The Director’s Cut have begun to earn a place in the catalog first-party from PlayStation 5. That term that initially became popular in the cinema is now adopted in video games to differentiate the re-releases from their original versions. The first step was the responsibility of Ghost of Tsushima, and now it is the most recent work of Hideo Kojima the one that follows the same path. Death Stranding Director’s Cut it is here and these are our impressions.
Death Stranding It was one of the most talked about titles of 2019; its playable and narrative proposal divided opinion across the industry and was the center of debate for several weeks. It was always clear, yes, that it’s not a game for everyone. From this point originate the arguments of its main detractors. However, with the Director’s Cut, Kojima Productions aims to earn a place among players who, for one reason or another, did not get on the ship of the original launch.
Do not misunderstand the above. If you already played Death Stranding, the Director’s Cut It is an excellent opportunity to review the interesting adventure of Sam Porter Bridges – you can import your progress. This despite not including an expansion of the story as happened in Ghost of Tsushima: Director’s Cut. However, it is impossible to deny that a good part of the novelties introduced are focused on attracting a new sector of the public.
And it is that some of the processes that were considered tedious —or boring— of the original version, are now complemented, even simplified, by additions that give a twist to the experience. Basically, Hideo Kojima and his followers focused on make certain activities easier and more fun such as routes and deliveries. Taking into account that both are pillars throughout the adventure, then you can expect your experience to unfold in a different way than what he proposed in the 2019 title.
For example, Sam may carry some thrusters integrated into your exoskeleton. With this attachment you can descend from elevated areas in a matter of seconds. The most important thing is that you do not jeopardize the integrity of the protagonist and neither that of the cargo. Let us remember that in Death Stranding It is essential to protect all the objects that we carry on our back. With thrusters, moving from one point to another is more easy and, above all, faster. Of course, be very careful about trying to descend when you are carrying a large load.
In the original version we had the support of delivery bots to complete orders without the intervention of Sam. However, in Death Stranding Director’s Cut, a robot can be our travel companion. Not only to take responsibility for the cargo, but also to become our autonomous transport. If they were already a great help to make deliveries, now imagine having one by your side for much of the journey.
To finish with the news regarding the experience of transfers and deliveries, I cannot forget the catapult, a large machine that allows you to launch cargo towards a point far from the map. Their role is key when, for example, we need to cross dangerous terrain and we do not want to risk the load. In other situations you can simply expedite the delivery of an order. The new ramps and bridges they also serve the same purpose.
Surely up to this point of the analysis you could already identify that, indeed, Death Stranding Director’s Cut aims to facilitate your tasks in the open world. Of course, to take advantage of the described plugins, new delivery missions were added. It is another pretext to return to the open world. And if this is the first time you do it, you will have more content to enjoy.
In addition to the above, you should know that you will find surprises in the equipment. There are new weapons to face enemies and attachments that will allow you to improve your exoskeleton to speed up Sam’s movements. You will even have the opportunity to test them in a training ground, which also debuts. New customization options are also offered to change the look of some elements. It should be noted that the latter are mere visual additions and do not interfere with the gameplay.
Kojima Productions and Sony, prior to launch, emphasized that Death Stranding Director’s Cut leverages the hardware of the PlayStation 5 by offering the performance and fidelity modes. The first one runs to 60 FPS, while the other bets on a 4K resolution with decreased refresh rate. My recommendation is that you play it in performance mode; It is the one that really makes a difference.
You will also notice a decrease in loading times thanks to the PS5’s SSD storage. The DualSense, meanwhile, integrates pretty well with haptic feedback and adaptive triggers. The command stands out, above all, during combat, as you will feel the tension of the triggers when firing. As there are a large number of playable interactions, sensory experience won many points at Director’s Cut. Unfortunately, I cannot say the same for 3D Audio, as the difference from the original title is almost imperceptible.
Is this the definitive version of Death Stranding? Yes, definitely. Now, it would be difficult to say if its main novelties should have been present since the original launch. Perhaps Hideo Kojima’s goal was always for the player to feel the complexity of trying to unite humanity. But in the face of negative reactions from a certain sector of the public, he preferred to be more condescending removing certain obstacles that threw many people back. It lost essence, yes, but it gained fun.
Death Stranding Director’s Cut will be available on 24th September exclusively on the PlayStation 5. If you already have the title on your PS4, you can fork out 10 dollars / dollars to make the leap to the final version. For that amount, it’s totally worth it. If you never played it and never found something flashy to motivate your purchase, I highly doubt that the Director’s Cut change your opinion.
