‘Death Stranding 2’ Reviews Are In, And It’s A GOTY Contender

It’s not every day the legendary Hideo Kojima releases a new game, and when he does, the entire gaming industry stands up and takes notice. As expected, Death Stranding 2: On the Beach is another stellar offering from Kojima, and as reviews pour in, the high scores are everywhere. Not the highest of the entire year, perhaps, but very high all the same.

As I write this, Death Stranding 2 has a 90 on Metacritc, ticked up from an 89 as I wrote this article, and that makes it one of the best-reviewed games of the year. And probably the best-reviewed at this scale. Here’s the current list, though you have to keep in mind things like Zelda “upgrades” and smaller games with a tiny amount of reviews in:

Tears of the Kingdom Switch 2 Edition – 95 (9 reviews)
Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 – 93 (84 reviews)
Breath of the Wild Switch 2 Edition – 93 (11 reviews)
Blue Prince – 92 (54 reviews)
Split Fiction – 91 (108 reviews)
Death Stranding 2: On the Beach – 90 (91 reviews)
Despelote – 89 (17 reviews)
The Talos Principle: Reawakened – 89 (14 reviews)
Kingdom Come Deliverance 2 – 88 (75 reviews)
Monster Hunter Wilds – 88 (107 reviews)
Kingdom Come Deliverance 2 – (75 reviews)
Monster Train 2 – 88 (28 reviews)

Death Stranding 2

Metacritic

So yes, I would classify this as the best-reviewed AAA game that’s been released so far this year, and I have little doubt it’s going to be in the GOTY shortlist. I’ve seen The Washington Post’s Gene Park describe it as Kojima’s best game since 2004’s Metal Gear Solid 3, which is certainly saying something. The 90 score is well above the 82 the first Death Stranding received in 2019.

The PS5-only game currently has a full 25 10/10 scores out of this 90 reviews in, its lowest are just two 7s. Here is what critics are saying about it:

VGC (10/10): “Death Stranding 2: On The Beach is an all-time great sequel and one of Hideo Kojima’s best games. With a stunning world, greatly expanded gameplay and player choice, and one of Kojima’s most compelling casts and narratives, it significantly improves on the original in virtually every way.”
Guardian (10/10): “Of the many things Death Stranding 2 is trying to say, the message that comes to the fore is: you are never truly alone. Global disasters, big tech, even death itself – these things might abstract the way we connect to one another, but they can’t sever the connection altogether. Not bad for a game about delivering boxes.”
The Gamer (9/10): “Death Stranding 2: On The Beach is a hard game to quantify, with Kojima Productions eager to question our expectations and hurl curveballs at every turn. At its heart, it’s an experience about delivering packages and forging connections across a post-apocalyptic world, but play it for just a few hours, and you’ll see it’s so much more than that.”

While Kojima games are not for everyone, you are not going to hear anything but glowing recommendations here from 95% of critics. Death Stranding 2: On the Beach launches just three days from now, on Thursday, June 26.

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