DEATH STRANDING: Everything we know so far.

A game that can't be described in any known genre, a story that made every other science friction look understandable. How well will it hold up till the end ? 

Since the reveal of its first trailer at E3 2016, Hideo Kojima made it clear that this game ain't going to be something like our traditional game. It will be a completely new experience for gamers. (And also this will be his first game made in his own studio, Kojima Productions and will not be working with Konami after Metal Gear Survive.) Since 2016, they released trailers for the game which gave us more question than answers.

The Story 

Set in a future post-apocalyptic world, America, which is now called UCA or The United Cities of America, is facing too many threats from terrorist groups as well as some supernatural entities known as BT-s (or Beached things). Now it is up to Sam Porter Bridges (played by Norman Reedus) who is a delivery guy, to unite the cities and save the country. We are not fully aware of the story yet as we haven't played this game, but as we know so far that somehow (might be due to an explosion) the two dimensions i.e. the dimension of the dead and that of the living has merged or got connected which made those entities known as BTs stranded on Earth.

The President of America is on the verge of death when Amelie, (played by Lindsay Wagner) seems like her daughter, set out an expedition to reunite the peoples of America for a greater good. She went west and on her way she convinced communities to join UCA until she riched Edge Knot City. And it is where her team was destroyed and she was captured by Homodemons (Militant separatist group, The rulers of Edge Knot City). Now it is time for Sam to finish what Amelie started and save the country and humanity. 

Characters

• SAM PORTER BRIDGES (played by Norman Reedus) is the protagonist and the hero in this story. He is a delivery guy working for a company named Bridges. He seems got some kind of special disease known as 'cyrollergi' which is kind of his superpower to sense BTs.
  
   
• CLIF (played by Mads Mikkelsen). Not sure about his role in the game but from the trailers it seems that he is kind of emotionally attached to BBs or the Bridge Babies. He is one of the main villains in the story who has a connection with dead soldiers.
  
• FRAGILE (played by Lea Seydoux).  She is also a delivery woman working for another company also called Fragile for some reason. She has also got 'cyrollergi'.
  
• MAMA (played by Margaret Qualley). A woman whose child seem to born on the 'other side' or the 'death realm'. We don't know how. But she can interact with her dead child.
  
• DEADMAN (played by Guillermo Del Toro). He seems like some kind of scientist who knows everything about BBs. 
  
• HEARTMAN (played by Nicolas Winding Refn). He has a special ability to stop his heart for 21 mins and go to the 'other side'.
  
• DIE-HARDMAN (played by Tommie Earl Jenkins). We don't know much about his character. We saw him in the briefing trailer, encouraging Sam to join Amelie. So, he might be on the good side.
  
• HIGGS (played by Troy Baker). He is one of the main villains in the story. He seems to be the leader of 'Homodemons'.
  
• AMELIE (played by Lindsay Wagner). She is one of the lead characters in the story, having some kind of relationship with the president. 
  

'Living is no different from being dead'; The 'No Game Over' Mechanics.

If you die in the game the game is not over. Yes, I know its bizarre, but this is how the game works. You die, you go to the 'other side' or the 'death realm' and make your way from there back to the living world. Sounds fun, right? Well, your death will have consequences. You will find a big crater at that place where you died. And if you are playing online other players might also get effected in a way like their safehouse, roads or equipment get destroyed. So you might wanna watch your steps.

Speaking of online gameplay there will no traditional kind of online gameplay mode as it is basically story-driven, but you can connect the game to the internet and help people to pass their level if you passed it already. Didn't understand how? Imagine you are climbing a mountain using a ladder. You can just leave the ladder where you deployed it and other players might find it while climbing the same mountain and will help to easily complete their mission. You can also build big structures like roads with the help of others which will make permanent changes in the environment of the game. 

Neither Stealth Nor Action !

This game is particularly not based on stealth nor intense action but it will have both the mechanics implemented on it. Kojima says, "it is a whole new genre of its own". The gameplay will mostly involve stimulating long stretches of walk. There will be situations where you either need to fight or you need to escape. The fight mostly seems non-lethal where you only need to knock down the enemy. Though we saw a scene where Sam is fighting some ghostly soldier in the 'other side' with a gun. As of now, we don't know whether guns will only be available only on the 'other side' or not. Keep in mind that killing a human in the living world will create craters or void out and might also increase the possibilities of encountering BTs. Your every action will have consequences. 

BBs and BTs

BBs or bridge babies, as the game says, are nothing but a piece of equipment. It is a baby in a small special kind of incubator when connected with the metal arm, helps to detect BTs. This babies acts just like a normal unborn babies. They will cry when they get hurt or under pressure and comforting them will be one of the vital part of the gameplay. They will be needed to connect to an actual still mother's womb to retain its ability. 

BTs or the Beached Things seems to be some kind of supernatural entities that somehow appeared on the lands of the UCA. When players come in contact with it, the player will be dragged into the 'other side', thus the player dies creating a 'voidout'.

Which platforms will it be available on?

Generally, it is going to be released on PS4 this November 8. However, Kojima Productions confirmed that it will be comming to PC but the date is not confirmed yet. It will come in the early summer of 2020. The game uses Decima Engine by Guerrilla Games (The Engine that was used in Horizon Zero Dawn). So, I think the Play Station users might have a bit of an advantage. 

We will bring the full review after we get to play it. And FYI, we are pc gamers. So don't expect us to bring the full review this November. Sorry, guys :(.