Rate top gamesI have a lot of praise for Death Stranding despite some major flaws, the biggest being its writing. There was a lot of intrigue in the beginning, but then the characters started dumping exposition in long-winded monologues and repeated this information over, and over, AND OVER again to the point I was getting frustrated and less interested as it went on, especially when it brought the gameplay to a grinding halt. Whenever Deadman would say something like, "Do you want to know how...?" my reaction was more or less:
There's one task of note I wanna bring up and it's the one with the junk dealer. The dialogue was so poorly communicated, that I genuinely thought I was fetching the dude's daughter and then got really confused when I realized it was his girlfriend. It got way more focus than it needed and the acting was terrible, but at least reading the email drama afterward was amusing.
Even though I'm trashing on the writing, I don't think it's a complete dumpster fire as it has really interesting concepts and themes. The story would have benefited from having a real talented writer at the helm, but since having someone better than Kojima at the task wasn't an option, he could've at least presented even more of the storytelling through gameplay because that's where he excels. The game design is surprisingly engrossing and immersive. As tedious as your objectives are, the variety of circumstances that goes into each delivery keeps things dynamic throughout and whenever I get through the hardships that are presented, I feel a huge sense of accomplishment that I haven't felt from the plethora of other games I've played. There's a great balance of relaxation and tension, the landscapes are stunning, and the whole isolated multiplayer experience is unique and well-executed. I had a few failed missions, but there was only one moment that pissed me off for being unfair. Every other time was fair and it taught me to be better prepared.
I love Death Stranding. Even if I came into it expecting strong storytelling and was left disappointed by that aspect, my expectations of dull and simple gameplay were exceeded by great design and a satisfying feedback loop. I wouldn't recommend this to everyone, but I think its experimentation is important in expanding the medium of video games as an art form. I look forward to playing the end game.
It eventually picks up much-needed momentum during the very last chapter, but it takes a long time to get there and my patience was dangling on a thread by then. Scenes that were meant to be emotional were so melodramatic that it became unintentionally funny and/or eye-roll inducing, the fourth wall breaking got some of the same reactions. Some moments, it was cute and endearing, but seeing an advertisement for that Norman Reedus show made me audibly groan. I was flabbergasted by seeing the Monster on the table for the first time as I thought stylistically it clashed with the tone that was being established, but eventually accepted it and thought, "It must be saying something about capitalism in America?" Though that might be giving Kojima a lot more credit than what he actually deserves, I think he just wants to show off stuff he likes and had some kind of deal.
There's one task of note I wanna bring up and it's the one with the junk dealer. The dialogue was so poorly communicated, that I genuinely thought I was fetching the dude's daughter and then got really confused when I realized it was his girlfriend. It got way more focus than it needed and the acting was terrible, but at least reading the email drama afterward was amusing.
Even though I'm trashing on the writing, I don't think it's a complete dumpster fire as it has really interesting concepts and themes. The story would have benefited from having a real talented writer at the helm, but since having someone better than Kojima at the task wasn't an option, he could've at least presented even more of the storytelling through gameplay because that's where he excels. The game design is surprisingly engrossing and immersive. As tedious as your objectives are, the variety of circumstances that goes into each delivery keeps things dynamic throughout and whenever I get through the hardships that are presented, I feel a huge sense of accomplishment that I haven't felt from the plethora of other games I've played. There's a great balance of relaxation and tension, the landscapes are stunning, and the whole isolated multiplayer experience is unique and well-executed. I had a few failed missions, but there was only one moment that pissed me off for being unfair. Every other time was fair and it taught me to be better prepared.
I love Death Stranding. Even if I came into it expecting strong storytelling and was left disappointed by that aspect, my expectations of dull and simple gameplay were exceeded by great design and a satisfying feedback loop. I wouldn't recommend this to everyone, but I think its experimentation is important in expanding the medium of video games as an art form. I look forward to playing the end game.
«Blew my mind»
«Sit back and relax»
Other reviews33
The short version. This is a very bad game. Don't play it, even for free. This is coming from a gamer who is quite generous in his reviews.
Now the long version. Death stranding is an insult to Hideo Kojima himself. You'd expect at least a half decent game, as Metal Gear solid, Phantom pain. It is not.
The graphics are good, music and SFX are nothing short of a AAA title, and all. You can add as many toppings and spices as you want, but what to do if the brat is a spoil? The gameplay is pathetic, extremely slow-paced and highly confusing. At best, this is an "okay" hiking simulator.
The only challenge this game poses, is to go from point A to B in a single sitting. The start of the game is brutal on the player as hell. The weight limitations, complete absence of weapons initially and very tough terrain made me hate this game more and more.
If you don't believe me, play it for 2 hours and thank me after.
«Disappointment of the year»
«Waste of time»
A beautiful game that ended poorly.
played for almost 75 hours till chapter 15 and I gotta say, the first 55 hours were some of the best times I had with a game this year, but! the rest were so annoying, everything I learned, built, got from online players and avoided, they all been demolished for the sake of the story. the problem is the story itself has many flaws and has too much stuff for nothing, multiple hours of ongoing cutscenes and many forced BT bosses even tho I played it right.
for 60 hours I didn’t die nor triggered a large BT boss and it felt like a reward, but then everything meant nothing and it turned out to be like a linear game with no open world advantages in an open-world game.
it’s such a shame because the game mechanics, gameplay, upgrades, buildings, the world and the BTs were so much fun and has such an interesting experience that felt unique and one of a kind, but what followed was disappointing and a missed apportunity for a masterpiece for ages.
overall, I won't forget the first 55 hours nor forget the last 20 hours, it is in fact still enjoyable post ending, but that won't erase the poor decisions kojima and his team did.
played for almost 75 hours till chapter 15 and I gotta say, the first 55 hours were some of the best times I had with a game this year, but! the rest were so annoying, everything I learned, built, got from online players and avoided, they all been demolished for the sake of the story. the problem is the story itself has many flaws and has too much stuff for nothing, multiple hours of ongoing cutscenes and many forced BT bosses even tho I played it right.
for 60 hours I didn’t die nor triggered a large BT boss and it felt like a reward, but then everything meant nothing and it turned out to be like a linear game with no open world advantages in an open-world game.
it’s such a shame because the game mechanics, gameplay, upgrades, buildings, the world and the BTs were so much fun and has such an interesting experience that felt unique and one of a kind, but what followed was disappointing and a missed apportunity for a masterpiece for ages.
overall, I won't forget the first 55 hours nor forget the last 20 hours, it is in fact still enjoyable post ending, but that won't erase the poor decisions kojima and his team did.
Kojima created a genre again and playing this game is a feeling that you cannot describe with words.
«Blew my mind»
The gameplay is too repetitive for me to enjoy this. The story and lore are really original, as is the gameplay, but not interesting enough for me to keep going after 21 hours of playtime. The bland terrain you have to navigate does not help either.
«Boooring»
I already know that this game is going to stay with me. I knew from the trailers (and the fact it was Kojima) that it was going to be different but I wasn't prepared for how much it would get under my skin.
I see people often complain about repetition and calling it a 'walking simulator'. The game mechanics themselves are only as repetitive as you want to make them. I for one, got hyper focussed on building roads and getting most the preppers to 5 stars which took a good chunk of time. Yet, you don't HAVE to do any of that. You can just forge on with the storyline if you really want to rush a game? It just gives you more time in that world, more items, more interviews and lore. And all that makes it worth the effort for me personally.
Playing this game during the Covid-19 Pandemic definitely added another layer of gravitas to the setting and some of those emails felt utterly prophetic at times. 4th wall breaks are expected with Kojima though in Death Stranding's case they were overt ads at times, yet I didn't mind. If anything I needed something to bring out of that world a little, lest I get lost completely.
All in all, and incredible well imagined and fantastically crafted game. Play it if you get the chance, there are some real moments of beauty.
I see people often complain about repetition and calling it a 'walking simulator'. The game mechanics themselves are only as repetitive as you want to make them. I for one, got hyper focussed on building roads and getting most the preppers to 5 stars which took a good chunk of time. Yet, you don't HAVE to do any of that. You can just forge on with the storyline if you really want to rush a game? It just gives you more time in that world, more items, more interviews and lore. And all that makes it worth the effort for me personally.
Playing this game during the Covid-19 Pandemic definitely added another layer of gravitas to the setting and some of those emails felt utterly prophetic at times. 4th wall breaks are expected with Kojima though in Death Stranding's case they were overt ads at times, yet I didn't mind. If anything I needed something to bring out of that world a little, lest I get lost completely.
All in all, and incredible well imagined and fantastically crafted game. Play it if you get the chance, there are some real moments of beauty.
«Blew my mind»
«That ending!»
Trully exceptional game. Sometimes it got tedious, but i really enjoyed everything. Really awesome mechanics, really complex story, but the message is crystal clear. I hope i'll get back to plat it.
«Blew my mind»
«Can’t stop playing»
I was blown away with the first hour of the game. It was crazy. Levelled out a bit after that but I still enjoyed the rest of my time. One of the final fights was a letdown, for some strange reason they focused on a rather terrible mechanic: throwing.
Date Completed: 2021-01-16
Playtime: 39h
Enjoyment: 8/10
Recommendation: It's weird and pretty fun. At least if you ignore a lot of the deliveries, those can get tiring fast.