Normally in game design, the designer will distract the player on the journey between point A and point B. This can happen via dialog/story, or some sort of "unexpected event" during an escort mission, etc.

There is something to be said about a game where it truly follows the saying "Its not the destination that matters, but the journey." Death Stranding is incredible for its game design and visuals because the entire *point* of the game is not the filler that most games have during these travel sequences but making the *entire gameplay loop* the journey from point A to point B. It is in a sense modern art because it is taken the normal language and features of games and inverting it. The entire game is just getting between the two points and you get story before you head out and additional story/lore when you reach your destination.

Combine all of this with the online component where other player's structures are able to be dynamically added to your own game; each person's journey is unique based on the materials left or created by other players and their own decisions.

I am a fan of the metal gear series overall but as the series progressed Kojima got to the point where there was no one to tell him "no, that is too...on the nose." This is where it becomes a negative review because all the trappings around the amazing concept of making the entire game the journey between points is just bad.

The name of characters are bad, Kojima's love and obsession with western action films is on full display with character names such as: DieHard-Man and Deathman. These are not megaman bosses or Bruce willis films just name of characters. (WE GET IT, you like Dirhard, it is a great movie series!)

I love cheese B movies (look at my steam library and you will see some Deadly Premonition, Earth Defense Force, and even Binary Domain) which is to say I love a good B-movie esq game. However the cutscenes are so self-serious, the voice-acting and mocap are incredible looking but no one seemed to be having "fun" on set. Its all so self-serious that it goes beyond the "so serious it is kinda funny/amazing" to just "this is just bad."

If you want a good idea of how you can turn the mundane into something special this is a game worth checking out. The game left a mark on me in how no matter how successful or "solved" a gameplay mechanic is; there is always another way or approach that can make it novel and "new." However, as just a game in general it is very hard to recommend for anyone other than the most hardcore Kojima fans.