Death Stranding 2is among the most exciting AAA games releasing next year, expected to follow in the footsteps of its experimental predecessor. While audiences can likely expectDeath Stranding 2’s gameplay systems, technical polish, and narrative to be iterative of what came before, knowing Hideo Kojima, the final product will almost certainly be chock-full of surprises.
Among the most engrossing parts ofDeath Stranding, to the point where the fanbase is still parsing through and analyzing it, is its lore. The game presents a multifaceted, surreal post-apocalyptic world unlike anything ever seen before in the gaming medium, characterized by ghostly figures and a complete recontextualizing of the concept of death. Part of what makes this world-building so intriguing and gratifying is how it informs the gameplay experience:Death Strandingutilizes its interactivity and “game-ness” to drive home its narrative, as key lore elements like timefall and voidouts become very real concerns for the player, not just the player-character.Death Stranding 2: On the Beachwill no doubt continue this gameplay-story connection, and there are a few conceivable ways it could elevate it.
Voidouts Could Play a Bigger Role in Death Stranding 2
How Voidouts Feed Into Death Stranding’s Gameplay Loop
Players can cause voidouts inDeath Stranding, but they are far from a common occurrence. Since voidouts are a result of BT matter interacting with living, organic matter, they typically are triggered via one of two scenarios: a dead body spawns a BT that kills another human, or Sam gets eaten by a BT. The former scenario almost always results in an immediate game over, but the latter will create a massive crater in the overworld, though it can’t actually be explored.
Voidout craters will eventually be restored by the effects of timefall.
WhileDeath Strandingisn’t always an easy game, it’s not particularly hard to avoid these events of mass destruction. In fact, it’s not uncommon for players to finish the entire main story without ever encountering one (save for a scripted voidout early in the game). It’s remarkably easy to skirt around lethal combat, and death by a BT usually doesn’t involve getting eaten. For how major a role voidouts play in theDeath Strandinguniverse, actually encountering one is almost like an Easter egg.
How Death Stranding 2 Can Double Down On Voidouts
Given how muchDeath Strandingweaves its narrative into its gameplay systems, it would be great to see the sequel use voidouts to greater effect. It’s not clear whatchanges have been made toDeath Stranding 2’s world, but assuming it follows the same rules as its predecessor, perhaps players could explore the craters left behind by voidouts. They could be populated by BTs or other hazards, making them a richer part of the gameplay experience. Maybe there could even be a way to repair the craters or leverage them to beneficial effect, feeding into the series' theme of rebuilding.
It could be impractical for the game to achieve this through totally emergent or integrated gameplay systems, as there would be the risk of essentially turning the entire world into a crater unless it did away with, say, voidouts caused by BTs killing NPCs, but there are still ways to make it work. For instance, there could be a few randomly placed voidout craters in the game’s map which could be interacted with in real-time. The firstDeath Strandingis all about constant change, which can often come at the hands of the players thanks to its building systems, so it only makes sense to factor voidout craters into the mix, making them a more fundamental part of the sequel’s gameplay.
Death Stranding 2: On the Beach
WHERE TO PLAY
Embark on an inspiring mission of human connection beyond the UCA. Sam—with companions by his side—sets out on a new journey to save humanity from extinction. Join them as they traverse a world beset by otherworldly enemies, obstacles and a haunting question: should we have connected? Step by step, legendary game creator Hideo Kojima changes the world once again.
