The discussion of whether or not there are multiple Death Stranding endings has been a somewhat persistent one across the community despite very early indications suggesting that would not be the case. Hideo Kojima is known for playing coy with a lot of his narrative beats, however, and he’s buried hidden endings and cutscenes deep into previous works like Metal Gear Solid 5: The Phantom Pain, so fans have remained at least a little skeptical of the facts surrounding the possibility of multiple Death Stranding endings.
Death Stranding is a complicated game, too, with a narrative that is mind-bending by nature, lending itself even better to the notion that there would be multiple iterations of the journey’s end. What consumers already know about the potential of multiple Death Stranding endings would suggest otherwise; however, given that many have reported the game’s lengthy ending can clock in anywhere between 45 minutes to 2 hours. With the Death Stranding ending clocking in as a weighty finale, is there any room left for a secret ending in the same way that Metal Gear Solid employed one? Death Stranding’s multiplayer features are very similar, after all, and players have the same sort of impact on the world of the game at large, so a community-triggered ending isn’t out of the question.
Now that we’ve played through the game, the answer regarding Death Stranding’s multiple endings is pretty obvious. In short, NO, there’s pretty much no chance multiple Death Stranding endings exist. Given how detailed Kojima Productions has gone with Death Stranding, having only one ending makes sense.
Why Death Stranding Doesn’t Have Multiple Endings
While the game presents players with several choices as it begins to spiral out into its finale, it still pushes them in one specific direction. The Death Stranding ending is also as long as critics have suggested and, though it’s broken up by some ability to control characters, it’s mostly cinematics and exposition. With so much explanation taking place over the finale of the game, it just doesn’t seem possible that multiple Death Stranding endings exist - something that was already the intent of Kojima Productions years ago when the subject was first discussed, too.
Definitively, fans can go into Kojima’s latest game knowing that multiple Death Stranding endings aren’t a thing, and they can enjoy - or loathe - their experience without worrying about whether they’re missing something midway through the game that will trigger a better ending. While that was always the plan, it’s nice to know that it ended up being a reality for one of 2019’s biggest releases and a game that has already been so divisive with critics that multiple endings would only make things even more difficult to discuss.
Next: Death Stranding Review: Tomorrow is Here
Death Stranding is available now on PS4. It will release on PC in summer 2020.
