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Death Stranding 2: On the Beach is one of the most anticipated games coming out in 2025. In the first game, creator Hideo Kojima and studio Sony Interactive Entertainment had developed a world that has had fans clamoring for a follow-up in the 5 years after its release. However, the world Kojima & Sny created is subject to change according to what the creators deem most powerful. And according to Hideo Kojima, the world of Death Stranding changed because of how ours did.

Speaking at The Game Awards 2022, Kojima touched on the already-anticipated sequel to Death Stranding, revealing something that fans in the audience no doubt took as a bummer. "After experiencing the pandemic," IGN reported Kojima saying, "I just re-wrote the whole thing from scratch."

That meant, of course, a longer wait for the game. 

Now that that wait is nearly over, it's interesting to ponder what the original story of Death Stranding 2: On the Beach was going to be before Kojima changed it. Elle Fanning, who does the mo-cap acting for the character of Tomorrow, was already confirmed to be a part of the cast at this point, so it's unlikely that the change involved adding her character. 

Similarly, Norman Reedus, who plays main character Sam Bridges, was confirmed to return since the moment that the announcement of Death Stranding 2 was made. 

The pre-pandemic version of Death Stranding's upcoming sequel may never be entirely known, and while we trust that Hideo Kojima's decisions will make for the best story possible (his track record is pretty impressive thus far), it will be hard not to wonder what it might have looked like. Of course, compared to everything else that changed because of COVID-19, it would be foolish not to consider a video game small in comparison.

Death Stranding 2: On the Beach will release June 26, 2025. You can preorder it now.

You don't need to beat the game to prepare for the next one—here are all the major new and upcoming games coming our way.