I really liked the game in the begging - stylish, interesting, etc. But then there are several things:
1) The plot is just a bit confusing, at least to me
2) There's really no gameplay, and the game is liner. It's fine on its own, just the type of story - but to get to a higher grade I'd say you need at least some gameplay, some variability
If you want a story, read a book. If you want a game, find one. Death Stranding is neither. I didn’t really like this game. I heard so much hype about it - that it’s a smart game exploring complex topics, a truly cinema-level experience, etc. But to me, that’s all huge BS. The whole game is just walking from A to B, and nothing about it is fun. The terrain isn’t an issue - there’s always a path designed by the developers, so you don’t need any special gear. But you don’t have to take that path; since everything’s already built, you can just hop on a bike and **** you stick to the main story, there isn’t much backtracking, but the overall experience is still quite boring. Honestly, even Euro Truck Simulator does a better job of making something mundane enjoyable. Story-wise, I can’t say it’s worthy of all the praise. Sure, it’s not Ubisoft, but the narrative isn’t on par with the best films (and that’s the only fair comparison - there’s simply no gameplay here). Speaking of which, back in the PlayStation 3 days there was a saying: “PS3 has no games - just movies,” and Death Stranding is the perfect example of “press X to watch the next cutscene.” I get why console players enjoy zoning out on their couch, surrounded by shisha smoke, half-watching the TV while scrolling TikTok, but as a PC gamer, I expected so much more. The two bright spots are the performances - especially Mads Mikkelsen’s - and the music. These are genuinely amazing. The story is okay, but it’s no Fight Club. Gameplay? No comment.
The game is interesting in the beginning, but after around 30 souls it's close to impossible in the sane mind to define the names. The game stops being funny when you need to look at the color of the shoes and rings on the fingers of people
It played in 2022 for ~3 hours - it seems like an absolutely mediocre product with no distinct features, the game hasn't aged well that's for sure I wouldn't want to waste my time on something like this, quite surprised that it has such a high rating here.
One of the best games of the decade (in my opinion, RDR2 and Cyberpunk 2077 are the two best games since 2000). This game scores above the industry average in every important group of parameters:
1) Gameplay. Combat and stealth are equally satisfying. There is no RPG on the market right now that even comparable to the CP in terms of gunfights, melee fights, and stealth (e.g. while shooting in The Outer Worlds, which is #2 fresh RPG, is somewhat OK, there are ambiguous ammo types and too many indistinguishable guns). Smart weapons feel amazing, katana and mantis blades have an enormously satisfying feeling. Finally, stealth and hacking are super interesting. The overall gameplay: best in the industry (comparison: Deus Ex, Outer Worlds, Fallout NV).
2) Plot and world. Authors tell us an interesting story about death and one's acceptance of it. Not really Mass Effect level of drama or Deus Ex 1 level of conspiracy, but the deeply private and personal story. Side quests are, of course, amazing (River Ward's and Johny's especially). I, personally, liked the plot even more than I liked the plot in New Vegas. In addition to that, developers used the universe with developed lore, and the back story of Night City and NUSA is interesting to learn. Finally, every question mark on the map tells a small interesting story or shows a funny place. It feels great to explore the world. Of course, it's not the same city as in GTA 5, but RPGs never were really about super alive open worlds (e.g. New Vegas, Outer Worlds, Skyrim, etc.). The overall plot and world: best in the industry (comparison: Mass Effect, Deus Ex, Outer Worlds, Fallout NV).
3) Roleplaying. Roleplaying for me is about two things: 1) ability to adjust playstyle (combat-oriented, charming, stealthy, etc.) and 2) ability to express my personal feelings via actions/dialogs. So, 1 - playstyle. I see several potential builds here: assault rifles with dodges, tank with a shotgun, stealth with hacking. Not much, but in Deus Ex HR we had only 1 build that makes sense - stealth (combat is super awkward there), in New Vegas we had sniper, assault rifle, talker, melee plus a lot of room for roleplay with additional skills, such as repair or medicine. Outer Worlds and Assassin's Creed are nothing in comparison. Sub conclusion: good level, not the best (New Vegas), but above the industry average. Now, 2 - dialogs. Yes, that's true, you can only affect the plot so much, but honestly, it's not that kind of RPG that allows you to favor one fraction and destroy the other or that allows you to negotiate in every quest (e.g. New Vegas, Outer Worlds). CP is a more cinematic-like game, and in this sense, the only sensible comparison is Mass Effect, and we can affect the plot way more in CP. But what is more important is dialogues: every time I had an option that represents my personal feelings exactly, and all the other options made total sense (e.g. in Mass Effect you had two ways: adequate character and crazy cruel **** The most important part of the game - V's thoughts about Johny and acceptance of death - offer great dialog options, and I personally felt that I hear answers that resonate with me, the player. Overall: highly above the industry average.
4) Artistic execution. Music is awesome, all that rocker boy vibe is amazing, the city looks noir AF and rain and light works amazing in pre designed scenes and just during any night free ride. In that sense, one can compare CP with RDR2, and CP at least slightly worse in terms of light and scenes. Overall: absolutely exceptional artistic work.
Final verdict: this game will become legendary and will stay together with RDR 2, New Vegas in the RPG's hall of fame.
Ignore all negative reviews - people just hate technical execution, but this is temporary, while all that I described is way more important.
This is the great mix of Mass Effect, Bioshock, and New Vegas. I liked: characters, dialogs, gunfights, roleplay (almost any fight can be resolved via dialog option/skill check). What I didn't like: a lot of useless consumables (at least useless on normal difficulty, in new vegas all consumables made sense), too many items (in New Vegas I knew all the guns and armor, it all made sense, here the item system is a lot like that in Mass Effect 1 with an enormous variety of stuff with different grades, etc. Eventually, I just looked at the armor rating and skill bonuses). Overall, it's a brilliant game and it feels like technically finished New Vegas.
