Norman Reedus lookalike Sam Porter Bridges will be leaving the United Cities of America (UCA) and bringing his porting services to Mexico and Australia in Death Stranding 2: On the Beach. When asked how the legendary porter would travel halfway around the world, director Hideo Kojima revealed a new piece of in-game technology called “Plate Gates.”
Speaking to Famitsu, Kojima says that Mexico was chosen as a location because of its proximity to the UCA. In Death Stranding 2, Sam comments that the events leading to the Mexico journey could be seen as an invasion, prompting the developers to approach the setting differently.
Australia is just as interesting, as Kojima chose to feature the continent because of its similarities to North America’s geography:
“I wanted a land that spreads from east to west like the American continent and is close to the sea in the north and south. It’s also about size. The Eurasian continent is too large. I chose Australia because it has a similar sense of distance to the North American continent.”
As North America and Australia aren’t exactly neighboring continents, Kojima created the Plate Gates. These gates allow Sam and company to travel long distances, even more so than Fragile’s ability to jump between locations and Fragile Express’s ships featured in the first Death Stranding. Kojima remarks that while Plate Gates could potentially allow him to create endless sequels set in Death Stranding’s apocalyptic world, he currently has no plans on making more entries.
Considering Kojima Productions is also working on the upcoming Hideo Kojima-Jordan Peele collaboration horror game OD and a stealth action game tentatively titled “Physint,” Kojima fans have a lot to look forward to outside of Death Stranding.
Death Stranding 2: On the Beach is set to release on PlayStation 5 on June 26.
