Summary
Death Stranding 2is a sequel with a lot to live up to. While its predecessor was not without its flaws, it was by far one of the most unique experiences that gamers likely had during its console generation cycle. There are certain mistakes, however, that the first game made thatDeath Stranding 2needs to avoid.
One of the more involved elements ofDeath Strandingis the ending. The game is not unlikeLord of the Rings: The Return of the Kingin that it feels like it had at least half a dozen different endings, despite only one. Some segments of this ending are incredibly satisfying and wrap up the story in a nice way while other “endings” inDeath Strandingfeel tacked on. One such example of this has to do with the fake credits portion on the Beach, which is somethingDeath Stranding 2should not repeat.
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Death Stranding’s Flawed Tell and Not Show Approach
Many elements inDeath Strandingwere difficult to keep track of.Death Stranding’s Chiral Network, for example, was a spider-web of a plot point that connected the story, characters, lore, and gameplay in a way that makes it difficult to comprehend. This is not helped by the fact that so much of its story is explained away in conversations after the fact, rather than shown in a visual manner.
A key scene in the game that sets up some of the Chiral Network’s biggest reveals happens in a conversation with Deadman. The whole talk is done in an extremely awkward shower scene where the supporting character unveils some of the dark secrets behind the Network andDeath Stranding’s Bridge Babies. It’s a dramatic reveal that shows a darker side to the game’s supporting characters, but it feels like an awkward exposition more than a meaningful reveal. A much more egregious example of this, however, was the game’s fake credits.
Why the Fake Credits Scene Is Death Stranding’s Most Frustrating Moment
Death Stranding’s endingcan be difficult to grasp given how much went on in it. The ending has Sam confront Higgs Monaghan and discovers that his adopted sister Amelie and his adopted mother Bridget were in fact the same person. Their ultimate goal was to cause a mass extinction event, but they had changed their mind several years earlier. Sam is able to prevent this event from happening, at a cost.
After the big showdown, Sam is left stranded on his ownBeach inDeath Strandingand the credits begin to roll. Amelie begins to drop even more exposition and describes what exactly happened in the game and why. The bits of information are broken up by Sam having to walk around aimlessly on the Beach before the credits roll and this goes on for a good twenty minutes or so. It’s an incredibly tedious and drawn-out aspect of the game that’s meant to show just how long Sam was on the Beach. The symbolism makes sense, but that doesn’t mean it’s impactful. Unfortunately, it also likely caused players to check out well before the best parts of the ending played out, and this is something that should not be repeated in the sequel.
Death Stranding 2hopefully not make the same mistakesas its predecessor in regards to the “show, don’t tell” rule. The first game did this far too many times and, as a result, some of the big reveals didn’t hit as hard as they should have. Sam’s Beach and the fake credits are perhaps the worst example of this and are not helped by the fact that it was an incredibly drawn-out moment that overstayed its welcome and tested gamers' patience. Hopefully,Death Stranding 2will take this to heart and not include such a frustrating moment in an otherwise great ending.
