re: PS people, is Death Stranding worth it? On PC Gamepass now

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It ultimately boils down to gameplay. Something must have gameplay to be a video game. That gameplay must also be compelling and a primary focus of the work, ideally THE primary focus. A video game can still have a great story and graphics and all that jazz, but ultimately the gameplay has to exist and be relevant and the central pillar of the experience.

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I think Death Stranding fits within that definition easily. I know people joke about DS being a "walking simulator", but it isn't. Those do exist, but this ain't it. I could go into nauseating detail, but I think this is the most succinct way I can put it: if you stripped out every single story element, every bit of dialogue, turned every NPC into a stick figure, etc, you would still have a perfectly functional "game" in which you're a delivery guy having to navigate difficult terrain on foot, and later sometimes in vehicles, while avoiding various types of antagonists who are trying to either kill you, steal your cargo, or both. You can attempt stealth, full blown combat, or some combination of the two. If you do so well, by meeting requirements on cargo damage and delivery time, you can get better gear, improve your character attributes, and unlock new areas to explore and expand the gameplay loop.

To shift to relevancy prong, it is impossible to progress the story of the game without engaging in the aforementioned gameplay loop. Period. Can't be done.

People can whine all the live-long day that DS wasn't what they expected, or what they wanted it to be, but the argument that it's not a video game is one I see fairly often, and honestly strains credulity a bit for me

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One of the best big budget games in years, in my opinion. You have to be okay with playing a delivery simulator, though, as that's how you spend most of your time in the game.

Lots of creativity and originality that you don't see a lot of in modern video games.

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this. I do have fun wiping out the mule camps (for my road ingredients of course) now that I have assault rifles and a riot shotgun and armor plates.

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this gameplay loop is addicting as hell.

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Agreed! I played it for about 150 hours last year and after beating it, I still like to play for a couple hours on weekends just delivering packages, building/repairing structures, and helping out other porters.

I find the loop to be so relaxing, especially once you've unlocked all the tools, vehicles, weapons, etc. I just wish there was an in-game music player. The soundtrack is so good, I have no idea why Kojima didn't include one!

Keep on keepin' on!

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I just wish there was an in-game music player. The soundtrack is so good, I have no idea why Kojima didn't include one!

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I completely get why he didn’t include one during the initial playthrough, as he’s using music very intentionally. But once you’re in the end game, it would be a really nice addition.