"Digital connections alone couldn’t satisfy human needs."
The Covid-19 pandemic influenced everyone's lives in some way, and game development was affected as well. Last year, Hideo Kojima revealed he had to rewrite Death Stranding 2 as his view of this world had changed. He expressed that natural connections born offline are much more valuable than those we build remotely.
Now, in a new interview with a Japanese news site Natalie, he talked a little more about it.
"When the pandemic did strike, it led us to restructure the entire script. In Death Stranding we championed the act of connection. But, as the pandemic took hold, digital connections like remote work gained prominence," he said (via VGC).
Kojima realized that digital connections alone couldn’t satisfy human needs. "We are inherently explorers," he continued. "Right now, we’re dealing with seclusion and division, and the world is undergoing significant transformations. We can’t rewind to our pre-pandemic reality, so we’ve had to reassess the concept of ‘connection’."
"Should we have connected?" asked the first trailer, and knowing the background of the story makes looking at this phrase differently. "In Death Stranding 2, the interpretation of ‘strand’ evolves," Kojima said, and I am looking forward to seeing how it plays out in the game.
The Death Stranding sequel is still in development. Kojima is heavily involved in the process and even did the casting for the game himself. The same can be said about the upcoming movie adaptation, although he is not directing it.
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