The highly anticipated PlayStation 4 project from renowned game designer Hideo Kojima, Death Stranding, will be released very soon. Besides, today was demonstrated a new trailer for the game, which told us much more about the project.

Because of this, we thought this was the perfect time to put together all the information we have about Death Stranding at the time of writing and share it with you.

What is Death Stranding?

Death Stranding is an action game developed by Hideo Kojima and his studio Kojima Productions. This is the first project for the game designer since leaving Konami in early 2015. What's more, it's also the first time in a long time that Kojima has a completely new game that doesn't belong to Metal Gear or any other franchise.

According to the game designer, Death Stranding is the name of an event that took place in the game. It refers to a real-life phenomenon in which whales and dolphins are washed ashore.

Why this happens, scientists cannot say with 100% certainty. However, some marine biologists are convinced that whales and dolphins land ashore because of predators or navigation problems.

In a way, this ties in with what we've seen in the trailers, which is huge creatures with tentacles.

The plot of Death Stranding

The game takes place after the collapse of civilization in the United States. In the not-too-distant future, mysterious explosions rocked the planet, triggering a series of supernatural events known as Death Stranding.

Ghostly creatures have invaded the earth, the planet is on the verge of mass extinction, and people have been forced to build walls and began to live in isolation.

The main character of the game, Sam, and the character of actress Lea Seydoux, Fragile

Sam Bridges, the protagonist, must journey through a devastated landscape infested with otherworldly threats in order to save America and humanity from impending annihilation.

Death Stranding Gameplay

Gameplay Death Stranding is an action game with stealth elements in an open world. According to Kojima, one of the key elements will be the idea of ​​a connection between life and death.

He explained the main theme of the game through a short story in which the stick, the first tool created by man, was a means of self-defense. Whereas the second invention was a rope, which was used to secure things important to a person.

Kojima compared the main elements of an action game, namely punching, kicking, and shooting, to a stick. Whereas he wants players in Death Stranding to communicate through the game equivalent of a rope, that is, to unite everyone and everything around.

Playing as Sam, players must do everything possible to overcome all the divisions in society and create new bonds, called "Loops", with other players around the world.

When the main character of the game, Sam, dies for one reason or another, he enters another world, which is called the "upside down world, immersed in water." According to the game designer, everything that the player has done in the "world of the living" remains in it once and for all, even after returning from the "other world".

The world in which the main character enters after death

For contact with this very “other world”, the so-called Bridge-Baby (babies in capsules) are used. With their help, Sam has the ability to use a special scanner, which in turn allows him to see BTs, ghost enemies. Bridge Baby links both worlds.

This is what Bridge Baby looks like (baby in a capsule)

Among the enemies will also be members of a militant separatist organization known as "Homo demons". They are considered terrorists, walking from city to city, killing people and leaving craters.

An important gameplay element will be rain, called Timefall, which ages or degrades everything it touches, and for some unknown reason attracts BT's attention.

Among other things, in Death Stranding it will be possible to interact with the environment (for example, use the stairs to get to the right place), wander outside the body of the protagonist and move around the open world in vehicles.

A motorcycle that will allow you to move around the open world

What engine is used in Death Stranding?

According to Hideo Kojima, his team met and worked closely with more than 30 studios to find the perfect engine for the game. As a result, the developers settled on Decima, a toolkit created by Guerilla Games for Horizon: Zero Dawn, a PlayStation 4 exclusive.

There were many reasons why this particular engine was chosen. Perhaps the most important were Decima's incredible graphical capabilities and open world support. And Kojima Productions didn't just get the rights to use the engine. The developers work closely with Guerilla Games to unlock the full potential of the toolkit.

Cast of Death Stranding

Hideo Kojima obviously does not spare money for his new project, since the cast is really stellar:

• Norman Reedus, best known for playing Daryl Dixon on The Walking Dead. He will play Sam in Death Stranding. Previously worked with Kojima on the canceled Silent Hills;

• Mads Mikkelsen, who has starred in films such as Casino Royale, Doctor Strange and The Hunt, as well as the TV series Hannibal. His character's name is Cliff and he will be the antagonist;
• Guillermo del Toro, director of films such as Hellboy, Hellboy 2, Pan's Labyrinth and The Shape of Water. Will play a hero named Deadman. He gave his character only appearance;
• Margaret Qualley in The Goodfellas. In the game, she will play the role of a character named Mom;

• Léa Seydoux is a French actress who starred in such films as "The Life of Adele", "The Grand Budapest Hotel" and "007: SPECTRE". She will play Fragile;
• Nicolas Winding Refn, director of Drive, Only God Forgives and The Neon Demon. In the game, he is assigned the role of Hartman. He gave his character only appearance;

• Lindsey Wagner, best known for her role in the XNUMXs TV series The Bionic Woman. Will play Amelie;
• Troy Baker, who provided the voice of many famous game characters, including Joel from The Last of Us and The Last of Us Part II, Booker DeWitt from BioShock Infinite, Sam Drake from Uncharted 4: A Thief's End and the Joker from Batman: Arkham Origins. In the new project, Kojima will play the role of Higgs.

How many editions of Death Stranding will there be?

In total, Death Stranding will have four editions: Standard, Extended, Digital Extended and Collector's.

Pre-purchasing the Regular Edition will grant players two avatars, a dynamic theme, and gold versions of the in-game items: Sam sunglasses, hat, speed outline, and armor.

The special edition includes:

• Disk with the game in a steelbook;
• All content of the standard edition;
• A special gold version of the gold sunglasses;
• Digital version of the soundtrack;
• Video about the creation of the game.

Digital Deluxe Edition includes:

• All content of the standard edition;
• Gold sunglasses "Mask of Ludens";
• Golden Power Circuit: Allows Sam to carry a heavier load;
• Golden All Terrain Outline: Helps Sam keep his balance;
• Golden Armor (Tier 2): Increases Sam's protection against falls, bullets, and more.

The Collector's Edition includes:

• All content of the special and digital edition;
• Steelbook;
• Life-size "BB Capsule" figurine;
• Packing "BRIDGES";
• Keychain Ludens.

 

 

When is Death Stranding coming out?

As promised by Hideo Kojima, Death Stranding will be released before the Tokyo 2020 Olympics. The game will release on November 8, 2019 for PlayStation 4.