Support NeoGAF

[Bumblebeetuna]

Game sucks imho. Decent narrative, trash gameplay. If you play it, have fun pissing and shitting to make ammunition.

For context, I bought it day one on PS4, played for a few hours, and upgraded to the Directors Edition on PS5 last year and gave it a longer run. Game is doodoo. But some like it, the same way some like Limp Bizkit I guess.

 

[fran.fernandez]

Pretty good but the end was very tiring.
Not because it was boring or too long. But my wife who don't play games didn't let me stop until 4am as she want to know what happens to the baby lol

 

[HeisenbergFX4]

I see the DC on Steam is on sale for $15.99 if anyone wants to play it before DS2

 

[LakeOf9]

The story is nonsensical but I really like the gameplay and gameplay loop

 

[TheMan]

Liked it but never finished. The atmosphere while walking when a chill song kicked in was wonderful but I didn't like the combat or the BT stuff- I'm over stealth in general and don't enjoy it in any games tbh.

 

[The Devil's Grocers]

I really enjoy the parts where you walk around and deliver packages and build roads and structures. Everything outside of that is super lame, in my opinion. Too much time watching cutscenes for a very silly story, the combat is limp, there's so many time-wasting transitional scenes for everything, navigating the private room would have been better as a menu, the UI is very clunky with you having to press X, press X, hold X constantly to load out, mash X and turn on auto-skip manually every time you complete a mission, mash X to skip another shower cutscene. I'm trying to chill and walk up a mountain and constantly being interrupted by some ridiculous character chirping on the radio, "hey Sam the poopoo-peepee grenade is ready be sure to check it out." It's the kind of game that constantly annoys me with how it actually does do something unique with its gameplay but the presentation outside of that is very traditional videogame stuff with constant interruptions for story and cutscenes. I wish it leaned more into what makes it unique because everything outside of delivering packages felt like it was a design from a previous decade

 

[Fbh]

Kinda?
While I was playing it I didn't necessarily love it. I found some parts boring but the uniqueness of the gameplay, world and story made me push through them.
But it's also a game I remember really fondly, and I think back to it more often than other games I technically liked more while playing

 

[Arachnid]

This is going to sound weird, but I greatly disliked my first playthrough.

I replayed it this year and it clicked. I enjoyed it much more once I understood what I was enjoying. My first playthrough was basically me rushing through deliveries to get to combat sections, which is backward in this game. Once I slowed down and got into the travel, I loved it.

The first time I played through it I was the same, then gave it a proper bash recently and absolutely fell in love with it. I started really enjoying it when I slowed down and stopped trying to rush through the story, I think a lot of people did the same and missed the point of it.

It's a masterpiece imo, cant wait for the sequel

Looks like there were others who had the same arc lmao

 

[Mortisfacio]

I played it after doing other open world games, so the slog of walking around doing little of anything besides walking and seeing a tech demo with nice music just didn't do it for me. I loved the aesthetic at least.

 

[sodstall]

I enjoyed the GAME that was there but the STORY just wastes so.much.time. It just fell apart by the end.

 

[xrnzaaas]

It's a 6/10 for me. Drags on later in the campaign (especially in the snowy areas) and feels like it's taking too long to progress in the main story. The UI is trying to tell you about everything instead of sticking with the most important stuff. Also not a fan of the majority of boss fights. Two things that kept me going were the visuals and discovering how the story will end.

I will play the sequel out of curiosity, but it's not going to be a day1 purchase.

 

[Cakeboxer]

I bought some bad games in~40 years, but this is the undisputed number 1.

 

[Chukhopops]

I liked it but mostly because of the absolutely fantastic 3-4 final hours of the story. 8.5/10

Gameplay is a mixed bag, sometimes you do interesting things and then you spend 30 minutes walking through a swamp.

Strangely I absolutely cannot imagine playing the sequel as I've become more sensitive to time-wasting activities.

 

[Larivel]

I loved it, easily one of the most memorable gaming experiences I've had - especially since I've played it during the pandemic, so the themes of isolation and making connections hit really close to home.

The gameplay loop was really addictive, and the idea of "Strand" system, where players themselves can form connections and interact by using each others structures/resources is brilliant.

 

[R6Rider]

I just recently played and finished the Director's Cut version for the first time (never played original version).

Thought it was fantastic.

 

[RoboFu]

Hated it. boring.. and story was crap which made all the boring walking sting even worse.

 

[Deerock71]

Team kinda. It was interesting.

 

[Three]

The story to me was nonsensical but I enjoyed rebuilding the network.

 

[Traxtech]

Something about working as a community to build roads and what not to make the journey easier was a good feeling

 

[EviLore]

Something about working as a community to build roads and what not to make the journey easier was a good feeling

A GAF member even happened to use some of the structures I built. Little things like that go a long way.

 

[Xtib81]

I absolutely loved the gameplay loop. I've lost count of how many roads and zipelines I've built. Hell, I might have reconnected the entire country by myself lol I was pretty burned out at the end though.

 

[R3TRO]

Boring game…Not even mods could make it fun to play. I did like the music though.

 

[Miles708]

I liked for around 5 or 6 hours, by then the crafting kicks in and the farts that Kojima has the balls to call a story (despite the interesting setup, completely wasted) made me hate it.

Some cutscenes are there just to show the Hollywood celebrity #36.

The protagonist is mute in many of them because i bet every line cost a lot of money.

It's a potentially interesting game swallowed by Kojima's infinite and insufferable ego.

 

[Physiognomonics]

I wasn't expecting to like it so much. Great game with a good gameplay loop and the graphics are fantastic.

But the story (absurd) and cutscenes were completely unnecessary. Complete nonsense.

 

[Karim]

I quoted unsure. I found the story enjoyable but the gameplay is full of flaws. Sometimes was really a tour de force for the boredome. I'm curious about the sequel but I'm very conflicted if buy it at launch.

 

[BennyBlanco]

I liked it. One of the only truly unique AAA games of last gen. I will buy the PC version of DS2 day 1 most likely.

 

[mckmas8808]

The game is incredible. One of my favourites of all time.

I played the directors cut though.

The story is whatever but the gameplay loop is incredible imo.

100! The story isn't amazing, but it's funny and interesting. Which is better than bad and boring.

 

[MatrixReloaded101]

I played and beat the game .... its one of the most boring AAA games I have ever played.

Hopefully they add more action into part 2 but I doubt they did based on the previews, not buying it day one either way.

 

[Embearded]

Loved it and i will be there day 1 for the second one with the special controller.

 

[Aenima]

Was my GOTY, really liked how original and fresh it felt. I can understand why some ppl dont like it or tought it was boring though. I had a great time with it and will be there day 1 for the sequel.

 

[Zacfoldor]

I skipped it. I knew Kojima's first game post Konami would have teething issues. I expect his second game to be back on par with his Konami run and I'm here for it. I feel no need to play the first game before the second(or ever). Kojima games aren't like that. What, am I gonna be lost because I don't know who the La Li Lu Le Lo is? lol. I have not understood a Kojima game for 1/2 a second since MGS1.

The stories aren't really worth it anyway, from a narrative perspective. Sure you can get into the symbolism and all that shit but you need to read that online anyway. You usually won't figure it out from the game. That's not to say the story isn't good. It just isn't a good narrative. It has a way of keeping me entertained like a circus. A circus doesn't need to have a good narrative to put on a good show. MGS3 is my favorite circus narrative ever.

I'm all in on Death Stranding 2. Kojima is back, baby!

 

[FoxMcChief]

Kinda

The gameplay loop eventually got better.

It's insanely stupid story only got more retarded as the game went on.

 

[DirtInUrEye]

I want to give it another try as I did find the world and the traversal gameplay very compelling. My big issue was the extremely fiddly inventory management and the near impenetrable menu screens. The game just seemed to endlessly layer on new systems which involved constantly tabbing through menus and trying to figure out wtf everything did. I was waiting for this aspect of the gameplay to ease up, but it never did.

 

[yogaflame]

DS1 for me is the best game of Ps4 generation and one of the best game of that era. Ds1 directors cut for Ps5 made it even better. I enjoyed it so much, and delivery mechanics and world building is addictive. Very beautiful, cerebral and catharsis. After my experience with Ds1, I believe Ds2 will be the game of the year and possibly the best game of this era.

 

[forsakkenSoul]

I liked Death Stranding. Although the story is a bit confusing, I enjoyed it. It has an interesting narrative and good characters. The gameplay is unique and different. The scenery and the world around the player are beautiful. The graphics are incredible, and the soundtrack is phenomenal.

 

[calico]

Traversal & Delivery gameplay and loop: Excellent
Human combat: Not good, but can be avoided almost entirely if you want to
Ghost bullshit gameplay: Terrible and makes the game worse whenever you have to deal with it
Boss fights: Bad

Characters: Enjoyable
Story: Nonsense

4/5 overall, just. The bad elements are annoying but they are infrequent enough to not cause too much damage.

 

[Audiophile]

Despite ropey boss battles and the story being a bit much in places, it's my game of the PS4 generation.

Tonnes of atmosphere and a refreshing gameplay loop.

Crazy thing is I have torturous ADD with the executive function of a gold fish; to the point my brain literally lights up all weird on brain scans. So despite folks calling this boring and it most likely being considered the worst type of game for someone who spends all day wanting to crawl out of their own skin. It's actually the most engaged I've been in a game in the last decade.

Simply going from A to B, getting lost in the world, traversing things, enjoying the atmosphere, managing inventory, setting off with a plan, facing the struggle, adapting and getting great relief later in the latter half of the game when you make your way through treacherous conditions and finally make it to your destination. It all just works for me, it made all the most basic functions interesting.

I'd always get an itchy trigger finger to play COD when I had spare time in the past, after playing Death Stranding I had an itchy delivery finger. I just wanted to walk and deliver things. Despite some shortcomings, one thing Kojima & KojiPro know how to do is make controlling a character feel satisfying.

This might be an unpopular take but I'd absolutely love -- as a side project to the main narrative games -- a Death Stranding game that's a partial RPG/MMO type thing with a custom porter, far more customisation and a persistent ongoing world where you get to continually upgrade your character and the main aim is just becoming a better porter, setting up your base, character, vehicles etc. Something more indefinite and evolving than the more fixed world of the main game/s where once you've finished the narrative, main missions and bulk of the side stuff, you're just kinda done.

When I have a free evening after a long, hard day I'd often relax by shooting people in the face in COD rather than playing anything too narratively-engaging. It'd be nice to mix it up and relax by just delivering packages or exploring, but doing it as part of an ongoing world with more meaningful progression and levelling that isn't bound to a campaign.

 

[KungFucius]

I kinda liked some of it. The packing crap was really bad and I dropped it midway through, so maybe it is more accurate to say I didn't like it. I certainly hated some aspects of it.

 

[Cramoss]

I loved it, but I went in expecting the shitty Kojima writing so it did not bother me.

 

[Arsic]

Loved it top to bottom and couldn't put it down. Banger.

 

[kunonabi]

Loved it. It starts out really rough because Kojima's storytelling is what it is but once you start unlocking new equipment and the social features start kicking in its just magic.

 

[Embearded]

... Despite some shortcomings, one thing Kojima & KojiPro know how to do is make controlling a character feel satisfying....

It's amazing, isn't it?
It was the first thing i noticed when i started playing, same as MGSV.
Controlling Sam feels just right and fun.

 

[nikos]

Some parts were a bit tedious but in the end it felt like a masterpiece.

 

[mayham2199]

I loved it and I never thought I would. I wouldn't have even tried the game if it wasn't for PS+.

 

[Shmunter]

More than a game, an experience

 

[phant0m]

It's different and weird but an incredible experience. Coming down that mountain in the intro while Low Roar (RIP) plays was just a fucking vibe.

 

[near]

I won't lie, I couldn't get into the game at first. I put in maybe 20 hours before putting it down. Months later, I picked it back up and approached it a little differently. I started taking the deliveries more seriously in terms of approach, thinking carefully about item management and planning my routes with more intention. That's when the gameplay loop really started to click.

Eventually, I found myself building optimal paths along the routes I travelled frequently and feeling like part of an online community, with everyone contributing to better the world's infrastructure.

I've always love the isolated, desolate atmosphere of the world. The sound design and art direction resonate with me, as does Kojima's over the top and wacky storytelling.

I now consider it a masterpiece. But I don't fault anyone for not liking it. It's much more than just a walking simulator, but its probably best described as one, and that genre isn't for everyone.

 

[Rivdoric]

The constant interruption of the game by BTs really destroyed a lot of moments for me, most notably the key ones where the music played.
The music pops "oh that's beautiful", then baby cries, music interrupt and BT's say hello. Moment broken.
Honestly why the fuck didn't they pause these during key music moments that are supposed to be strong & rare is is beyond me as it was absolutely immersion breaking.

Overall, I remember a lot of frustrating moments on this game and the gameplay really got old & repetitive quite fast after the 30h mark.
I had a lot of fun with it discovering the map and with character developments & story though, i loved how it used DualSense features quite effectively, loved the atmospheric sound design etc... but so many moments i just Alt F4ed out of repetitiveness and clunky scripts.

 

[Audiophile]

While I generally enjoyed it from the off, the point at which it really clicks is when you get through that initial pass as you leave the first area. Lots of tension dealing with the BTs as it turns dark and dingey, then you make to to the other side, things brighten up, you start walking out into the open and the music kicks in as you make your way down the hill, the camera pulls back as the music flares. Total relief, you just wanna soak up that moment.

Time and again, I hear that's where the game started making sense to folks who didn't like it at first and had to give it another go, getting beyond the first area. As the camera pulls back and the music kicks in it's very much "ah, I get it now". It's that vibe that hooks you in there, then the novelty of making your way to a new environment holds your attention giving you hope and as you explore the new area the mechanics get stronger and the gameplay itself really gets addictive.

Then towards the other half of the second area you begin to realise there's a sense of real struggle and a cycle of that with accomplishment as you complete journeys.

 

[Angry_Megalodon]

Say whatever you like about Kojima, but gameplay and worldbuilding are always excellent. Music, too.

Unfortunately, the story is very badly delivered. There's a huge gap between the great ideas he comes up with and the way they are told. It reminds me of George Lucas.

Overall, a great game. I enjoyed it a lot.