Summary
- DS2 offers new onboarding features like a story recap and glossary to help players understand its complex lore.
- The story recap of DS1 may include important cutscenes, but narration by key voice actors could enhance understanding.
- DS2's self-awareness is evident through the new onboarding features, addressing the complexities faced by new and veteran players.
To say that the world of Death Stranding is strange is an understatement, as it's not only one of Hideo Kojima's weirdest worlds, but it also introduced one of the most unconventional gameplay loops ever conceived, to the point of it being labeled a "walking simulator." In fact, even hardcore Death Stranding fans would likely admit to it being bizarre, despite knowing the ins and outs of its lore. Now, Death Stranding 2: On the Beach is set to carry the torch of that legacy with what appears to be an even stranger take on the first game's premise and world.
The first Death Stranding had a pretty formidable barrier to entry already, given how abnormal its lore and gameplay are. Fortunately, Death Stranding 2: On the Beach already looks a bit more self-aware than its predecessor, with some brand-new onboarding features that will not only help newcomers on their first trip into the world of Death Stranding, but they should also help veterans regain their footing. Specifically, a story recap for the first Death Stranding, as well as a new glossary for the series' original terminology, should help players of any experience feel more at home as they venture across the wilds of Death Stranding 2's Australia.
Death Stranding 2's Australia Already Feels Like the Main Character
Australia is more than a setting in Death Stranding 2, as its hazards and scale make it a living force that encourages players to plan their steps.
Death Stranding 2 Knows How Confusing It Really Is
DS2's Onboarding Features Open the Door for More Players to Understand It
One of the main new features that will help newcomers and returning players alike with getting started in Death Stranding 2 is a complete story recap of the first game. The first Death Stranding's story is somewhat clear about its biggest plot threads, but its deep, complex lore and the fact that much of the story is left open to interpretation can make things quite confusing. As such, since players will be able to have the first game's story recapped for them before they start a new game in Death Stranding 2 should be helpful.
A story recap for the first Death Stranding, as well as a new glossary for the series' original terminology, should help players of any experience feel more at home as they venture across the wilds of Death Stranding 2's Australia.
The only issue a story recap of the first Death Stranding might run into is how complex it is, regardless of what it does to remind or inform. Death Stranding's story recap could simply be an arrangement of its most important cutscenes, but that might not be enough. Instead, it might be better for a voice like Norman Reedus, Troy Baker, or Lea Seydoux to narrate and explain what players are seeing in the story recap. Then, not only will newcomers have a greater understanding of the world of Death Stranding, but veterans might actually have some of their biggest questions answered.
If the story recap of the first Death Stranding wasn't enough, Death Stranding 2 also features an in-game glossary where players can look up terminology. For everything introduced in the first Death Stranding, players had to rely on external resources like fan-made glossaries and online guides for explanation. In Death Stranding 2, on the other hand, players will be able to access a glossary in the menu at any time during normal gameplay, letting them gain a deeper understanding of the world of Death Stranding.
What would make the glossary even better is if it took advantage of features like Final Fantasy 16's Active Time Lore, which not only lets players see when key terminology is being used, but also how it evolves as the story progresses.
A Story Recap and Glossary Serve as Clear Signs of DS2's Self-Awareness
In the end, the story recap and glossary are just signs of Death Stranding 2's self-awareness. Essentially, it knows how weird it is, it knows how difficult it can be to understand, and it knows how much the first game alienated new players. This has resulted in some new onboarding features that should alleviate those issues to some degree, despite Hideo Kojima's apparent wishes for the game to remain divisive.
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OpenCritic Reviews
- Top Critic Avg: 90 /100 Critics Rec: 95%
- Released
- June 26, 2025
- ESRB
- Mature 17+ // Violence, Blood and Gore, Partial Nudity, Strong Language
- Developer(s)
- Kojima Productions
- Publisher(s)
- Sony Interactive Entertainment
