Death Stranding (first title from Kojima Productions)

TaintedSquirrel said:
I'm gonna wait a bunch of years until the PS4 is considered ancient, then grab one and all the exclusives super cheap. Should keep me busy for a long time.
Unfortunately if next-gen console games are backwards compatible, the old consoles will retain value longer.
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You can already get a used PS4 or PS4 Pro for $150-$250 and those exclusives over a year old are already $20 new or even cheaper used. That's pretty damn cheap for those caliber of games to play right now IMO.

Blade-Runner said:
https://www.destructoid.com/review-death-stranding-568760.phtml

Still sounding like a walking simulator...
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Still sounding like a highly reductive way to describe any 3rd person adventure game that you probably weren't interested in playing in the first place.
 
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Been watching streams of this game for the past couple days and the consensus from the streamers have not been kind at all. A summary of their thoughts would probably be "the setting is cool, the ideas are interesting, but the gameplay is a tedious over-complicated, over-convoluted mess". Comments like "this should have been a movie, not a game" coming from stream viewers.

I think the reception would have been a lot less harsh if this were a $20 indie title from some nobody dev, where expectations would have been a lot lower to almost non existent. But for a full price tripleA title from a well known dev, looks like a lot of people are going to be disappointed.

The production quality is top notch though, everything from the visuals to the lighting to the models to the animations to the audio etc are superb.
 
https://www.escapistmagazine.com/v2...-simultaneous-steam-epic-games-store-release/

PC players rejoice - Death Stranding will not only be coming to PC, but Kojima resists the attempt for Epic Store to secure yet another timed exclusive. Good on them! I wish it wouldn't take so long to port (and am interested in what sort of content will be added, if any, between now and then) but still I'm glad its coming to Steam at PC release, as it should.

Edit: As an aside on the topic of "streamer-related" reception, I should mention I dont think this kind of game "fits" well especially with "big name, streamer culture" streamers nor their viewers. THis isn';t the kind of game that is predicated on levels of skill based multiplay like LoL/Overwatch/ApexLegends nor is it like WoW that has a huge community aspect (and certain microcosms of specialized knowledge or skill such as raiding or PVP). It has a lot of cinematic downtime, but unless the streamer is one of those "goofy make fun of everything" types, the themes and content are important enough that some viewers will want to watch it to experience because they may be lost if not. Furthermore, it reveals little by little, which doesn't work well for commentary to say "WTF? I wonder what that's about. I hope they tell us" over and over again. The pace of the gameplay may not be the kind of thrill-a-minute thing to watch either.

Overall, it seems like Death Stranding is the kind of game that is to be played as an 'experience' and a lot of that is lost watching over a stream, or perhaps even streaming it yourself depending.
 
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I will probably play it when it comes out. It looks interesting to me. Also, I've liked Norman Reedus since Blade 2.
 
RanceJustice said:
Overall, it seems like Death Stranding is the kind of game that is to be played as an 'experience' and a lot of that is lost watching over a stream, or perhaps even streaming it yourself depending.
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Visuals can only take this game so far and then you realize it's like every other shitty walking simulator.
 
It doesn't surprise me that the gameplay of Death Stranding ended up polarizing everyone. This area has been Kojima's weakness in recent years. Especially the last two titles he's worked on: MGS4 and MGS5.

I've watched enough of Death Stranding cutscenes to know that all the other non-gamey aspects about it are brilliant. The story is certainly original. It's a slow burn, which I can appreciate. The voice acting is top-notch. I was really surprised how good a voice actor Guillermo del Toro is. I was expecting a bit of cringe from him, but got a 'Wow, that actually works!' instead. The mocap is bleeding edge. The details in the faces and models in unbelievable. I think they (Kojima Prod.) pushed the technical aspects of this game a bit beyond what Horizon: Zero Dawn pulled off with the same given engine. Maybe even better than what Quantic did with Detroit: Become Human. These games are really pushing into that Hollywood CGI level of realism. Keep in mind, this is all judged on a PS4 which is dated hardware.

I predict this title will end up "niche". It should be obvious by now (to those reading the reviews) that it's not something you instantly suggest your friend to go out and buy. Everyone is going to react differently to it. To me, Death Stranding almost stands alone as a piece of art. Once time has passed, and the hype has finally died down, I think people will reflect on the good things this title brought to the table.

But I'm probably just a sucker for Kojima's works, flawed as they may be.
 
Walking around is part of the game sure but the stealth is unlike any other stealth I’ve experienced.
 
MavericK said:
Yeah, Jim has zero patience for anything even remotely tedious...lol.
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Depends on the tedium. It has to have some sort of draw and then he will suffer the tedium. e.g. Deadly Premonition which I believe he gave a 10/10 score. That game is an exercise in tedium with most of its combat and the open world areas. But it’s funner tedium if that makes sense.
 
The gameplay here just looks really bland.

I actually really enjoyed MGSV, for reference. Yes, it had some fairly slow pacing at times, but the setup in taking down an entire base was just outstanding.

The problem with this game is that it's just the stealth component of MGSV.. And that's it.
 
It looks beyond boring and extremely tedious. And the game is just weird too. You make grenades out of your own bodily fluids? Really? You literally drink Monster energy drinks for health? Oh well I still want to play it for some reason...
 
There's plenty of gameplay in Death Stranding, it just depends on whether or not it's a game that you want to play.
 
Ricky T said:
It looks beyond boring and extremely tedious. And the game is just weird too. You make grenades out of your own bodily fluids? Really? You literally drink Monster energy drinks for health? Oh well I still want to play it for some reason...
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The grenades make sense within the context of the story though. The Monster Energy is just the product tie-in, so whatever, lol.





So, I haven't played this yet, but I've been watching Let's Plays and I find it strangely compelling. I think I'm going to buy it and check it out.
 
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Watching streams for a week now. The game does have top notch production quality with amazing world-class cutscenes/motion capture/acting etc, (esp coming down to the end) with a unique story, interesting plot points, varied twists and turns, accompanied by the usual Kojima confusion and uncertainty. So you have to decide whether or not drudging through 30-40 monotonous hours of playing clumsy postman is worth for those 4-5 hours of awesomeness.

Many streamers who were critically harsh on the game during the first 20 hours or so, lightened up into the second half of the game. And I can see why, the first 15 hours are the worst and most frustrating part of the game - from about mid point the pace tends to pick up a bit when different modes of transport open up and the plot begins to thicken.

Definitely not a game for everyone, but there are those who would definitely think the payoff is worth the tedious portions of the game.
 
This is probably a test demo game Kojima came up with to see if his sheep’s will follow him. He succeeded and now he knows if he puts out anything with his name on it people will flock and buy. This guy is a fucking genius. He knows his followers will come in and make justifications on why the game is the way it is. Seriously if this wasn’t a Kojima game the internet would explode and ruin lives of who all was involved. But hey it’s Kojima everything the dude does gets praised.
 
Yeah.. no.

I got Kojimaed about 10 years ago when a friend made me buy MGS4 claiming is was amazing game. Turned out it was very little actual gameplay and pretty much all the cutscenes. As I recall that 'game' had two guiness world records for longest cut scenes and longest cut scene sequences.

So call it an 'art' if you like, but don't call it a 'game'.
 
I really enjoyed MGSV, even with how 'artsy' some things were. The core gameplay of going into enemy bases, and being able to create your own approach was really well executed.
 
no mention of any PC specific optimizations?...they only mention photo mode and high frame rate in the video
 
While I have a...lets not quite call it a grudge but something close... regarding 505 as a publisher (previous title issues, including killing Linux support promised for Bloodstained Ritual of the Night YEARS into development and with a short, limited blog post) , I'm happy to hear this news. I have been interested in Death Stranding for awhile and since I don't own a PS4 I thought it may need to be passed up. Thankfully announcing early on that the game WOULD come to PC was a very good move, even if there was a bit longer delay than preferable.

They promised summer and June 2nd is, to their credit at least early in the summer. Even better, they confirmed that it will be coming to Steam, as I had worried for Epic Store chicanery causing a delay ; I would strongly encourage all with intent to buy to purchase the Steam version. The only thing I'm questioning is the price ; I'm nearly sure it will be a full $60, but I do bristle a bit at titles released on PC months or years later than consoles. With 7 months of delay thereabouts, it would be nice if they could drop the price to $40-ish, as had it released on PC concurrently with PS4 its likely that the title would be on sale for around that amount (or less?) by then. Still, even if its officially $60, so long as I can figure out a good discount from GMG or whatnot its reasonable. They're including a good amount of extras, including the pre-order items ; kudos to them for not requiring a special edition .

One thing I'm wondering about is if Death Stranding will see DLC / expansions. There are rumors that new content would be coming this year but perhaps if we're lucky both PS4 and PC players will get anything released, concurrently.
 
At least it is coming in summer. Seems like a lot of the big games got pushed back, Final Fantasy timed exclusive, Cyberpunk delayed, was thinking this too would come late 2020. At least it is coming mid year. Seems like this year is abnormally empty for big releases in Q1-2.
 
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I watched a couple youtube videos about this game and I am now curious how much meth was consumed creating it, and how much meth do I need to do to understand and enjoy it.
 
I watched a play-through on YouTube, so I don't need to buy it. Definitely one of those games that falls into the "better to watch" and do something else at the same time, than play category.
 
This seems like another ones of those games where people either love it or hate it. As I've gotten older, tedious gameplay elements have started to really annoy me. As a result I'm on the fence with this one. I dig the quirky world and premise, but any game that can be described as a "walking simulator" sounds like it could drive me bonkers.

For those who have played it - can you play it in short bursts? I do most of my gaming 15'ish minutes at a time outside of the weekend.
 
Death Stranding PC system requirements (and exclusive screenshots) have been revealed

https://www.pcgamer.com/death-stranding-pc-system-requirements/

Minimum
  • OS: Windows 10
  • CPU: Intel® Core i5-3470 or AMD Ryzen 3 1200
  • RAM: 8 GB
  • GPU: GeForce GTX 1050 3 GB or AMD Radeon RX 560 4 GB
  • DirectX 12
  • HDD: 80GB
  • Sound cards: DirectX comp
Recommended 1080p 30fps
  • OS: Windows 10
  • CPU: Intel Core i5-4460 or AMD Ryzen 5 1400
  • RAM: 8GB
  • GPU: GeForce GTX 1050 Ti 4 GB or Radeon RX 570 4 GB
  • DirectX 12
  • HDD: 80GB
  • Sound cards: DirectX compatible
Recommended 1080p 60fps
  • OS: WIndows 10
  • CPU: Intel Core i7-3770 or AMD Ryzen 5 1600
  • RAM: 8GB
  • GPU: GeForce GTX 1060 6 GB or AMD Radeon RX 590
  • DirectX 12
  • HDD: 80GB
  • Sound cards: DirectX compatible
 
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