- this blog post isnt ready yet. if you found it, congrats, i - like you. we can make out. -
+This post has minor spoilers for Death Stranding 2.
The screenshot above looks pretty generic. Death Stranding 2 is a very beautiful game and its vistas are what make it. But @@ -163,11 +160,69 @@
The high-level concept is batshit. You're a disgraced yakuza - who must transform a mismanaged love hotel into a successful - 'mascot agency,' that rent out giant mascots to events. Except - the mascots are sentient, not costumes. And also it's secretly - a game about leaving a run-down, corrupt and forgotten town - much better than you found it. + (voiced by the same VA who portrays Kiryu!) who must transform + a mismanaged love hotel into a successful 'mascot agency,' + that rent out giant mascots to events. Except the mascots are + sentient, not costumes. And also it's secretly a game about + leaving a run-down, corrupt and forgotten town much better + than you found it. +
++ Every side quest is about restoring the town in some way. + Whether it's cleaning up shrines, smashing through trash bags, + or laying vengeful spirits to rest, everything you do makes + this town better. It's full of characters who you come to know + and understand as you do jobs for them. They lead full lives + in this little town, and want it to get better. And it rubs + off! You, the player, want to make this town better! You make + these connections, offering out the rope to help others climb. + It's magical. +
++ Kaizen Gameworks' previous title was the venerable + PARADISE KILLER, a murder mystery that you + actually have to solve. The case you're solving is the + murder of the leaders of a cult, and you're also a member of + that cult. Which you'd think wouldn't give much room for + maneuveur on making that world better, especially since to + craft Paradise, the island it takes place on, thousands of + human proles must be sacrificed. +
++ But even within that restrictive frame, you can make the world + a tiny bit better. Fix up vending machines. Venerate wrongly + accused subjects. Repair a marriage. Make out with a goat + woman. Admittedly, that last one is just good for me. +
++ And I think that speaks to how Kaizen just get it. The + world we live in is dark, darker by the day, but we as people + need to fight to make it better, in even the smallest of ways. + And Promise Mascot Agency and Paradise Killer understand that. +
++ As Death Stranding 2 goes on, you meet Tomorrow, a Mysterious + Kojima Woman who has the power to accelerate aging of things + she touches. When you first meet her, Fragile hands her an + apple, and it rots and crumbles in her hand. As you journey + across Australia she is taught many things about the world by + Rainy, another of your allies - another Mysterious Kojima + Woman who, whenever she steps outside, summons timefall rain, + which does much the same thing as Tomorrow's aging touch. +
++ Every so often, when you re-enter your base, Tomorrow will be + there, with an apple. Each time, it's less aged. She's + learning to ripen them. By the end of the game, she can ripen + them perfectly, giving Sam a little snack. As you play you + discover that Rainy's ability has a wonderful side-effect - + wherever she emerges, wherever the DHV Magellan surfaces from + the tar, her rain falls, and new plants grow. +
++ The crew are breathing life back into paradise, and we can do + it too. With small actions, we can make the world better. So + let's do it.