Kojima Productions recently visited TGS 2024 to reveal more about Death Stranding 2: On The Beach, and based on this appearance, it does seem like this sequel will be just as innovative, bizarre, and layered as its predecessor.
During a Special State Presentation, a range of new tidbits about the game were revealed, but a few primary features stuck out. One of these is that the game will include a wild and incredibly life-like photo mode where players must take polaroid pictures of the game’s main characters.
As shown off, this “Photo Shoot” event features Tomorrow (played by Elle Fanning), Rainy (played by Shioli Kutsuna) and Fragile (played by Lea Seydoux) performing various poses, while also showing off stuffed toys.
Unlike standard photo modes, each of the characters in a Photo Shoot will move and change pose in live action, and players will need to capture their images based on specific criteria. According to game director Hideo Kojima, this mode is actually story-relevant, and it will be “better to take good pictures.” The reasons for this are unclear, but given Kojima’s past work, we can assume these photo shoots are much deeper than they appear on the surface.
Read: Everything Xbox announced at TGS 2024
Another thing work noting is that they appear incredibly dynamic, based on an early snippet of gameplay. Characters emote rapidly, and move in a way that is rarely seen in video games – movements are human and smooth, showing off the capability of the engine driving the game. Should the same sense of dynamism be reflected in the rest of Death Stranding 2, it could be a technical marvel.
Elsewhere in its Special Stage Presentation, Kojima Productions also revealed that Death Stranding 2 will feature a musical sequence, described as an “in-game event video.” A clip revealed on Twitter / X shows multiple copies of Dollman, the living puppet inspired by director Fatih Akin, dancing to the song ‘Horizon Dreamer’ by Daichi Miura. Dollman is eventually joined by Miura in digital form, and they dance together until the clip ends.
At this stage, it’s unclear how this footage fits into the game – but it’s worth noting it wouldn’t be the first video game to experiment with a musical sequence. Alan Wake 2 recently pulled this off to great impact, and it wouldn’t be surprising to see Kojima Productions take a leaf from Remedy Entertainment’s book.
With these two reveals, anticipation for Death Stranding 2: On The Beach has grown rapidly – but Kojima Productions is still holding back on revealing a firm release date for the game. For now, we know it will release in 2025, but an exact date is yet to be locked in.
For those keen to see more of the game, stay tuned. There’s certainly plenty more on the way in future.
