Death Stranding (PS4 Kojima)

[Sheikah]

Although it's pretty funny that Edge stopped playing it, it also seems pretty unprofessional of them not to finish it. Can't imagine Sony being too happy with that outcome. 
As others have said I had expected a pretty mixed reaction. I'm disappointed that it seems a bit light on gameplay but I will definitely still be playing it once I've played Shenmue 3.

Couldn't agree more. It's their job to review games, whether they personally enjoyed them or not.

[Ronnie]

It strikes me as bit of a PR stunt tbh "We were so bored, we aren't even going to review it". They should have just finished it though yeah, but it's probably just them making the point. That said multiple reviews have said the game doesn't respect the player's time, so it's probably an extreme case.

[Sheikah]

It strikes me as bit of a PR stunt tbh "We were so bored, we aren't even going to review it". They should have just finished it though yeah, but it's probably just them making the point. That said multiple reviews have said the game doesn't respect the player's time, so it's probably an extreme case.

Even hand it over to someone who might enjoy it, if you didn't. I can also think of games that are very different after you get partway through (like Final Fantasy XIV), so you can't really judge a whole game based on playing just a bit.

[Goafer]

Soo...the story...

[Hero-of-Time]

2 minutes ago, Goafer said:

Soo...the story...

Indeed but this 60 hour game is shorter.  

In all fairness I don't mind that movie.

[Goafer]

21 minutes ago, Hero-of-Time said:

Indeed but this 60 hour game is shorter.  

In all fairness I don't mind that movie.

I don't really remember it, but I also don't remember hating it, so probably found it average.

As for Death Stranding, I'm undecided. Looks a bit too much like a horror/tense game for me, but the story elements and setting intrigue me.

[killthenet]

I was expecting it to be kind of lengthy in terms of playtime after MGSV but 60 hours seems too excessive, even if I start playing it before the end of the month I'll be lucky to finish it by the end of the year. 

[Ronnie]

You can easily finish it in 30 hours, plenty of reviews said as much. Just whether you want to do the copy and pasted sidequests. 

[drahkon]

 

 

Edited November 4, 2019 by drahkon

[Hero-of-Time]

Just watched this, @drahkon. 

My excitement is now starting to build. 

 

[drahkon]

First of all...no, I will not give a fuck about that baby. I will not worry about it. I hate when babies cry. It's fucking annoying. It's the main reason why I HATE Yoshi's Island. 

 FUCK YOU, BABY MARIO.

Ok, let's eat the baby.

Ehem...Secondly, I'm a bit worried that I haven't seen any guns. I wouldn't enjoy taking out those Mule bases with the strand every single time. Sometimes I like to go in guns blazing, somtimes I want to pick off every enemy with a sniper rifle. Not a huge issue, but if there aren't different weapons in Death Stranding I'll have to take away some points in the end  

But yes, the footage I've seen makes me want to play the game right now. However, I might not be able to play it until December  

Edited November 3, 2019 by drahkon

[RedShell]

I like the sound of the cooperative online aspects, very similar to what Q-Games were trying with The Tomorrow Children.  *sniff*  

Had to skip through most of that vid though, couldn’t handle listening to “Alan Carr” any longer.  

[gaggle64]

Having listened to a lot of the discourse (primarily via the Beastcast & Waypoint Radio podcasts) and having seen the incredibly mixed responses I'm the most fascinated I've very been to play this. Good or bad it looks like this is easily the most fascinating game ever made with a significant budget. 

 

Edited November 3, 2019 by gaggle64

[Hero-of-Time]

BBC had an interview with Kojima and he discussed some of the themes to the game.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/newsbeat-50172917

Here are a couple of sections from the interview that really stood out to me.

Quote

"The era of today is about individualism," he tells Radio 1 Newsbeat at his Tokyo studio.

"We may be connected through the internet more than ever, but what's happening is that people are attacking each other because we're so connected."

 

Quote

"In Death Stranding we're using bridges to represent connection - there are options to use them or break them. It's about making people think about the meaning of connection."

"When we're connected we have a responsibility over each other. But social media doesn't seem to have that responsibility, for example.

"Caring for each other is what makes people feel good. We've always been like that in the past.

"I want people to remember that and feel it in my game."

Well said, Kojima. 

I watched this yesterday evening.

It's easy to forget what an amazing career the guy has had and what impact he had on the industry. Also, I didn't realise how rough his childhood was and how lonely he feels at times, something which is also highlighted in the BBC article.  

Loved it when the MGS2 theme started playing. It never fails to give me goosebumps. 

Edited November 4, 2019 by Hero-of-Time

[LazyBoy]

On 11/1/2019 at 10:03 PM, Ronnie said:

It strikes me as bit of a PR stunt tbh "We were so bored, we aren't even going to review it". They should have just finished it though yeah, but it's probably just them making the point. That said multiple reviews have said the game doesn't respect the player's time, so it's probably an extreme case.

That's exactly how it struck me too. In fact the more I think of it the more the ridiculousness of this is winding me up. Think of all the crappy games they would have had to play in the past, and this one is they can't finish? And I presume Edge has a moderate sized office of journalists - not one of them had the constitution to finish the game? They're all standing round like Victorian socialites, fainting at the idea of switching on the PS4 - "oh the banality of it all, I cannot take a moment more." Hey, here's an idea, give it to the intern you're not paying, let them review it.

My respect for that magazine just went into the toilet.

[Sheikah]

3 hours ago, LazyBoy said:

That's exactly how it struck me too. In fact the more I think of it the more the ridiculousness of this is winding me up. Think of all the crappy games they would have had to play in the past, and this one is they can't finish? And I presume Edge has a moderate sized office of journalists - not one of them had the constitution to finish the game? They're all standing round like Victorian socialites, fainting at the idea of switching on the PS4 - "oh the banality of it all, I cannot take a moment more." Hey, here's an idea, give it to the intern you're not paying, let them review it.

My respect for that magazine just went into the toilet.

This post genuinely made me lol. 

[drahkon]

Been listening to some tracks used for Death Stranding.

Low Roar sure makes some good music.

The hype is real, my friends.

[Hero-of-Time]

Apparently the game has a 150-200 hour platinum. 

[drahkon]

14 minutes ago, Hero-of-Time said:

Apparently the game has a 150-200 hour platinum. 

Ah, so it's just a matter of "don't skip any of Kojima's 8 hour long cutscenes"  

After work, I'm going to see if I can find an early copy. Will have to pay 70€ for it, but why not. I'll be able to resell it eventually. I am, however, also thinking about getting it digitally as I could get 70€ of PSN credit for 62€ and then definitely play it at midnight. But then I wouldn't have a physical copy
Decisions, decisions. I think I'll go for a physical version, even if it means paying 70€ and possibly having to wait until tomorrow morning.

[drahkon]

No early copy for me  But I'll get up early tomorrow and pick up a copy  

Can't wait to finally play Kojima's masterful postal-service-simulator.

[drahkon]

Bought it,started playing, and...

The first hour sure was wild, exhilarating, intense, beautiful, confusing and full of wonder. One of the best first hour I've experienced in gaming.  

Gonna make lunch, eat and then get right back to Death Stranding.  

Edited November 8, 2019 by drahkon

[drahkon]

Reached chapter two. 

The game is stunningly beautiful. Couldn't stop pressing the "share" button  Some of my favourite shots:

Spoiler

And in case you wanna know what my first encouter with BTs was like:

Spoiler

Make sure to turn on the sound.

Man, when I tried to sneak away and heard the BTs popping up behind me... I guess I shouldn't have used the scanner right at the end  

What can I say so far?

Performance is incredible. Very smooth. Astounding, really, with how gorgeous the game is. Audio is lovely, too. The tracks by Low Roar really fit the atmosphere. And Ludvig Forssell has created something spectacular from what I've heard so far.

"Tell us about the gameplay, you wanker!"

Ok, ok. There wasn't a lot up until now.  It's a Kojima game, what do you expect  

Edited November 8, 2019 by drahkon

[Ronnie]

Maybe the quality isn't translating but from what I've seen I think Read Dead 2 looks far more impressive. Now that was a jaw-dropping stunning game, especially when you throw in it having actual towns and tons of NPCs/animals everywhere. Death Stranding just looks muddy to me  like that era during the PS3/360 era where a lot of big games had that grey/brown brown look to it.

Edit: case in point, the below screenshots. I'd say those look the opposite of good personally

Edited November 9, 2019 by Ronnie

[drahkon]

7 hours in. 

It's painfully obvious why this game is polarizing. You either like it, or you don't. What have I experienced so far? I'll put it and my impressions in spoilers, just in case:

Spoiler

• missions are, as expected when you've read about the game, deliveries; you choose an "order", pick up the cargo and deliver it to the destination; the journey to where you need to go is calming, relaxing, eery, scary...it depends on what you encounter:
  • MULES - stealth with the possibility to take enemies out in close quarter combat
  • BTs - stealth which is quite intense and scary
  • encounter nothing? - admire the scenery and marvel at how gorgeous the game is
• here's the deal: it appears that that's the major part of the game and it's great if you're up for it; don't enjoy long journeys and slow paced progression? Don't play Death Stranding!
• gameplay and atmosphere go hand in hand; it would be unfair to judge gameplay without the setting, atmosphere and tone; they bounce off each other and make for quite the engaging experience
• managing cargo and movement is fun; there are "quick time events" which don't feel like they are because gameplay doesn't stop; you're always in control of trying to stay in control (sounds weird, but once you've played the game you'll probably understand)
• the story has been confusing, so far; you got your goal but not much more; well, it's still early and I'm sure there's much more to come

Am I having fun? Sure do. It's been a long time since I've spent 7 hours with a game in one day.

Oh and...did I mention that Death Stranding is beautiful?

Spoiler

This game desparately needs a photo mode  And a music player that you can use in the field.

Edited November 8, 2019 by drahkon

[drahkon]

Yes, here's another post  

Haven't had too much time to play today, but I managed to reach chapter 3 and with that I got access to some new stuff:

Spoiler

• fast travel to Knots; this is awesome, now I can get back to side quests in earlier areas
• Exo-skeleton-legs; they increase the maximum cargo load; pretty handy
• more equipment to deal with MULEs and BTs

Story progressed a little further, but I'm still mostly in the dark  It's all very intriguing, though. The setting and themes are right up my alley.
So far, I'm thoroughly impressed. I was hyped and haven't been disappointed, yet.

Spoiler

 

Edited November 9, 2019 by drahkon