Death Stranding Director’s Cut is an all new version of the very popular Death Stranding game by Hideo Kojima. His vert first and very ambitious game after parting ways with Konami to become an independent studio. Let’s see if it’s worth revisiting the game.
For those of you who have started the game on the PS4 and want to continue the adventure on the PS5. The game allows you to transfer your save data over to the PS5 version, allowing you to continue on your journey to connect the world.
For the sake of those new to the game, Death Stranding tells the story of Sam Porter Bridges, a courier that is tasked to connect facilities around America. Sam is a repatriate, which means he has the ability to come back from the dead.
Because of this very unique ability of his, Bridges recruits him to help them connect the world again. At the beginning of the game, you are taught the very basics of the game. It shows you how to locate parcels in the world and how he needs to manage and balance all of this cargo.
The one thing I noticed right away that was different from the PS4 version is the use of PS5’s haptic feedback. You can also sense the and feel the terrain that Sam is walking on. I was a little disappointed that you couldn’t feel the pitter patter of the rain but it’s not as significant to be a feature anyway.
The adaptive triggers also provides a better experience in terms of gripping on your cargo or binding your enemies. You can really feel the heaviness of the weight that Sam is carrying. It makes the experience a lot more immersive.
The second one would be the upscaled graphics. Death Stranding is already a beautiful game to begin with but with the 4k graphics, the world just feels more alive than ever. The terrain looked exceptionally stunning and the world just feels so vibrant and alive.
One of the new things in the Death Stranding Director’s Cut is the addition of the Maser Gun. The Maser Gun allows you to incapacitate the MULEs right away without causing a voidout. This gets unlocked very early in the game so dealing with the MULEs gets easier. The Maser Gun is cool and does the job right. You need to aim at a target’s head though if you want them to drop dead right away. Aiming anywhere else will stun them for a few seconds which can open the enemies for a knockout or binding them. I like that you can get this early in the game because dealing with the MULEs can be a hassle. So to have this kind of advantage early on in the game is huge.
They also added a new area in the Waystations which is the Firing Range. Here, you can practice using the Maser Gun to build up your accuracy. There are also drills that you can take to challenge yourself and get yourself acquainted with the many tools the game gives you. A new drill gets unlocked each time you acquire a new weapon.
There are regular drills and ranked drills. Both drills will also give you “Likes” towards your Like Meter. The Like Meter is the game’s way of leveling up. So spending time in the drills won’t be a waste of time because you will gain experience each time you complete it.
Completing the ranked drills places you in a leaderboard against everyone else playing the game. For a certain period of time, you can keep on improving your score to get higher in the rankings and get rewards for doing so. Rewards include likes, exclusive banners and signs that you can show off for everyone.
One thing that I wish was added to the game was the ability to play music anytime you want while you’re out delivering. It can get pretty quiet and lonely while you’re traversing the world of Death Stranding. It shouldn’t be a problem even if you’re encountering enemies because then you can just stop it.
Overall, Death Stranding Director’s Cut provides quality of life enhancements that makes the game better than it already was. An improvement that is a welcome addition and makes the game feel brand new even if you’ve already played it before. It’s a game worth revisiting just to experience what it has to offer.