'Death Stranding' News: Hideo Kojima Explains Gameplay and Lore Of His Newest Title
Hideo Kojima's newest project "Death Stranding" definitely received after its debut during The Game Awards, be it of its star-studded cast, the not-so-simple premise, and of course, the baby. Now, the head of Kojima Productions himself explains what the game is all about.
The game is set in an open-world environment with a post-apocalyptic setting and stars Norman Reedus and Mads Mikkelsen. It is the debut project for Kojima Productions after it became an independent studio following the split with Konami.
Speaking with IGN, Kojima said that the game traces its origins over 40 years ago, in the days of the early arcade titles where death means the end. He wants to eschew this tradition saying that when players die in the game, that isn't the end.
First off, when the main character Sam (Reedus) dies, the player is sent to another world which is submerged in water. However, instead of returning to an earlier point, when a player returns to the world of the living anything they did or any alterations made prior to the moment of death is retained and can continue as if nothing has happened.
There's also the existence of "Timefall," a type of rain with the ability to age or deteriorate whatever it hits. Players also have the ability to interact with the environment and wander outside of the character's body.
The mounted robot arms attached to Sam and the other characters have a name, although Kojima would not share it. It seemed that they sparked to life whenever that person came into possession of the baby.
While Kojima declined to reveal more details about the gameplay, he did explain the baby in the trailer. According to him, "The baby relates to game mechanics as well as the story as a whole," suggesting that it be a plot device as well as something players will interact with in-game other than a sort of power-up to activate the arms.
"Death Stranding" has yet to receive a release date but is expected to arrive in 2018 at its earliest. Still, there's no doubt it will be one of the biggest releases of the year not only because of its massive budget but also because it has the name Kojima behind it.