My heart has been aching for a game like Death Stranding for a long time. In many ways, it feels like a spiritual return to the 1997 PlayStation classic Metal Gear Solid, another unmistakable Hideo Kojima masterpiece. Like MGS, it’s packed with lore delivered through in-game interviews, logs, and conversations that reward curiosity. More importantly, it asks the player to wrestle with social, psychological, and philosophical ideas that most games never even attempt.

Hideo Kojima is a master at pulling players into a story that doesn’t just entertain but provokes thought. One of the most striking concepts the game explores is trade and connection, and how essential they are to a functioning society. Trade is what makes the world move forward, something everyone was reminded of during the pandemic. When trade breaks down, everything else follows. Death Stranding doesn’t just explain this idea, it makes you experience it firsthand.

At first glance, the idea of trade and logistics might seem obvious or even boring. But most people rarely think about it unless something goes wrong. We take delivery drivers, supply chains, and infrastructure for granted until shelves are empty or systems collapse. By placing the player in the role of a courier tasked with reconnecting a fractured America, Kojima forces you to confront the invisible labor that holds society together. You aren’t a distant hero saving the world with explosions. You are the person doing the work.

That design choice is deliberate and effective. Kojima increases player investment by making you the truck driver, the porter, the connective tissue of the world. Every delivery matters, not because the game tells you it does, but because you feel the effort it takes to make it happen.

This philosophy stands in stark contrast to many modern games, especially looter shooters, where killing NPCs or other players carries little to no consequence. In those games, violence is often rewarded with kill streaks, bonuses, or flashy upgrades. Death Stranding rejects that mindset entirely. Killing is discouraged and treated as a last resort. As with most of Kojima’s games, taking the easy violent path creates more problems than it solves. I won’t spoil specifics, but the game makes it very clear that killing enemies comes with lasting consequences.

Personally, I enjoy games that force players to think creatively instead of acting on pure reflex. There is something deeply satisfying about solving problems rather than simply shooting them. Don’t get me wrong, action-heavy games are fun, but they can’t compare to an experience that genuinely engages both your mind and emotions.

One of the most common complaints online is that Death Stranding is just a walking simulator. I think that criticism says more about modern gaming culture than it does about the game. Many players are used to instant gratification, immediate rewards for minimal effort. Death Stranding deliberately pushes back against that. If you can’t tolerate waiting ten minutes, or even a few minutes in certain moments, then this probably isn’t the game for you.

However, if you enjoy unraveling complex, lore-heavy stories while taking breaks to deliver packages and slowly reunite a broken society, there is a lot here to appreciate. And it’s not just walking. There are tense encounters, environmental hazards, and memorable boss fights woven throughout the experience.

The delivery gameplay itself is far from boring. Traversing the landscape is a constant challenge, filled with BTs, MULEs, terrorists, timefall storms, and unforgiving terrain. Just when you think you’ve mastered the systems, Kojima introduces another layer or mechanic to keep things fresh and demanding.

Put simply, if you played Metal Gear Solid in the late 1990s or early 2000s and found yourself just as invested in codec conversations as in sneaking through enemy territory, you will likely love this game.

Scores

Graphics: Beautiful
Gameplay: Good
Audio: Very good
Audience: Adults
PC Requirements: Fast
Difficulty: Easy to learn, hard to master
Grind: Only if you care about rankings
Story: Deep and mind-bending with lots of lore
Game Time: Average (I played though this game twice) 100% both times.
Price: Worth the price
Bugs: Never encountered any

Final Score: 9 out of 10

Death Stranding is for players who value lore-driven storytelling, deliberate pacing, and games that aren’t afraid to challenge conventional design. It asks you to slow down, think ahead, and engage with its systems and themes in a way few modern games attempt. If you’re willing to plan your routes, weigh your choices, and truly connect with the world—both mechanically and emotionally—you’ll find an experience that lingers long after the credits roll, offering something far more meaningful than any kill-streak high.

It comes highly recommended for fans of thoughtful, narrative-heavy games, and especially for those who still remember how much time they spent listening to codec calls in Metal Gear Solid, not just for the exposition, but for the ideas and atmosphere they created.