Death Stranding 2: On the Beach Was Designed to be Less “Extreme” Than Predecessor – Hideo Kojima

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Okay, so I’ve been playing Death Stranding 2: On the Beach, and honestly, it feels like a big step up from the first game in pretty much every way. Hideo Kojima actually talked about this recently – they really focused on making the game smoother and less frustrating this time around. He mentioned in an interview that they intentionally toned down the really tough parts, because they noticed a lot of players were quitting when they hit those difficulty spikes in the original. It’s cool to see they listened to feedback and made the experience more enjoyable!

One of my biggest worries while working on Death Stranding 2: On the Beach was making sure it felt like the first game, but also giving players ways to handle the challenges a bit better. We definitely learned from the first Death Stranding – it was tough in places! Hideo Kojima-san said we really thought about the difficulty. We wanted to keep the core gameplay and themes intact, but smooth things out so it’s more approachable. That’s why we added a bunch more vehicles – to give players more options and make things a little easier.

Hideo Kojima explained that the unusual design choices in the first Death Stranding were deliberate, but they caused many players to stop playing at two specific points. He mentioned one of these was early in the game, requiring players to transport the body of President Bridget Strand for cremation. Kojima stated that Death Stranding 2: On the Beach won’t feature similar sections that cause players to quit.

Kojima also noted that making the sequel more accessible by addressing some of the original game’s challenges resulted in a less enthusiastic response from dedicated Death Stranding fans. He explained that game developers constantly face the challenge of broadening a game’s appeal without losing the support of their core players.

Hideo Kojima recently discussed the future of the Death Stranding series. While he doesn’t plan to personally create Death Stranding 3, he’s developed a concept for the game and would like to see another studio take on the project.

Hideo Kojima stated he isn’t currently working on Death Stranding 3 because he considers the ending of Death Stranding 2 to be a conclusive finish to the story he originally envisioned. However, he has already developed the core concept for a third game and has it documented, hoping someone else will eventually bring it to life.

Kojima Productions is working on two titles for now—horror game OD and espionage title Physint.

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2025-12-18 16:41