Second time he plays that part then. Since The Walking Dead is not refering to the Zombies but rather the Survivors. Starting to make more conections to why Kojima cast him.
Kojima is a genius in the unbelievable. He loves making things that are both amazing to look at while also difficult to fully understand. Seeing this element of his design return to his new IP is very good news.
But this is what these trailers are intended for, they aren't like any other trailers where its just to give you a general idea of what the game is and tries so hard to get you excited. Instead here, you are challenged into obsessing over this mystery and work for it so that you GET the general idea of what the game is. And pointing title thing out was to further support Yong's speculations.
This is why Death stranding is Amizing, its the Will that need to know more about the hell is this game about, epecially when Kojima said it would be something new that NO GAME has done before, Imagen this, OVER 40k games is out there we are at 2017 and Kojima said he will bring some thing NEW to us, WOW seriously cant wait to see what it is.
The general idea of the Life/Death world theory makes a lot of sense. Mads controls skeletons, dead people, his army, that he would presumably be using to invade the world of the living. Perhaps the dead are trapped in the living world, lending a double meaning to the title "Death Stranding" (Death is stranded in the world of the living, this goes hand in hand with the real life usage of the term "Death Stranding", used to describe a phenomenon where whales beach themselves). Great video, thanks for bringing this theory to our attention.
Life asked death, "Why do people love me but hate you?" Death responded, "Because you are a Beautiful lie and I am a painful truth." Author unknown. life & death connections.
we lie to ourselves "we'll keep living!!", a beautiful lie, but ultimately we will die eventually which is a painful truth. (Just speculation) and hey! don't worry :D poems are often written with the poet's interpretation (and others who understand) in mind. We, as readers/viewers, are left to interpretation. Only people who can relate, understand, and/or empathize can...well.....understand!
That's what I had said 4 or 5 months ago on your channel. Kojima is implementing the world changing element in Death Stranding. That's why when liquid drips from the tank to Toro's feet, the liquid level rises and whale carcasses appear. Kojima is incorporating aspects from both Silent Hill and Metal Gear into Death Stranding. I already speculated about the handcuffs as well.
Yong I gotta say... I can't watch these videos anymore. Just feels like you're so spot on with your predictions and speculations + the amazing data you bring up that I feel as though the game is slowly being spoiled. Props to you and keep it going but as for me and the Death Stranding videos I'm gonna stop watching until I play the game and come back to check all your speculations.
Look at it this way. The games release date is so far form now we'll all forget the theories in this video by then. And if you dont forget then you'll have a better understanding of whats going on when you play it. Also Yong is only theorizing based on the two trailers released. Thats only a small portion of the game
When the baby in Norman's world slowly crawls away leaving those black hand marks if you watch for a spilt second after they leave his body they scar or mark his body with the outline of that hand print. If you look at Norman when he is curled up around the baby and throughout the full first trailer he has hand prints all over him adult and child. Could this mean this isn't Normans first time dying and coming to this world or could he be a sort of reaper or gate keeper for a world that Matts character cannot enter. Its just a big theory but that hands prints I think should be looked at.
Gleidston Filipe I would say this is the PRECISE reason to think too much on it. Some artists attempt this but the effect is different. Kojima is a master of his particular craft of provoking thought. That being said I understand both mine and your approach to the mystery we've been shown so far. Neither is right, neither is wrong. Wouldn't you say?
Tyler Neal, I mean the aforementioned as in "Can't get enough of.". As in "The more I think of it, the more I want to think of it. I'm all for thought provocative pieces, even when they don't seem to be set to do so. Even though I was struck with amazement by the trailers, I couldn't make myself do any sort of research on what I saw, and I am very grateful for people like Mr. Yong, who share their homework. I am very much enlightened with your approach on the statement.
hey did you see pythonselkin 2 hour theory? They believe the 2 worlds are P.T. being the living and death stranding being the land of the dead. Norman Hung him self with the Garden hose after killing his family (Which changes to umbilical on the radio of the game) entered the new world of death stranding. Far fetched but they do a GREAT job of direct links with PT. Like in P.T. when starting the game you see the "Contact J" Text in the game. In Death Stranding trailer (Del Toro) You can see a "J" on the top of the tunnel! It's an insane Theory but as you continue their theory it seems.. plausible
+Jon Ford That part where he showed the J on the bridge and the message you get from P.T. From a guy named J when the game crashes really got to me. I also found it very interesting that he was visiting Iceland and Normandy or has he called it "Normandie" during the development of Silent Hills.
Solid Snake I think Kojima visiting those places doesn't really mean much. Yes, one explanation is that DS is Silent Hills, but it could also be as simple as Kojima didn't want to go on another location scouting trip to save time or whatever, so he used the places that he had already seen and liked
GUILLERMOS RIGHT HAND, NORMANS LEFT HAND!!! THEYRE CONNECTED!!! Im guessing that glow is the other person. i dont think its some high tech cuff that glows
You don't need two pairs of handcuffs for two people to each other noi (unless it's to handcuff both their hands.) You'd only need one. Two suggests they're connected to a 3rd person (Joosten character?).
The handcuffs could somehow bridge the two worlds, he's not saying there is two sets of handcuffs but rather one set of handcuffs existing simultaneously in both worlds. Allowing for the connection between the characters, maybe even being a requirement for the artificial womb to function. It would explain why the baby disappears from the death realm when Guillermo connects his life cord to the artificial womb, bring the baby back to life/out of stasis. It might be that in order to create a new soul/life that two men must be connected via these special handcuffs, or perhaps even that one character must sacrifice themselves and die while bound with these special handcuffs to another man in order to create another soul in the artificial womb. If no-one sacrifices themselves then humanity will die out. It's all speculation here but I do think the handcuffs are somehow connecting these 2 characters between the realms of life and death.
FOQUIS ROUND, don't think watching the video would change his comment dude. He didn't ask any questions the video answered. He didn't say anything that the video disproves or anything. He simply stated that he didn't think Yong would make any more DS videos before E3. Knowing Yong he'll probably have a few more before E3. Atleast one making some guess as to what we'll see from it at E3 if anything at all.
F yea, this dude is the freaking man. Congratulations bro I'd say you cracked it. Also going to note that my band and I have been covering "I'll Keep Coming" for the past several months. We're trying to create our own live versions of some of the effects used in the song but either way we'll be happy with the outcome as it's an extremely fun song to play. sometimes I imagine I'm some manifestation of Normans character singing the lyrics based on what both Kojima and Norman have said about BEING Normans character as opposed to simply playing AS his character. This theory adds so much more weight to the song for me. Thanks again Yong!!!
The idea of two planes of existence, and dying merely taking the character from one plane to the other, would be amazing. The last time a game explored such an existential duality was in the brilliant Soul Reaver (PSone) & Soul Reaver 2 and Legacy of Kain (PS2) with a lot of time travelling and vampirism thrown into the mix.
I recently watched PythonSelkan's DS analysis which mentioned the manga Gyo, so I got interested and read it and it does have some striking similarities. I think Kojima might have taken some of the inspiration from there
Guinea Pig Racer! well, agreed, the story is shit, but some things are very close to what we know about DS, in my opinion. Dead fish coming out of the sea is what death stranding means and there are some other things like animating lifeless objects through some organic substance that is supplied to these objects with cords that function very similar to umbilical cords
Great analysis as always. If you think about it, the concept of merging the living world with the dead is something Kojima has delved into quite a few times before. Most noticeably with Gray Fox. "After Zanzibar, I was taken from the battle, neither truly alive, nor truly dead, an undying shadow, in a world of lights."
I just recently started following more and more on Death Standing and I've noticed a lot of metaphysical/ethereal representations. Norman's character, Sam, is a Porter, a member of a corpse removal team. Porters are separate from Bridges members. In the world of the living, a porter, also called an usher, was someone who came an removed a corpse or cadaver from wherever. In the land of the dead, a porter is known as a psychopomp, a spirit who leads the souls of the dead to the underworld. The umbilicals I associated with life for both of them but in different ways. The white one I see as a physical manifestation of the "silver cord", the ethereal string that connects the soul to the body. The black umbilical I see as a literal representation of the mortal coil. Life that leads to death. "Slough off this mortal coil" as the saying goes. The baby on the beach isn't Norman's. It washed up with him. That's why it has a black umbilicus, left black stains, and headed towards the shadow beings. Mads' character imbues the bodies of the dead with life returning them to the mortal coil. However, it's only the bodies not the souls, that's why it's black. That's just a theory. Just my own thoughts on another thing. The gold stuff on the cadaver is a death mask. The vehicle, it's crew, and cargo (the already prepared cadaver) were already on the ground when the third trailer opens. We don't see the gold stuff anywhere else. Why or what floats upward as the body sinks, I can't say for sure. But depending on what side of the scale they're on at that moment, with Sam being a Porter/psychopomp, I can make a limited guess based on the themes of the game.
Wouldn't the artificial womb be simply an advanced application of Schrodinger's cat paradox? It an example of quantum superposition. When the womb is disconnected, the baby is both dead and alive.
Quantum superposition states that any two (or more) quantum states can be added together ("superposed") and the result will be another valid quantum state, which applies to physical objects
The Legacy of Kain actually had similar 'death' system. Where when your character dies he doesn't get sent back in time, but back tracks to certain point to revive himself.
Of the five figures in the original reveal trailer, the middle one appears to have its arms folded as if it's holding a baby and there are there's four other figures. I believe the middle one is actually Guillermo Del Toro's character who is actually holding the baby and the other four are the skeleton soldiers. Towards the end of this trailer we see Mads Mikkelsen's character draw the doll with a C-Section towards him which then opens its eye, the eye is blue colored which is the exact same color as Norman Reedus's character's eyes. In the first trailer, he sees the five figures in front of him after the baby is taken from him, after which the the figures disappear....these trailers are taking place at the same time but in different dimensions. This also gives us some insight into the fate of Guillermo Del Toro's character.
maybe its already covered in another video but I just noticed it. Guillermo is wearing handcuffs like Norman and on Guillermo's character the cuffs are on his right hand and both are cuffed and on Normans the cuffs are on his left hand wich are also both cuffed. this means maybe that Guillermo was there when Norman died and maybe took the case with the baby or if their friends Guillermo help Norman to get out of the dead world.
The black hands on the beach in Norman's reality (beginning of trailer) is probably Guillermo getting closer to the baby's artificial womb and picking it up in the living reality before it's disappearance.
I think their handcuffs being on opposite hands is a hint that the two are parallels of each other, and since they're wearing them only on one hand means they were captured at some point and escaped. In any case, Kojima is very good at (visual) storytelling and so far the mystery of this game is extremely intriguing to me. Can't wait for a 3rd trailer or some more news in the future.
The oil appearing when beings cross between worlds reminds me of the burned engine oil from Twin Peaks - scorched engine oil (or something with the same properties as scorched engine oil) is used to access the Black Lodge, an alternate dimension. When one of the Black Lodge entities took active possession of a person in our dimension, the victim would sometimes stink of burned engine oil.
YongYea thank you for updating as soon as you know more I am a huge fan of Hideo and I can NOT wait till this arrives. All Hideo fans know it will be a masterpiece!
Okay just finished that video. That part where Yong mentioned the game mechanic @ around 10:45. It just struck me. Kojima intends on touching people in a deep way. Perhaps, sacrifices for the greater good? To benefit the other world? Think like Stefanie forced to trust Norman Reedus for some reason to allow Norman to kill her so that she could traverse into the land of the dead for a brief moment. Maybe something like the Sorrow boss battle where the people you kill in the living world makes the land of the dead missions more difficult. But what if Kojima by "cry" he didn't mean emotionally, but also by sheer anger? Could be some crazy dark souls game for all we know. Rope (x3) acquired.
Not sure if anyone has mentioned this yet, but your theory about the death mechanic is definitely highly possible. Normally in games, when you DIE, you FAIL and therefore have to restart (from a previous checkpoint for example). However it's highly possible that in Death Stranding, when you die, you will instead pass over into the realm of the dead and continue playing there (perhaps in an effort to ascend back into the realm of the living, or the realm of the dead having its own objectives apart from that). This theory is also consistent with Hideo's discussion about how this game is going to be very unique and create its own genre on its own (the genre perhaps being tied to the new death mechanic, which we indeed have not seen very often if at all).
I like to think that the world Norman is in is actually Purgatory itself. If we base it on the cycle of life and death, it's possible that Norman's cycle of rebirth was cut off, thus stranded. It's possible Guillermo is the father of Norman and the baby he's holding could be Norman's son. Just wild speculation of course but it does add some emotional layer to the story. One of my friends actually claimed its based on the story of Dante and his journey through hell. Far fetched but there are elements of that story in the 2 trailers. But I'll agree with this theory. It's the most plausible out of the many theories out there. Great video and thanks to the Reddit user! Awesome stuff!
There's actually another thing that's kinda mirrored between the two trailers. While the 'dead' trailer ends with these 5 monolithic beings from very far away, the 'alive' trailer ends with Mads Mikkelsen and the 4 undead from very close up.
Yong there's a movie called Constantine that has a ton of similarities to the Norman Reedus part such as the way he looks at his hands and the black substance " blood". I think you're right on the money and this scene was a nod to the movie. Again not sure if this is common knowledge or not but I just saw the movie and thought of this.
Maybe like a beefed up version of the afterlife segments in the original Prey? You die, and it's like an entire section of the game you have to play through before you can get back to the living world?
I have a confession to make. I mostly watch these videos to hear Yong say "Yeeeyongggyeeeaaah!" and "I'll see you guuuyz next time, Yeeeeyong-yeeeooout!"
I remember hearing somewhere that although Mads' character is the antagonist, he's not necessarily evil. Going off the theory presented in this video, maybe Mads' character is just trying to restore the balance between the two planes of existence (life & death), and have them be segregated once again. But maybe I'm flying off the handle on that one..
I can't help but point out that "I took the easy way out" would imply that the man already committed suicide, thus he's not living and trying to cross over to the dead, but already dead and lamenting his choices
This game is already everything, I can just feel how dope it's gonna be, especially if P.T. was a taste of the atmospheres they can create, I can't wait until we see more.
I'm pretty sure the handcuffs have something to do with it. Shackle they wear on their hand represents current realm(death) while the blue emitted cuff represents the world of life? Hmmm maybe. But they can't use both or they'll be stuck in-between two worlds unable to get out.just maybe...
Mads Mikkelsen seems to be wearing a modern military loadout (hints the uniform, gun, and nv goggles) and the soldiers he made with the black cords appear to be dressed in WW2 uniforms with the same era rifles. I don't know what can be speculated off this, I think that time travel could be a plausible theory.
It is possible that the 'Game Over(or Death in game)' could mean the transition to other world - living world(Guillermo's) to death world(Normans') or vice versa. Two independent plots could be combined by Death while players keep dying and being revived! This is my thought, but thanks to let me think like this way.
I'd bet that Norman is in stasis too. He, like the baby, is naked. Generally in film and tv, when people are shown in such a state of stasis, they are in a tank of liquid, and naked. It's possible that this technology is the way they can link the world of life and death without really dying. Plus, I don't think Norman is dead, considering the handcuff. I believe it represents his link to the world of the living, since Guillermo is alive and wearing it too.
The life and death concept sounds almost like the game Prey. In the game, when you get killed by an enemy you're taken to some other world in gray. These flying fish are just flying around you and you have to shoot them down to be revived. But from what Kojima's saying it sounds more interesting.
I feel like the universe of death stranding, will be aware of its existence separate from ours (the real world). I feel as though the characters in the game are avatars and they know it. Essential death stranding in this theory is the matrix, but in reverse. Like when you create a character, you'll be creating a person who now exists in there world, and the decisions of players or even real time global events may change the scenery of th game. I think mads character will not only know that we are controlling an avatar but he may think that he is be being controlled by a person in our world as well. He may even have an opinion on us, the players, invading his world and using it as our personal play ground. Just a thought
So basically I think, it's not life and death that he's referring too, but the evolutionary step of choosing a virtual world as your primary world instead of the real world. Highlighting escapism in the modern world, and our evolution from the homo sapient into the homo ludens. A species geared around play. Make sense? We keep coming may refer to us respawninging over and over again in video games, in attempt to escape our world. The other trailer may be from the avatars perspective...idk, still working on this theory
Also in the space trailer with the monsters they were pretty adamant to commit suicide, at first I instantly speculated that was to prevent suffering, but maybe they were trying to cross over from the world of the living to the world of the dead? Perhaps there really is something worse than death, and they were trying to prevent it
just a wild theory based on this, I think the handcuffs might be the link between both worlds. Such as "normal" humans need the handcuffs to cross over with getting stuck permanently. Maybe the cuffs link to another person or even Link to the alive or Dead version of yourself. and maybe Madds is not a "normal" human and therefore he doesn't need the cuffs to anchor his live body to his dead body in the other world. And like you said about the black liquid Madds has that on his body and can use the black cords because he is just "bleeding through to the live world. and that liquid leaking shows his existence in the live world is not permanent or 100% stable
With regards to the song Easy Way Out of the second Death Stranding trailer. It might be a possibility that Norman Reedus' character (assuming the protagonist) has killed himself, due to a mistake he has made and a person dear to him is no longer there.
I don't know if Living and Dead, but I think its pretty likely that there'll be two parallel dimensions interacting with each other (maybe this is also what Kojima meant with his comments about multiplayer). This theory is pretty interesting.
Two versions of the game will come out, black edition and white edition. Players online will play as Norman Reedus's character in the black edition, and players will play as Del Toro's character in the white edition. It will be a co-op style game with online interactions between both players, as each player plays their respective world, but connected to the other player. Two different games, but within each other's stories.
Shifting between the spiritual world and physical world as a gameplay mechanics?, Soul Reaver springs to mind. :) Nah, it's just an excuse to remember that awesome game series.
This game can't release soon enough, I'm so hyped for a game where death/suicide is not a game over screen but opens up even more gameplay options. Don't let us down Kojima-Senpai.
Random thought popped into my head while watching this, wehn you described the black liquid, it really reminded me of the pink sludge from ghostbusters 2 and how they used to make the statue of liberty move, I wonder if there is something similar happening with the black liquid and the dead and other inanimate objects. Probably nothing, but kojima does love his films.
I THINK THE TOY DOLL PLAYS AN IMPORTANT ROLL HERE; it appears to be attached to a death strand as if it's being used for recon, it's not just floating by..... it's being moved!
Re: the handcuffs. I notice Norman'a cuffs are on his left hand while the other guy (idk how you spell his name) has his cuffs on his right hand. This means they could've been bound together by them at some point, and maybe are even through the "veil" of life/death?
I have a theory that the handcuffs are links or portals between the land of the living and the land of the dead. Almost like the wearer will have the ability to cross realms as long as it is connected to someone else on that plain.
1:50 Norman gets killed in boat crash (wondered that after Kojima tweeted the image of him playing with lego-eque bricks, then joking it was for work. Yong did video on it.) Guillermo Del Toro character was watching the crash and somehow indirectly resulted in it, hints why he feels guilty and wants to kill himself. 1:32 Children of Men? Cool. Great theory. Only hole is who is Stefanie Joosten playing then? I can't imagine Kojima making a game without "sexy" women. And it's pretty well-known she's probably going to have a role in this game.
Norman reedus Is the literal walking dead
Second time he plays that part then. Since The Walking Dead is not refering to the Zombies but rather the Survivors. Starting to make more conections to why Kojima cast him.
Kojima is a genius in the unbelievable. He loves making things that are both amazing to look at while also difficult to fully understand.
Seeing this element of his design return to his new IP is very good news.
+Mister Boot shut the fuck up nobody cares about your dumbass channel you're trying to shop around
Jakeb Damwyk Look At your profile Picture a J Get Better
I would like to point out that the Death Stranding title appears in Black on the first trailer and White on the second trailer.
A Qurban Excellent observation
But this is what these trailers are intended for, they aren't like any other trailers where its just to give you a general idea of what the game is and tries so hard to get you excited. Instead here, you are challenged into obsessing over this mystery and work for it so that you GET the general idea of what the game is. And pointing title thing out was to further support Yong's speculations.
Thank you, sir.
This is why Death stranding is Amizing, its the Will that need to know more about the hell is this game about, epecially when Kojima said it would be something new that NO GAME has done before, Imagen this, OVER 40k games is out there we are at 2017 and Kojima said he will bring some thing NEW to us, WOW seriously cant wait to see what it is.
Well spotted mate👍everything means something when kojima is involved
The general idea of the Life/Death world theory makes a lot of sense. Mads controls skeletons, dead people, his army, that he would presumably be using to invade the world of the living. Perhaps the dead are trapped in the living world, lending a double meaning to the title "Death Stranding" (Death is stranded in the world of the living, this goes hand in hand with the real life usage of the term "Death Stranding", used to describe a phenomenon where whales beach themselves). Great video, thanks for bringing this theory to our attention.
Life asked death, "Why do people love me but hate you?"
Death responded,
"Because you are a Beautiful lie and I am a painful truth."
Author unknown.
life & death connections.
Bruh.
can someone explain this to me? how is "life" a lie exactly? and how is "death" the truth? Sorry for being dumb
I found this on Google. last year.
we lie to ourselves "we'll keep living!!", a beautiful lie, but ultimately we will die eventually which is a painful truth.
(Just speculation)
and hey! don't worry :D poems are often written with the poet's interpretation (and others who understand) in mind. We, as readers/viewers, are left to interpretation. Only people who can relate,
understand, and/or empathize can...well.....understand!
ryuuotaku35 how is life a lie ??
That's what I had said 4 or 5 months ago on your channel. Kojima is implementing the world changing element in Death Stranding. That's why when liquid drips from the tank to Toro's feet, the liquid level rises and whale carcasses appear. Kojima is incorporating aspects from both Silent Hill and Metal Gear into Death Stranding. I already speculated about the handcuffs as well.
Someone has to tell Kojima to put the bong down
but why?
Because I like his games but will also like to understand what the hell is going on
luckily we'll know eventually.
that or we get stuck in a theory loop chain
no I want daddy to use the bong. :-)
Yong I gotta say... I can't watch these videos anymore. Just feels like you're so spot on with your predictions and speculations + the amazing data you bring up that I feel as though the game is slowly being spoiled.
Props to you and keep it going but as for me and the Death Stranding videos I'm gonna stop watching until I play the game and come back to check all your speculations.
Look at it this way. The games release date is so far form now we'll all forget the theories in this video by then. And if you dont forget then you'll have a better understanding of whats going on when you play it. Also Yong is only theorizing based on the two trailers released. Thats only a small portion of the game
Morning I think he means it like that they're so detailed & sound so plausible they look as if they were canon information about the game.
Mezxxii lol you won't be back for a long time
I'm here for everything else. Personally, just avoiding Death Stranding news.
this is exactly what happened to westworld. every reveal was called out by analyzers 8 episodes back
When the baby in Norman's world slowly crawls away leaving those black hand marks if you watch for a spilt second after they leave his body they scar or mark his body with the outline of that hand print. If you look at Norman when he is curled up around the baby and throughout the full first trailer he has hand prints all over him adult and child. Could this mean this isn't Normans first time dying and coming to this world or could he be a sort of reaper or gate keeper for a world that Matts character cannot enter. Its just a big theory but that hands prints I think should be looked at.
One cannot think too much on a Kojima prodiction. They're masterfully crafted to excite imagination.
Gleidston Filipe Except for mgsv. A lot of us looked into that too much.
CANAVERO WAS A CONSPIRACY
Gleidston Filipe I would say this is the PRECISE reason to think too much on it. Some artists attempt this but the effect is different. Kojima is a master of his particular craft of provoking thought.
That being said I understand both mine and your approach to the mystery we've been shown so far.
Neither is right, neither is wrong.
Wouldn't you say?
Tyler Neal, I mean the aforementioned as in "Can't get enough of.". As in "The more I think of it, the more I want to think of it.
I'm all for thought provocative pieces, even when they don't seem to be set to do so.
Even though I was struck with amazement by the trailers, I couldn't make myself do any sort of research on what I saw, and I am very grateful for people like Mr. Yong, who share their homework.
I am very much enlightened with your approach on the statement.
hey did you see pythonselkin 2 hour theory? They believe the 2 worlds are P.T. being the living and death stranding being the land of the dead. Norman Hung him self with the Garden hose after killing his family (Which changes to umbilical on the radio of the game) entered the new world of death stranding. Far fetched but they do a GREAT job of direct links with PT. Like in P.T. when starting the game you see the "Contact J" Text in the game. In Death Stranding trailer (Del Toro) You can see a "J" on the top of the tunnel! It's an insane Theory but as you continue their theory it seems.. plausible
+Jon Ford
That part where he showed the J on the bridge and the message you get from P.T. From a guy named J when the game crashes really got to me. I also found it very interesting that he was visiting Iceland and Normandy or has he called it "Normandie" during the development of Silent Hills.
Solid Snake I think Kojima visiting those places doesn't really mean much. Yes, one explanation is that DS is Silent Hills, but it could also be as simple as Kojima didn't want to go on another location scouting trip to save time or whatever, so he used the places that he had already seen and liked
Jon Ford Duuuuuuude that sounds too good
They probably also think Norman Reedus is Gray Fox.
+Mega Dan Triggered. I think it's Norman who's playing Solid Snake and Mads playing Gray Fox. Fits better. Kappa.
I have a feeling that death, in this game, is going to be necessary to progress.
theres a tweet somewhere where kojima says pay attention to "easy way out" s lyrics.
GUILLERMOS RIGHT HAND, NORMANS LEFT HAND!!! THEYRE CONNECTED!!! Im guessing that glow is the other person. i dont think its some high tech cuff that glows
You don't need two pairs of handcuffs for two people to each other noi (unless it's to handcuff both their hands.) You'd only need one. Two suggests they're connected to a 3rd person (Joosten character?).
The handcuffs could somehow bridge the two worlds, he's not saying there is two sets of handcuffs but rather one set of handcuffs existing simultaneously in both worlds. Allowing for the connection between the characters, maybe even being a requirement for the artificial womb to function. It would explain why the baby disappears from the death realm when Guillermo connects his life cord to the artificial womb, bring the baby back to life/out of stasis.
It might be that in order to create a new soul/life that two men must be connected via these special handcuffs, or perhaps even that one character must sacrifice themselves and die while bound with these special handcuffs to another man in order to create another soul in the artificial womb. If no-one sacrifices themselves then humanity will die out.
It's all speculation here but I do think the handcuffs are somehow connecting these 2 characters between the realms of life and death.
Anime Girl Amy what I mean is it's only one pair of cuffs linking Guillermo and Norman.The glow could be the person on each other's respective side
i wasnt expecting any new DS videos until E3
FOQUIS ROUND, don't think watching the video would change his comment dude. He didn't ask any questions the video answered. He didn't say anything that the video disproves or anything. He simply stated that he didn't think Yong would make any more DS videos before E3. Knowing Yong he'll probably have a few more before E3. Atleast one making some guess as to what we'll see from it at E3 if anything at all.
F yea, this dude is the freaking man. Congratulations bro I'd say you cracked it. Also going to note that my band and I have been covering "I'll Keep Coming" for the past several months. We're trying to create our own live versions of some of the effects used in the song but either way we'll be happy with the outcome as it's an extremely fun song to play. sometimes I imagine I'm some manifestation of Normans character singing the lyrics based on what both Kojima and Norman have said about BEING Normans character as opposed to simply playing AS his character. This theory adds so much more weight to the song for me.
Thanks again Yong!!!
Except that "I took the easy way out" is past tense, meaning it's coming from the perspective of someone who has already killed themselves
"Trust me, it's not easy." -Joel, The Last of Us.
Nero Nyte or in the process of dying
Nero Nyte
Or what if the dude in the second trailer is meeting the antagonist to somehow save his ass hence, "I took the easy way out."
you can see guillermo's black cord wraped around the white tube
Del Toro does have a black umbilical cord. You can see it wrapped around the white tube.
Very compelling theory!
i hope not
Yong, you're breakdowns are so on point, so much depth!
I think the first trailer when the baby disappears, Sam's crossed back into the world of the living, while the baby remained in the world of the dead.
the handcuffs could be the link between worlds which is why Guillermo and Norman wear them on different sides
So basically the core game mechanic will consist of something akin to Dr. Jekyll & Mr. Hyde on NES...
The idea of two planes of existence, and dying merely taking the character from one plane to the other, would be amazing. The last time a game explored such an existential duality was in the brilliant Soul Reaver (PSone) & Soul Reaver 2 and Legacy of Kain (PS2) with a lot of time travelling and vampirism thrown into the mix.
I recently watched PythonSelkan's DS analysis which mentioned the manga Gyo, so I got interested and read it and it does have some striking similarities. I think Kojima might have taken some of the inspiration from there
Thay story is a piece of shit with 0 plot and only trying to shock the reader all the time.
Guinea Pig Racer! well, agreed, the story is shit, but some things are very close to what we know about DS, in my opinion. Dead fish coming out of the sea is what death stranding means and there are some other things like animating lifeless objects through some organic substance that is supplied to these objects with cords that function very similar to umbilical cords
singhisking1862 have you seen super eyepatch wolf ? check him out
Great analysis as always. If you think about it, the concept of merging the living world with the dead is something Kojima has delved into quite a few times before. Most noticeably with Gray Fox. "After Zanzibar, I was taken from the battle, neither truly alive, nor truly dead, an undying shadow, in a world of lights."
this is as much a game about Kojima himself and his redemption than it is the complex themes he puts into his art. THANK YOU FOR EVERYTHING HIDEO
I just recently started following more and more on Death Standing and I've noticed a lot of metaphysical/ethereal representations.
Norman's character, Sam, is a Porter, a member of a corpse removal team. Porters are separate from Bridges members.
In the world of the living, a porter, also called an usher, was someone who came an removed a corpse or cadaver from wherever. In the land of the dead, a porter is known as a psychopomp, a spirit who leads the souls of the dead to the underworld.
The umbilicals I associated with life for both of them but in different ways. The white one I see as a physical manifestation of the "silver cord", the ethereal string that connects the soul to the body. The black umbilical I see as a literal representation of the mortal coil. Life that leads to death. "Slough off this mortal coil" as the saying goes. The baby on the beach isn't Norman's. It washed up with him. That's why it has a black umbilicus, left black stains, and headed towards the shadow beings. Mads' character imbues the bodies of the dead with life returning them to the mortal coil. However, it's only the bodies not the souls, that's why it's black. That's just a theory.
Just my own thoughts on another thing. The gold stuff on the cadaver is a death mask. The vehicle, it's crew, and cargo (the already prepared cadaver) were already on the ground when the third trailer opens. We don't see the gold stuff anywhere else. Why or what floats upward as the body sinks, I can't say for sure. But depending on what side of the scale they're on at that moment, with Sam being a Porter/psychopomp, I can make a limited guess based on the themes of the game.
Wouldn't the artificial womb be simply an advanced application of Schrodinger's cat paradox? It an example of quantum superposition. When the womb is disconnected, the baby is both dead and alive.
Quantum superposition states that any two (or more) quantum states can be added together ("superposed") and the result will be another valid quantum state, which applies to physical objects
That's makes sense. Maybe the multiplayer interactions happen between the worlds. The Sci Fi stuff mix in to allow travel to each world.
You know, the song in the first trailer "I'll keep coming" match this theory so much, just listen to the words at the right moments
Glad to see you back on Death Stranding vids, Yong. ;)
Kojima said he will use death as it as never been use before in a VG ..... .... ... . ( it that analyze is true ) .... SINCE SOUL REAVERS^^"
Siegfried Steppenwolf omikron too
Siegfried Steppenwolf NBA LIVE 2016 TOO
Siegfried Steppenwolf I was thinking Soul Reaver too.
Oh you transient being....
The Legacy of Kain actually had similar 'death' system. Where when your character dies he doesn't get sent back in time, but back tracks to certain point to revive himself.
at this point , i really cant think how much more can yong milk those trailers .
"The mistake I've made" "Buried underground" "it can't be turned around" "But I'll keep coming"
Of the five figures in the original reveal trailer, the middle one appears to have its arms folded as if it's holding a baby and there are there's four other figures. I believe the middle one is actually Guillermo Del Toro's character who is actually holding the baby and the other four are the skeleton soldiers. Towards the end of this trailer we see Mads Mikkelsen's character draw the doll with a C-Section towards him which then opens its eye, the eye is blue colored which is the exact same color as Norman Reedus's character's eyes. In the first trailer, he sees the five figures in front of him after the baby is taken from him, after which the the figures disappear....these trailers are taking place at the same time but in different dimensions. This also gives us some insight into the fate of Guillermo Del Toro's character.
maybe its already covered in another video but I just noticed it. Guillermo is wearing handcuffs like Norman and on Guillermo's character the cuffs are on his right hand and both are cuffed and on Normans the cuffs are on his left hand wich are also both cuffed. this means maybe that Guillermo was there when Norman died and maybe took the case with the baby or if their friends Guillermo help Norman to get out of the dead world.
The black hands on the beach in Norman's reality (beginning of trailer) is probably Guillermo getting closer to the baby's artificial womb and picking it up in the living reality before it's disappearance.
Another thing is that norm is covered in dryed black hand prints like he has gone through the both worlds multiple times
I think their handcuffs being on opposite hands is a hint that the two are parallels of each other, and since they're wearing them only on one hand means they were captured at some point and escaped.
In any case, Kojima is very good at (visual) storytelling and so far the mystery of this game is extremely intriguing to me. Can't wait for a 3rd trailer or some more news in the future.
The oil appearing when beings cross between worlds reminds me of the burned engine oil from Twin Peaks - scorched engine oil (or something with the same properties as scorched engine oil) is used to access the Black Lodge, an alternate dimension. When one of the Black Lodge entities took active possession of a person in our dimension, the victim would sometimes stink of burned engine oil.
Even if this theory turns out to be false, I would love to play a game or watch a movie that makes use of this concept. Sounds very interesting.
YongYea thank you for updating as soon as you know more I am a huge fan of Hideo and I can NOT wait till this arrives. All Hideo fans know it will be a masterpiece!
Okay just finished that video.
That part where Yong mentioned the game mechanic @ around 10:45.
It just struck me. Kojima intends on touching people in a deep way.
Perhaps, sacrifices for the greater good? To benefit the other world?
Think like Stefanie forced to trust Norman Reedus for some reason to allow Norman to kill her so that she could traverse into the land of the dead for a brief moment. Maybe something like the Sorrow boss battle where the people you kill in the living world makes the land of the dead missions more difficult.
But what if Kojima by "cry" he didn't mean emotionally, but also by sheer anger? Could be some crazy dark souls game for all we know. Rope (x3) acquired.
You don’t look too much into things: that’s the whole point of this entertaining channel.
Not sure if anyone has mentioned this yet, but your theory about the death mechanic is definitely highly possible. Normally in games, when you DIE, you FAIL and therefore have to restart (from a previous checkpoint for example). However it's highly possible that in Death Stranding, when you die, you will instead pass over into the realm of the dead and continue playing there (perhaps in an effort to ascend back into the realm of the living, or the realm of the dead having its own objectives apart from that).
This theory is also consistent with Hideo's discussion about how this game is going to be very unique and create its own genre on its own (the genre perhaps being tied to the new death mechanic, which we indeed have not seen very often if at all).
I'm imagine Kojima calmly going outside to furiously kick a trash can every time Yong uploads a new Death Stranding update.
Awesome theory/video.That's why I watch you man
I like to think that the world Norman is in is actually Purgatory itself. If we base it on the cycle of life and death, it's possible that Norman's cycle of rebirth was cut off, thus stranded.
It's possible Guillermo is the father of Norman and the baby he's holding could be Norman's son. Just wild speculation of course but it does add some emotional layer to the story.
One of my friends actually claimed its based on the story of Dante and his journey through hell. Far fetched but there are elements of that story in the 2 trailers.
But I'll agree with this theory. It's the most plausible out of the many theories out there. Great video and thanks to the Reddit user! Awesome stuff!
There's actually another thing that's kinda mirrored between the two trailers. While the 'dead' trailer ends with these 5 monolithic beings from very far away, the 'alive' trailer ends with Mads Mikkelsen and the 4 undead from very close up.
Yong there's a movie called Constantine that has a ton of similarities to the Norman Reedus part such as the way he looks at his hands and the black substance " blood". I think you're right on the money and this scene was a nod to the movie. Again not sure if this is common knowledge or not but I just saw the movie and thought of this.
Ive been stalking this youtube channel waiting for a new death stranding video.
You should do a Pythonselkan theory analysis
The idea that Norman holds a baby that just "died" gives that scene a gigantic impact.
Maybe like a beefed up version of the afterlife segments in the original Prey?
You die, and it's like an entire section of the game you have to play through before you can get back to the living world?
The case of parallel dimension in here is a reminder to one of junji ito's short stories,titled:Intruder and Further tales of Oshikiri....
"or am I looking too much into things"
maybe, but please keep doing it.
I have a confession to make. I mostly watch these videos to hear Yong say "Yeeeyongggyeeeaaah!" and "I'll see you guuuyz next time, Yeeeeyong-yeeeooout!"
I remember hearing somewhere that although Mads' character is the antagonist, he's not necessarily evil.
Going off the theory presented in this video, maybe Mads' character is just trying to restore the balance between the two planes of existence (life & death), and have them be segregated once again.
But maybe I'm flying off the handle on that one..
I can't help but point out that "I took the easy way out" would imply that the man already committed suicide, thus he's not living and trying to cross over to the dead, but already dead and lamenting his choices
This story is so crazy, Hideo has a pretty eccentric mind
This game is already everything, I can just feel how dope it's gonna be, especially if P.T. was a taste of the atmospheres they can create, I can't wait until we see more.
I'm pretty sure the handcuffs have something to do with it. Shackle they wear on their hand represents current realm(death) while the blue emitted cuff represents the world of life? Hmmm maybe. But they can't use both or they'll be stuck in-between two worlds unable to get out.just maybe...
Mads Mikkelsen seems to be wearing a modern military loadout (hints the uniform, gun, and nv goggles) and the soldiers he made with the black cords appear to be dressed in WW2 uniforms with the same era rifles. I don't know what can be speculated off this, I think that time travel could be a plausible theory.
It is possible that the 'Game Over(or Death in game)' could mean the transition to other world
- living world(Guillermo's) to death world(Normans') or vice versa.
Two independent plots could be combined by Death while players keep dying and being revived!
This is my thought, but thanks to let me think like this way.
I'd bet that Norman is in stasis too. He, like the baby, is naked. Generally in film and tv, when people are shown in such a state of stasis, they are in a tank of liquid, and naked. It's possible that this technology is the way they can link the world of life and death without really dying. Plus, I don't think Norman is dead, considering the handcuff. I believe it represents his link to the world of the living, since Guillermo is alive and wearing it too.
i always give Yong a thumbs up before i even start watching
always interesting shit on this channel!
Kojima did say that it was about "SOMETHING stranded in SOME WORLD."
Perhaps the dead are trapped in the land of the living?
Speaking of parallels, they are those 5 floating beings in the land of the dead and theres mads in his 4 undead soldiers in the land of the living
Excelent video Yong as always :)
the lyrics of Easy way out seems more like a dead person who regret already committing suicide because it is in past tense.
The life and death concept sounds almost like the game Prey. In the game, when you get killed by an enemy you're taken to some other world in gray. These flying fish are just flying around you and you have to shoot them down to be revived. But from what Kojima's saying it sounds more interesting.
You are the best Yong!Cheers!
There's no such thing as looking into things too deeply when we're talking about Kojima-san. I think you're onto something.
I feel like the universe of death stranding, will be aware of its existence separate from ours (the real world). I feel as though the characters in the game are avatars and they know it. Essential death stranding in this theory is the matrix, but in reverse. Like when you create a character, you'll be creating a person who now exists in there world, and the decisions of players or even real time global events may change the scenery of th game. I think mads character will not only know that we are controlling an avatar but he may think that he is be being controlled by a person in our world as well. He may even have an opinion on us, the players, invading his world and using it as our personal play ground. Just a thought
So basically I think, it's not life and death that he's referring too, but the evolutionary step of choosing a virtual world as your primary world instead of the real world. Highlighting escapism in the modern world, and our evolution from the homo sapient into the homo ludens. A species geared around play. Make sense? We keep coming may refer to us respawninging over and over again in video games, in attempt to escape our world. The other trailer may be from the avatars perspective...idk, still working on this theory
this the most silent hills thing I have ever seen
i like this more than ANY theory I've heard. this is amazing
Also in the space trailer with the monsters they were pretty adamant to commit suicide, at first I instantly speculated that was to prevent suffering, but maybe they were trying to cross over from the world of the living to the world of the dead? Perhaps there really is something worse than death, and they were trying to prevent it
just a wild theory based on this, I think the handcuffs might be the link between both worlds. Such as "normal" humans need the handcuffs to cross over with getting stuck permanently. Maybe the cuffs link to another person or even Link to the alive or Dead version of yourself. and maybe Madds is not a "normal" human and therefore he doesn't need the cuffs to anchor his live body to his dead body in the other world. And like you said about the black liquid Madds has that on his body and can use the black cords because he is just "bleeding through to the live world. and that liquid leaking shows his existence in the live world is not permanent or 100% stable
and ill be waiting forever
With regards to the song Easy Way Out of the second Death Stranding trailer. It might be a possibility that Norman Reedus' character (assuming the protagonist) has killed himself, due to a mistake he has made and a person dear to him is no longer there.
I don't know if Living and Dead, but I think its pretty likely that there'll be two parallel dimensions interacting with each other (maybe this is also what Kojima meant with his comments about multiplayer). This theory is pretty interesting.
Two versions of the game will come out, black edition and white edition. Players online will play as Norman Reedus's character in the black edition, and players will play as Del Toro's character in the white edition. It will be a co-op style game with online interactions between both players, as each player plays their respective world, but connected to the other player. Two different games, but within each other's stories.
9 days...then we finally get more infos about Death Stranding :D.Can't wait any more!
You probably nailed the story and it sounds cool , i hope the gameplay will be good too.
that upside-down tunnel shot, look at the face in the tunnel.
7:23
Those umbilical cords looks like my phone charging cable.
Shifting between the spiritual world and physical world as a gameplay mechanics?, Soul Reaver springs to mind. :)
Nah, it's just an excuse to remember that awesome game series.
Can't wait to play this when it comes out in 2020.......
This game can't release soon enough, I'm so hyped for a game where death/suicide is not a game over screen but opens up even more gameplay options.
Don't let us down Kojima-Senpai.
Plot twist
Guillermo is a old big boss phantom who is in undercover after naked snake went into cryostasis and venom snake was taken down
Random thought popped into my head while watching this, wehn you described the black liquid, it really reminded me of the pink sludge from ghostbusters 2 and how they used to make the statue of liberty move, I wonder if there is something similar happening with the black liquid and the dead and other inanimate objects. Probably nothing, but kojima does love his films.
I THINK THE TOY DOLL PLAYS AN IMPORTANT ROLL HERE; it appears to be attached to a death strand as if it's being used for recon, it's not just floating by..... it's being moved!
i think you're right
Sounds like a really interesting concept I can't wait to see what else in store
Yong, Why are you so under appreciated?
Re: the handcuffs. I notice Norman'a cuffs are on his left hand while the other guy (idk how you spell his name) has his cuffs on his right hand. This means they could've been bound together by them at some point, and maybe are even through the "veil" of life/death?
The idea of using death as a way to progress in the game reminds me of The Sorrow boss battle in MGS3
I have a theory that the handcuffs are links or portals between the land of the living and the land of the dead. Almost like the wearer will have the ability to cross realms as long as it is connected to someone else on that plain.
1:50 Norman gets killed in boat crash (wondered that after Kojima tweeted the image of him playing with lego-eque bricks, then joking it was for work. Yong did video on it.) Guillermo Del Toro character was watching the crash and somehow indirectly resulted in it, hints why he feels guilty and wants to kill himself. 1:32 Children of Men? Cool. Great theory. Only hole is who is Stefanie Joosten playing then? I can't imagine Kojima making a game without "sexy" women. And it's pretty well-known she's probably going to have a role in this game.