Is Death Stranding a good game?

Now that the hype and launch reactions are over.. have you had a chance to try this game out? I was playing at launch, and then I took a break due to other games. I've been playing the game again now (I think on part 3), and have been enjoying it. It has an addicting gameplay loop where you deliver packages and as time goes by, you advance and get new things that help make it more interesting and fun. The community aspect really helps this game. Thanks to other people, I have roads and other things that make the game easier. I also enjoy pitching in and doing my part to make the world easier for others. So overall, my impressions are positive. I'm about 17 hours in so far. Haven't really been into the story so far, but hopefully it's good. The only real negative for me so far is that the interactions with enemies (MULE, BTs) have been really awkward. I think I just need to get used to it, but still, it can be frustrating.

How about you, SW? Have you had a chance to try out Death Stranding? Your thoughts on the game? Have any interest in trying it out at some point?

I'm still not convinced its a game

xbox players that never played it. no game sucks so bad its a movie game

ps4 users that never played the game. no the game looks stupid

nin users that never played the game. no buy breath of the wild its 60 dollars still even though it came out 2 years or so ago.

ps4 users that played it. yes it is a good game once you get past the beginning.

truth is your going to either love it or hate it. one of those types of game. its a game you have to try for yourself and not ask someone about it.

This.

I watched my BF play the demo and lost interest after fifteen minutes.

It's not the type of game that is flashy or 15 second clip worthy. It's the type of game for people who like to plan and and coordinate things and try to do things efficiently.

Will play it on PC first then will decide. most likely i will be complaining about it.

It's brilliant. Not perfect, but extremely creative with things to say, and not something you'd ever have played before.

Lol, props for honesty :P

Let me just say the graphics on PS4 version was beautiful, but NOT as deep as God of War 4 or Horizon to say the least, but enough to catch my impression. Death Stranding is an interesting sci-fi game I delve into when I played it on launch day and for that, I'll give it a 7/10. But best/good game ever? Nope, not even close. And by that I mean, it has horrible shooting mechanics, bad driving, and every quest in the game is the same-ish "Delivering muh stuff!"

The best parts of the game is the story and world traversal, but the world traversal offers no real rewards which is sad. I mean, the game itself even pushes you away from doing the funnest part of it by giving you roads and zip lines. Death Stranding would have been better if it started out as a delivery game (UPS mix with sci-fi inspired by Kojima) and evolved into something else later on, rather than just staying the same for the duration with a sprinkling of added stuff.

When it comes to games, I normally replay them but for Death Stranding, I didn't bother and I don't know when I'll get to that point, but I would like to replay it someday. PC version? Hmm, depends what its packing on the settings and mods of course and most of all, price. $10/$15 is my limit to buy the PC version down the road.

Is it a good game? Depends if you like sci-fi, story driven game, and of course, do you like Kojima's work? Either way, I really like it.

I wouldn’t say it was a good game. It’s more like a good experience. To put that in perspective, I would say the same thing about games like Animal Crossing. I enjoy them but they are not what I call “game” games.

Death Stranding is my GOTY 2019 (RE2 as a close second, Sekiro gets third) and easily one of the best games of the generation IMO.

Took me 97 hours to complete it, and it is close to being the first game I have ever platinum'd (I don't really care about trophies)

story: 10/10

voice-acting: 10/10

cinematics: 10/10

graphics / Art direction :10/10 (for console... But I guess now the PC version is in 4K/60 fps, ray-tracing etc so maybe 9 or 10 for PC too)

Presentation / Productions values / Game direction: 10/10

Atmosphere: 10/10

Sound design: 10/10

Original Soundtracks: 10/10

Gamaeplay: A solid 7.5/10. Could have been better. I enjoyed constructing roads, traversing the open world, building structures, delivering packages, collecting things. I wish there was more action and better stealth implementation; I do wish it played a lot more like Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain. more/better third-person-shooter mechanics and stealth objectives and I would give gameplay a 9 or more.

Overall: 9.5/10.

I think is not a good game ... You can hide all you want behind pretentious stuff ... But the reality is that a game with faulty mechanics, terrible pacing, awkward gameplay and bad story has no chance to being good .... even if it has a few nice ideas.

This isn't Journey, that game was truly achieving something unique and original without compromising the experience ... That game played well and had the decency to be short. Death Stranding is just Kojima self indulgence out of control.

I haven’t been able to play it myself yet as I don’t have a PS4 but I’ve seen plenty on the game and think that it looks like a fantastic game. I also do really love Kojima’s previous games.

I cannot describe the utter tedium. I gave up playing the game.

LOL. I was going to give the game a shot and probably will someday but, I feel I will have the same sentiment when I do.

You forgot the Kojima fanboys...

I hate games with "fetch quests" added for filler in open world games, wait what was that, Kojima has them as his campaign in Death Stranding. Oh fetch quests, how original, this is art at its best, the most unique game EVA!!!!!!!!!!!

Yup, it's good. Lots of cool systems in place with a nice synergy, and a very addictive core loop that makes it hard to put it down.

The stealth and combat are serviceable, not bad by any means, but really only serve to feed into the greater whole. Though I do wish the stealth would have had a bit more depth to it.

The maps themselves are the unsung heroes. As large as these spaces are, nothing ever feels haphazardly thrown together. It's one of those few open world games where it feels more like a giant level than just an environment containing smaller levels.

The terrain type/layouts and routes are designed with care, with the movement mechanics taken into account every step of the way. The prepper locations, distribution centers, mule camps, and BT encounters are placed in a way that keeps a good pace going while also throwing chaos into your careful planning.

I think that's where this game shines most, even once you're decked out like some UPS super hero, so many things can force you to improvise on the spot. That's when the various systems and options really come together. And when you catch that vital lifeline from another Porter, even if it's just something stupid as a rope? Shit man, didn't think I'd get into the whole "like button" aspect of this game, but yeah was all over it lol.

Can't gloss over those opening hours though. As frustrating as they could be (I almost quit playing), they ended up being the most memorable to me. But I can see how they'd be a massive turnoff for most.

So yeah don't think the game was amazing, lots of highs and lows, but very good and bonus points for feeling so fresh. Was built up to be some mysterious game, when truth is it's just a different type of action game. And a very gamey one at that.

At launch, all you heard was movie game and walking sim. Funny thing is, I played REmake 2 immediately after DS and was like damn. DS actually had me doing far more interactions, with far more gameplay systems, with less interruption in some sessions that were longer than the whole of RE2. With more variety in play to boot. Not to shit on RE2, fantastic game. Just shows how off the mark people were about what DS is. Whether you like the gameplay or not, all subjective, but between the bouts of diarrhea exposition there are lengthy sessions of pure gameplay.

At launch, kind of wished this game wasn't a Sony game with Kojimas name all over it. Lead to some really poor assumptions and dumb discussions. It's actually a very interesting game. Couldn't give af about the story, I mean the gameplay itself.

Yes, not the best game ever but still a good game.

Kojima doubles down on this gameplay style and if you liked his other cinema heavy games you should like it but he really should have strived for more interactivity in cutscenes

I loved it.

Most of the outspoken opinions you're going to hear about Death Stranding on this site will come from individuals that haven't even played the game. Most of them will fight as if their opinions are valid when they're not.

You're better off not wasting your time seeking for invalid opinions.

I didn't finish it yet, but I really enjoyed it. I'll go back to it soon.

Sadly it ends up being total tedium despite some cool original ideas and systems, it won't take long to realize that "combat" is pointless because you can simply walk away and all the walking/traversal sections are nothing more than camouflaged grinding and let's not forget the awful pacing you will literally just be walking for hours until the game decides to introduce a new feature to spice things up. If you like stories and especially Kojima stories that is the only thing that might be truly worthwhile.

Yea, the marketing for this game was so bad. Instead of showing the games strengths, they just focused on "mysterious Kojima game" meme. lol. And you're right, I find myself playing hours of this game without even realizing it lol.

I was originally hooked on the concept and hoping that the narrative would overcome the flaws in gameplay but god was I wrong. After the first couple of hours you realize how contrived and horsesh*t the writing actually is. 'Dooms', 'Deadman', 'Heartman', 'Die-hardman', 'Voidouts', 'Repatriate', 'Bridge Baby', etc. It's all utter garbage that only a child could find interesting. I've always given Kojiima the benefit of the doubt with some MGS stuff but this is next level bad.

Then you have to factor in that the gameplay is simply walking from point A to point B while using the triggers to steady yourself. I love playing some walking simulators or story telling games but this is just plain bad.

There's very little about this game I could possibly be positive about.

For sure. Though admittedly it is difficult to show what makes this game so appealing for some.

They could have shown a full on action sequence of raiding a mule base. Starting out stealthy, erupting into combat, then some getaway hijacking a vehicle, or some crazy exoskeleton jumps over ravines. Things that can and do happen.

Could've shown more of the tense BT encounters.

Could've shown an actual skilled player making some terrain obstacles look like nothing on their speed trike, that shits fun.

Could've shown a decked out player, with all the gadgets, full infrastructure built, just styling on the game, making multiple premium runs in a matter of minutes.

All kinds of ways they could have presented aspects of the game that gamers typically find entertaining, and they did touch on some of that.

All of that would have been fine too, it's all in the game. But then again, doesn't really show the meat of the game, the parts that offer the most depth, which are simply the preparation, traversal, and improvising/adapting along the way. It's hard to communicate that. Or more importantly, it's hard to communicate to someone whether or not they'll find that stuff fun. Really just have to play it to know, as those moment to moment interactions and choices don't come through in a video.

Straight up, I thought the game looked like horseshit man. I only gave it a shot because Kojima has game design chops. Even his worst games tend to play well at their core, and he usually has some neat ideas. Luckily I liked it, would even say it's the most focused game that Kojima has made in a long time.

All that said, I do agree. Gamers, journos, and Kojima himself made this weird thing out of it. Could've been straight forward, could've been more clear about the loop and progression.

It's an experience, man

You can always tell when someone has actually played the game in question. Likewise, you can always tell when someone is just blindly hating, like most of the posters in this thread.

In other words, this dude gets it, and most (alright, some) of the rest of you are just here to troll.

@ConanTheStoner: although I'm just 17 hours in, I get the sense that they could've done more with the game. But I still enjoy it for what it is.

I might pick it up, preferably for 29 Cdn., and wait to play it on PS5.

What holds me back is I was early into MGS V and didn’t like it too much. I’m to believe the bad guys are smart enough to have bullet proof street lamps. I have to give it another shot though as I only played the start of MGS V.

It's kind of weird in that it embraces what most consider the worst parts of "open world" games (the fetch quests, the game literally IS fetch quests, and the slow drudgery of walking across the landscape). Yet... I though it just sort of... worked. I enjoyed it. Though like with most open world games, eventually it does become a grind if you are trying to be a completionist and build out the world. I probably spent 20 hours just building the roads and ziplines networks.

I do think to make it more "accessible" they could have emphasized a bit more action. The mechanics were in the game, they just chose to make it sort of avoidable (you could basically just run away from any encounter with BT's or with the mules if you wanted). They could have had more required missions where you had to steal stuff back from mules, or just forced you into more stealth or combat situations. More emphasis on that probably would have changed some people's opinions.

It bored me and I was watching the game on YouTube. So, I don't think I'm going to play it anytime soon.

I thought it was amazing and I got the platinum trophy. In my opinion the ending was really good and Madz did an amazing Oscar worthy performance.

No. Every single action is incredibly irritating and arduous, the missions blow, and the game is boring as shit. It is, however, really interesting. What i've been saying is:

"It's bad but it's really interesting and thats about it."

It's also so fucking long.

I only got about 5 hours into it. It has some VERY good qualities (the music and atmosphere is UNREAL). There is something about the game that when I was playing it I really felt like I was in that place and time. It was very immersive in a almost unsettling way. The reason that I did not play much is that I got pretty bored very quickly. It is a shame cause I hear it picks up in the mid-late game quite a bit.

It's the best "hiking with a ridiculously oversized backpack whilst trying to stay balanced simulator" ever.

Would pay to see some of these goobers dunking on the game actually try to explain how Conan's take is off and unjustified and how the game is boring and isn't much of a game at all from the would be "i like gameplay crowd, until it comes to actually understanding systems"

6 million copies sit in storage. No it’s not a good game. PS Sony Pony’s say it’s good because they don’t have good games with replay value. So they get single player experiments like death stranding because they have no multiplayer games.

That's your problem. You watched it lol.

Yeah for sure man. I mostly just commented on the good stuff.

Like I do appreciate that the game is almost laser focused on traversal. The main systems, mechanics, and level design, all geared towards that.

But of course combat and sneaking are still in it, and they do come off as half hearted. Mechanically these aspects are fine, they're responsive and consistent. But they also have the depth of a puddle, nothing layered or systemic about them.

Personally wouldn't mind them keeping combat basic, or even ditching it altogether. It feels tacked on and like this game doesn't even need it.

Stealth tho. Big missed opportunity, especially given Kojimas background lol.

Sneaking past BTs is nerve wracking and satisfying at first, but once you realize how simple it is, it's just an annoyance. Then it becomes all out trivial once you're decked out with combat options to dispatch them. I'd either ditch the combat options, or I'd slowly introduce new BTs with different behavior to layer things up, or just give the BTs we have more AI branches. Or a combination of all those. I get that the balance here is having you want to rush through Timefall while having to exercise patience, but they do nothing to keep these encounters interesting/fresh throughout the game.

Mule camps, think their biggest issue for sneaking is their general layout. Just about all of them are open field, with spots of tall grass, tents, and maybe some rocky formations being your means of hiding. That's fine for some, but it's a ruined world. The game already has dilapidated structures, and maze like ravines, why not have mules holed up in those?

Again, I understand why the Mule bases are wide open field stretches. Do you take the shortcut through even terrain at the risk of detection and lost/damaged cargo, or take the longer route through perilous terrain that might be safer. Just think they could have been more than that.

Also a bit weird that this game doesn't have a day/night cycle that'd mix things up.

The patrol routes for the Mules are good, straight MGS DNA. That cargo scanner and the ability to bounce it back are a nice touch. And I'm not expecting MGS mechanics here, the controls are already busy enough. Just needs better spaces with more variables.

As for the main game, at least from what I remember, my gripes were more nitpicky. The missions had some nice variety, some forcing you back to the basics, imposing different limitations, but I think they could have gone further with that.

Also, much like MGSV, they went a bit extreme with "the journey is more important than the destination".

Aside from that, wtf with the lack of visual variety on man made structures? It's BotWs shrines all over again. Amazing how they made a desolate wasteland so varied and unique, feeling like a real world, but every modern structure looks almost identical lol.

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Sorry bro, don't mean to drop novels on you. Just lots to talk about with this game.

Also should make it clear, don't take my posts here as recommendations lol. If games were free, and time not a factor, would say sure give it a try.

Don't want somebody buying it, hating it, and thinking Conan you asshole! Of course I like the game, but the lows can be pretty low and the highs might not even register as highs for you.

Imagine if turn based rpgs never existed until someone released one in 2019. There's no way you'd really get the appeal from watching a video, and like you all know, that's a love or hate genre.

Like I'd recommend this one to Champ, because even if he hates it and shit talks me for the rest of my days, he'd at least understand what I found interesting about it.

But this is no SMG2, wouldn't just recommend it generally.

It’s amazing

@ConanTheStoner:

Nah man, I like details lol. Do you think they will ever make a sequel? I think if they ever did, there would be a lot of potential. Like Killzone to Killzone 2 potential.

@SolidGame_basic:

Well I didn't finish the final stretch. Wanted to, but put it down and decided to wait for the PC release. So not sure if that last bit would inform my opinion here either way.

From the large chunk that I did play, I don't think this is one of those games that's screaming for a sequel, but yes I do agree that they could build on it in some big and meaningful ways.

Personally, I don't think it needs one. I'd rather see some of its elements reinterpreted in other games. Like some of the traversal stuff, item management, and even the "StraaAAAaaaNd" system, having players lend each other a helping hand indirectly in single player games. (yeah, it's not exactly new, just hasn't been done to this level afaik). I think at the very least Kojima will carry that system over to other games.

But then there's industry reality and that's where I have doubts. I have no idea how this game sold, but I'm assuming not so great? And while it scored well, it's no mystery that it had an extremely divisive reception. Sometimes Sony can be the cool guy about funding prestige projects, but not sure if they'd be willing to continue backing Kojima on big budget experiments.

And then I imagine Kojima himself probably wants to move on to the next thing. Like if we do see a sequel, I'm thinking it'll come after he does something else.

It is a good game, just maybe not for the Dudebros and the like.

@ConanTheStoner: Ohhh. Do you think the game will have a big PC community? I'm going to finish on PS4 because at least the community has already had a chance to contribute. I want Kojima to do Silent Hills or do an MGS remake lol.

I mean... of course not lol.

It's definitely not for the guys who only play Madden or CoD.

That's like getting someone who only watches Marvel and Star Wars to sit back and appreciate something like Bridge on the River Kwai or Ran.

But to be fair, a person with varied tastes and a deeper appreciation for what this medium has to offer could still come out disliking it.

Always hate saying "not for everyone" since durr, nothing really is. But this game fits the bill.

Hard to say man. PC crowd is usually more inviting when it comes to weird games, so maybe.

And yeah dude, I'm selfish, I do want another Kojima MGS game lol. MGSV still has some of the best gameplay I've experienced this gen. Would love to see him build on that, but without all the unnecessary nonsense that MGSV had.

It'd be cool if he can manage a way to alternate. Pay the bills with the safe big name games. Experimental games between those.

I like it. But opinions, right?

@ConanTheStoner: I just got to the Timefall farm. I got the ability to avoid those stupid MULE pings. #abouttime

This is exactly the gist of it. For more detail expanding on the same sentiment check out Conan's posts on this thread he's a gamer not a fanboy if you're going to believe anyone's take on it, go with his.

Personally I loved the game despite hating it at first but if ever a game needs to be actually played to be understood exactly what the appeal is, this is it. So it goes without saying that System Wars which has rabid braindead fanboys literally crawling all over it is pretty much the worst place in the world to ask this question lol.