Death Stranding

When I played this game, it was kind of game-life defining experience. Above all, this game reminds of what was once another game-life defining experience... Shenmue. From the cutting edge visuals(for the time), to the epic story told in quiet moments. There are a myriad of similarities I could bore you with. The one I want to talk about though is the mundanity. Doing a job.

I spent a year of my youth where my career ambition was to work as a longshoreman in some rainy coastal town thanks to Shenmue. For whatever reason, I found peace in doing that task that I haven't encountered again until delivering packages in a mind bending wasteland.

Traversing the mountainsides legitimately captured what it feels like to go on a hike in a way I never imagined a game could. I don't mean feeling the burn and enjoying the smells, but rather the satisfaction of enduring something and arriving somewhere. Yes, it was clunky. Yes, it was odd. But that's not to say there wasn't some gamification going on here. The first time you lose your balance and stumble off a cliff only to...what? Get yanked into an oil sea and attacked by whales. It legitimately felt like being pulled down a roller coaster the first time. No idea what's going on, but you are intrigued. And annoyed because all the crap you were hauling was shaken off your body a half a mile away. The game literally pulls you in to the weirdness.

And then it spits you right back out into the mundanity. Walk a half a mile, pick up your stuff and carry on with your delivery. At a certain point you'll think to yourself, does this suck? It might for a bit. Until you unlock faster means of travel, and really tap into the connected world. I won't spoil much here, but the game has a way to break the 4th wall and make you feel truly connected to a greater world. The story unfolds a bit inconsistently, a little drip fed in the first half of the game. Those drips are delicious, but the early focus is training you on the mechanics. I think this is the section of the game that loses people. If you endure here you'll be hooked and rewarded with something beautiful. Kind of a meta-lesson. The game is teaching you this idea that you have to endure for something worthwhile at the end not only through the story, but through the gameplay. I think that makes it hit all that much harder for those that stick with it. This may sound odd, but you feel it physically as much as emotionally. Maybe it's the emotion taking a physical tole, but this game sinks into your bones. We are talking genius.

That genius doesn't just manifest in the unorthodox mechanics of the game and the oily-oddity of the story, but the technical aspects. This game was lightyears ahead of it's time in some of the visuals. The use of real actors is not a new thing, but it's never been pulled off as believably as here. The performances were all noteworthy. Particularly the leads, but I want to specifically point out Margaret Qualley's performance-s. One of the best sections of the game and a plot that can only exist in this universe.

The version I played had zero bugs the entire 70ish hours I played it. Always a plus. The back half of the game really picks up the pace and you'll find yourself spending less time worrying about deliveries and more time playing with the fun tools. Combat is never really a focal point. It's actually the one area of the game that kind of sucks. It's fine though as I never really wanted for it. Some boss fights were interesting, but there was always other ways I'd rather be playing the game. Most of it felt like a movie connected by hiking and I am totally on board with that.

The value of this game is kind of hard to define. It'll be different for every person. It's certainly worth a full priced AAA game. The hang up is the effort. As I said, some people hit a wall and it wasn't worth it to move on. If you make it past chapter 3 you'll give this game an easy 10 for value.

The target audience is even harder to define. I think the real target is anyone appreciating genius at work. There's no clean genera here or an IP with a lot of history to pull from. No pre-existing fan base other than Kojima lovers. If you are a generic sci-fi kind of fan or if you are looking for a stealthy thriller, I think you may be a little put off by the game initially. It's good sci-fi, but it's slow enough to get into that you may bail before you get to the good stuff.

End of the day, this game is special. The cinematic plot, the mechanics, the visuals are all varying degrees of transcendent work. They do all of the heavy lifting. Clunky controls, weak combat, pacing issues...these are real problems. They are also easily drowned out. If you endure, you will be rewarded with a game that will stick with you for years. In Shenmue's footsteps, this game has refreshed an appreciation of the story between the story for me. The big set pieces and bombastic plot moments obviously stand out, but it's the slow moments that stick with you. Whether we're making stew with Gollum, sleeping under a pine tree, driving a forklift, or delivering a package across untold miles on a dope ass motorcycle(or a dopey ass blocky van), these are the quiet moments that make up a journey.