Customer Ratings & Reviews

Great game. It definitely takes some getting used to. There's plenty of side quests and other goal oriented game mechanics. Lots of cutscenes! I wish the PS upgrade was included but it was worth it for the visual and gameplay upgrades.

I play games very casually and only finish about two or so a year. My favorites in recent years and the type that appeal to me are Horizon Zero Dawn, Metal Gear Solid 5, the newer Tomb Raider games, and The Last Guardian, Ico, and Shadow of the Colossus. All that said -- I love this game. I'm having such a good time. I love it love it. The environments are beautiful and traveling through them can be very mellow, but it's still challenging in a way that helps you engage with the main character. Story beats (I'll give no real details here) are intriguing and amusing in their shifting tones. I very much enjoy Hideo Kojima's voice and story style, and this one is not letting me down. Basically I enjoy a good game that gives an engaging story and gives a fulfilling world/environment to explore so I have something to do while I listen to a podcast or other audiothing. Hours and hours into this game, I often don't feel the need to listen to something else while I'm playing, and I'm happy to just be immersed in the world and sounds that are presented. Every element already feels deliberate and with artful authorial intent, so I don't necessarily feel like I'm "wasting my time" by not supplementing with another piece of media while also playing around in this one. The game in itself just feels like a masterfully-crafted album. I'm not too big on games where most all you do is shoot at things and people. I don't enjoy feeling consistently tensed up and stressed or frustrated while playing a game. And striking that balance where there's not too much constant over-stimulation and aggression but it's also still very immersive and gripping -- it's honestly hard for me to define what exactly that balance consists of when a game properly hits it for me (like most of the titles I listed above). But this one does so maybe just about the most perfectly I've found in this PS4 era. That feels like an oversimplification of why this game is feeling so perfect for me. But that's about the crux of it.

This is an ambitious game set in a post-apocolyptic America. Great motion capture animation with the characters faithfully rendered as the real actors who play them, Norman Reedus (Walking Dead), Lindsay Wagner, Lea Sedoux and Mads Mikkelsen (James Bond). The primary goal is the slow rebuilding/reconnecting of America by delivering necessary goods to various desolate outposts, first on foot, then later via vehicle and hand-built roads. The early game play is slow and tough to master as the heavy loads and rough terrain covered by Norma Reedus are frustratingly difficult to manage. Things smooth out and speed up noticeably when you upgrade to vehicle use. The story line forces you to try to avoid and evade conflict with hostiles, rather than the usual FPS gun play, as even a single dead body causes a huge environmental meltdown. My biggest complaint is the controls and menus are not well laid out and not well explained. Tapping a choice may give you a different result than holding the same button, but the game does not explain that. I have had to do online research several times in order to complete a mission.

This isn’t Kojima’s best work. It is a very slow-paced game with a lot of walking but, honestly, it’s so beautiful to look at and becomes addicting that I had to give it a 5/5. I would realistically put it at a 4.5/5 but BestBuy doesn’t have that option. The story is VERY unique and interested, although a little too convoluted as well but that’s Kojima’s style.

I really like the story and visuals. Still getting used to the controls. I also really like being able to pick up side missions along the way. Good game so far overall.

From the beginning it is more like a movie with amazing graphics and story that truly is awe inspired. The physics are a bit tricky at first but you soon learn how best to work through the environment and deal with escaping enemies. It's like having a PS5 game already for the PS4! I highly recommend it!

Interesting story and fun gameplay mechanics. Definitely a unique experience.

Yes, you will walk hard, so hard. But never has walking felt so meaningful. I’ve spent many hours walking across a lot of different video games, and for a variety of reasons. In a lot of those worlds, I just wanted to explore, and often with others. Maybe this particular game wasn’t what I had in mind, but it’s ultimately a culmination of many aspects I love and wanted in a game. While I do agree that the whole package comes off very shallow at first - a visual feast of a story that drops the player into a delivery simulator - it unfolds into a curious and strange experience. The lonely walking is contextualized with a simple motivation, and an incredibly emotional story - then grown into an arc of meetings between other players through building and connecting across the world. Like ghosts in your isolated world, real people are an entity that can truly be felt. A constant symbiotic weave. Which is countered by the in-game threat of BT’s (ghost-like entities that occupy that world), encounters that can be tense and sometimes terrifying, and always a threat to the mission at hand. Mobility throughout the world is aided by quite a few tools, including vehicles, robots and mechanical limbs. Eventually making certain traversing rather simple and relaxing, which means a lot in the face of trekking some harsh terrain on foot. The walking itself is akin to a survival simulator more than a delivery device. Knowing about certain packages can help the story, but in all reality it’s the challenge of the environment that provides the risk/reward satisfaction of playing the game, making deliveries - as well as the delicate balance of inventory too. The venture comes with a lot of characters that provide a deep story - one of the best I’ve ever experienced. The entire experience truly comes full circle. Story and gameplay, the experience of playing through all the scenarios, traversing across such a vast environment - while many may not find this game suitable for everyone, I truly find it worthy of at least attempting the experience.

I am really enjoy my time with this game, completely different experience than I thought and its great. The visuals, audio and atmosphere are excellent, the controls and be a bit wonky but not game breaking other than that it's a great time.

This game is inventive to MAX! It's fantastic slow-burn story with a beautiful and massive open world. The gameplay is original and will definitely make you see ladders in a whole new light! Trek onward my friends and enjoy this masterpiece that is known as, Death Stranding!

This is a very divisive game because the "meat" of the game, the gameplay, is not what many would consider "fast paced enough" or some variation of that. This gameplay itself is great. your task is the same for every "mission" but the way you complete it is what makes it enjoyable. Will you make is safely and quickly, will you get ambushed, will you have to back track because your route isn't safe, did you bring enough supplies, etc. It is similar to MGSV where the missions are the same but the way you complete them are what makes the game enjoyable. Not only that but the story is engrossing, interesting, and really makes you think. Overall, this is a fantastic game and should definitely be experienced.

I enjoyed this game so much that I am already planning to order the sequel. Hope there will be a third!

So far, I've only devoted a few hours to it and I can already tell that Death Stranding is something unlike anything I've ever seen before in a video game, and it's certainly one that has to be experienced 1st hand. Now I've played many a Hideo Kojima title and would definitely consider myself a fan of his work, the Metal Gear Solid series is one of my most favorite game franchises, but Death Stranding certainly takes the cake as one of his weirder endeavors. Lengthy, beautiful, enigmatic cutscenes and story telling aside, the actual gameplay has the main protagonist, Sam, acting as a courier for Bridges, a company whose primary M.O. focuses on reconnecting the people of the United Cities of America to ensure humanity's survival. There's a small bit of combat sprinkled throughout game, but the main draw seems to be the micromanagement of Sam's delivery inventory, and traversing across some truly gorgeous vistas, trying your best to keep said delivery in tact. The better condition your order is in when delivered, the more likes Sam receives upon completion, which, in turn, helps him to level faster and become more efficient. It all sounds nuts trying to explain on paper, but there is something very alluring and satisfying about how it all works, and I really do enjoy it the more I play. I only took off a star because this game definitely won't appeal to everyone since it is so different, but the presentation, the quality, the soundtrack, and the mystique of the story, in my opinion, is worth the price of admission, especially if you're a fan of Kojima's work.

Do you like Shadow of the Colossus? The Last Guardian? Did you get enthralled by Journey? Do you play Silent Hill games for the atmosphere and feeling evoked by the game? If yes, I think you will be able to see the value in Kojima's latest offering. The game is wonder-filled, beautiful, and haunting. It's not MGS6, although there is more action here than has been described in many reviews or seen on YT. For example, you've probably read the "first 10 hours are a slog and filled with backtracking." Well, I didn't have to backtrack til hour 6 and when I did, it was on a motorcycle and took like 2 minutes. Before that point, I was pulled into an amazing world and gameplay loop that alternated between top tier storytelling cinematics and tight, compelling gameplay. Each loop added a bit more to each. Within 3 hours, I had seen and done more crazy things than most games dream of, had heart pounding moments, strategized about my moves, ran for my life, explored in wonder, and got pulled into the mystery of terms, characters, and visuals Death Stranding offers. Give the game a rental or if you have the disposable income, go with your gut. This isn't No Man's Sky launch part 2. This is a masterpiece in its own right and playing it will be immensely satisfying and emotionally engaging. History will look fondly on Death Stranding after the initial polarization stabilizes. UPDATE: So why this would not be a good game for you: -It’s a timesink. It took me 30 hrs to clear episode 3 of 14. Granted the game is basically a sprint to the end after episode 8, but still. -You’re not into story-heavy games told through Hollywood-esque cutsenes. -You don’t like the core gameplay premise. While this is anything but a “hurr derr walking sim”, delivering stuff by journeying (via walking, hiking, vehicles, and other means) is a primary facet of the game. -You’ve never liked Kojima games. While this one is fresh and something new, there is a classic Kojima feel to the game. -You want a straightforward point A to point B experience. Death Stranding is mostly pure freedom. At any given time you could do one of a dozen or more things. So why this would be a good game for you: -Kind of the opposite of the above: you want a lot of content, you like story heavy games, the core premise of journeying looks interesting to you, you’re a fan of Kojima, and you want a truly free gameplay experience. -You’re fascinated by the genre mashups of worldbuilding (a la Minecraft), third person stealth/shooter (a la MGS), horror (a la Silent Hills), adventuring/hiking, management and planning, and strong narrative in a fresh beautiful world….all overlaid with the social strand system where you give and get likes, help other players and are helped, and see what the community is doing in the game’s world.

I had no idea who Hodao Kojeema was until the hype and hate for this game surfaced. I totally enjoyed this game. Addicting, totally satisfied my ADHD and obsessive compulsive nature. Jokes aside the story was out of this world. Love Sci Fi themes. Controls and mechanics took some getting use to, but i really did have fun with this one. Could have done without the repeated cutscenes for the repeated elements (such as recycling old gear etc). The game is not perfect, but it was enjoyable. The BT stealth sections were nerve-wracking, and the gadgets were fun to use. 8/10 would watch repeated product placement again

Very good game with a very slow start. Honestly is a walking simulator for a large portion but when things start kicking they don’t stop. Good experience but not for everyone

Death Stranding is most likely not he game a lot of people were expecting it to be, but I think it’s all the more cool and adventurous for it. Before I got the game I was scared by a lot of reviews claiming it’s nothing but fetch quest after fetch quest. While that may be true on the surface, the gameplay and world are designed to reflect that, meaning that a type of gameplay that might be boring in other games is surprisingly fleshed out and nuanced. On top of that, the lore and world building is excellent, not to mention the online component, which sees players collaborating in some very intriguing ways.

If you're into story driven games, this is up your alley. The gameplay is different than what people who are fans of Kojima's MGS series may be expecting. But the graphics are gorgeous - utilizing photogrammetry to make a virtual-Iceland-like environments. Recommended for people who like to be surprised! I found the gameplay to be very zen compared to the normal action/adventure RPG. It was nice to unwind while playing this game. The obstacles come from figuring out how to reach a destination and overcoming natural environments. It's very different, but it is also very good!

I wasn't sure what this game was about, but I wasn't sure if I would end up liking it. It was on sale so I picked it up. I found myself smiling and excited to play more. The game is weird, but oddly entertaining. The premise of the game is essentially, you have abilities to sense the mysterious stuff going on in the world which makes you perfect to make deliveries and bring outposts online to reconnect everyone again. The story itself is weird and I have loving revealing more and more of the mystery as I play through my objectives.

Deep scifi story, beautiful landscape to traverse and explore, great cutscenes and acting. Social experience in making deliveries and getting "likes". Yes, essentially this is a slow paced fetch quest of delivering packages (at its surface). But dig deeper and its so much more. Game really picks up after Chapter 3. Unlock weapons, battle Mules and BT's. WARNING: Not for twitch gamers or those with ADD...dont even bother, you all can go back to Fortnite. This will be "boring" for those with low attention span and low EQ. For the rest of us, its an awesome and emotionally compelling experience. Video games as art.