games that would never otherwise get to see the light of release because publishers would be terrified of it. Because Death Stranding is like nothing else you’ve ever played. It’s unique, and that’s not an easy thing to be these days.
In general, the arrival of Death Stranding on the PC is very fortuitous, especially since it was released in a high quality version. The game is a masterpiece that offers a unique experience on top of good game design choices and whose bizarre doses in the script create an immersive and thought-provoking world.
Review in Portuguese | Read full review
Death Stranding is a game that really revels in its weirdness and it’s frankly all the better for it. For as much as that can also get in its way at times, it still manages to get to where it’s going quite well.
Death Stranding is a great first look into Sony’s willingness to be more platform-agnostic. It also proves that Kojima Productions doesn’t have to regulate themselves to specific needs or restrictions of a console. While the developer didn’t entirely loosen its grips on its vision of Death Stranding, with the lack of standard PC settings, adapting to an open platform still couldn’t have been easy.
Death Stranding is truly unique and deserves attention simply for the way it ignores trends of the uniform AAA titles. That also means it's definitely not for everyone.
Review in Slovak | Read full review
Varied gameplay mechanics, an intriguing story, and Hideo Kojima's signature attention to cinematic storytelling elevate Death Stranding as a one-of-a-kind experience that is sure to consume your attention and imagination.
f you are a fan of Kojima’s work, most people will probably know of him because of the Metal Gear series, then you should know what to expect when it comes to story elements in Death Stranding. Knowing that Hideo Kojima is such a huge fan of cinema, it is no surprise that he would want to have a lush storyline full of twists and turns. In some ways, replaying Death Stranding on PC was more enjoyable as I knew exactly what was going on at every given moment. Most of Kojima’s work has that element about it though. You can expect that most cut scenes are quite lengthy though, with one cutscene lasting approximately 2 hours!
Death Stranding does exactly what it set out to do - create an experience like nothing else on the market that is fresh and extremely thought provoking. It is one of the most ambitious titles I have ever played through. The game knows exactly what it is, and doesn't try to change that. Although the gameplay may fall short for some, Death Stranding is easily one of the most striking titles I have played in years, and is one I believe should be experienced by all.
A playable essay on human connection and individuality cleverly disguised as a walking sim.
The idea of running back and forth across a large area may not be appealing to everyone. However, after setting aside the weirdly, and wonderfully confusing story and a few tense BT encounters, I found my time with Death Stranding to often be a more relaxing, chill, experience that I would recommend you check out.
Death Stranding is a hybrid title, a film that can be played. It is an experience that the player falls in love with easily and with great difficulty will forget it. It is not a delivery simulator, it is enough, it is much more. The asynchronous multiplayer also makes it very enjoyable even from a collaborative point of view. We fell madly in love with the new Hideo Kojima title, and we don't hide from you that we had many uncertainties before we started playing it, probably the same ones that we clarified with this review.
Review in Italian | Read full review
Death Stranding is an enjoyable, story-centric game, with realistic physics and unique in-game interactions. Although it was a little difficult to understand the story at first, the game's creator Hideo Kojima spaced out the small details enough to keep players engaged and progressing, eager to learn more.
A genuinely original and gorgeous new title from Kojima that manages to overcome its indulgent sections and a plodding midsection with a thoughtful ending. Did we say it looks utterly gorgeous too?