DEATH STRANDING
James Davenport: Death Stranding is a
hypnotic exercise in dramatic serenity.
For 90 percent of my 100-plus hours
wandering the gorgeous, rocky terrain, I was
completely alone. It was just me and Norman
Reedus’ gentle breath. It’s nothing special for an
open-world game to punt you out into a huge
space on your lonesome, but Death Stranding
understands how isolation feels, that jerky
oscillation between peace and terror.
You’re alone in your job, delivering gear (and
oxytocin) to subterranean settlements, and you’re
alone out there in good ol’ indifferent, unforgiving
nature. Death Stranding is about carrying on
anyway and trying not to panic when things get
worse. Because they will. I’ve tumbled down cliffs
and slid down a river or 12, but scrambling to
adjust and salvage my shipment is always a thrill.
Wrap it up in morose themes and visually
stunning sci-fi concepts, and Death Stranding goes
from hiking sim to ineffable mood sim real quick
- like Journey but with gravity and consequence.
pads? Fresh boots? Confidence?
Why do I explode like a little
nuke when I die? Only way to
find out is by making the slow,
steady climb. Baby steps.
Andy Kelly: Death Stranding
has completely changed the
way I think
about traversal
in videogames.
As much as I
love Assassin’s
Creed Valhalla,
merrily
skipping across
mountains
feels, suddenly,
quite ridiculous. I don’t think
every open-world game should
go to the same lengths of
simulation as Death Stranding,
because the exhausting struggleof crossing a river or ascending
a mountain peak is very specific
to that game. But I would like to
see other developers, inspired
by Kojima Productions, make
traversing terrain more involved
and considered. It kinda
cheapens
Valhalla’s
majestic
Scandinavian
peaks when you
can scramble
up them so
effortlessly.
I also love
how Death
Stranding constantly drip-feeds
you tools and gadgets to
gradually make your job easier.
At first it’s just you, your boots,
and the elements, but later you
get access to floating cargo
platforms, electric tricycles, and
exoskeletons that let you carry
more weight. However, even
with these helping hands,
getting from place to place is
still a challenge. When you
encounter one of the game’s
many varied, rugged landscapes,
it almost feels like a puzzle to be
solved. You stand at the foot of a
mountain, bulky packages
strapped to every inch of your
body, and wonder how the hell
you’re gonna get to the top. And
when you do, after much toil, it
feels incredible.WHY DO I
EXPLODE LIKE A
LITTLE NUKE
WHEN I DIE?And Death Stranding is a PC
simulation game at heart,
treating each of Normie’s legs
with the same attention that
SCS Software gives to the 18
tyres on a semi-truck. I wish I
could import my own terrain
data, because getting from point
A to B is an exhilarating duel
with physics, tipped into one
another’s favour based on how
much time you spent in prep.
Can you carry a tower of resin
up that mountain, through
waist-deep snow, all before a
blizzard arrives? Do you have
enough climbing gear? Thermal
GAME OF
THE YEAR