At the end of the new ten-minute (!) trailer for Death Stranding 2, Hideo Kojima decided to throw some red meat to the crowd. By this point, the footage has introduced a new character named Neil, played by Italian actor Luca Marinelli, who looks similar to the version of Cliff (Mads Mikkelsen) from Death Stranding 2: a person forced into doing dirty work, unable to let go of the past.
Then, as Neil somehow begins leading a small special forces unit, the camera focuses directly on the character’s face as he ties a bandana around his forehead. It’s a small thing, but it’s an unmistakable sign for Kojima’s fans: from the original Metal Gear Solid, the bandana has been an iconic part of Solid Snake and Big Boss’s looks. As if that weren’t enough, Kojima Productions doubled down on the atmosphere with the DS2 ship, the DHV Magellan, which is shown flying and dealing with the Tar channels (or whatever they’re called), before finally handling a massive human Tar figure. At this point, it’s obvious to the viewers that this has the same design as Metal Gear Rex.
For the record, these are references: This statement does not go towards naming Neil anywhere as Solid Snake per se; however, it is that Kojima had said in a post on Instagram in 2020 after announcing this casting, “I think if [Luca Marinelli] had a bandana on, he would have been a dead ringer for Solid Snake!”
Well, of course, everybody knows of the friendship that exists between Sam Lake of Remedy and the creator, and it is in this context that one would want to note how Alan Wake 2 handled the character Alex Casey-an avatar well distinct from Max Payne but is undeniably, and utterly so, Max Payne himself. Konami still owns and controls the rights to Metal Gear, Solid Snake, etc., but they have no authority over a character wearing a bandana or the idea of a familiar-looking mech silhouette.
Oh, and another thing: Death Stranding 2 introduces a new character, the President, voiced by Alistair Johnston. The final game in the Metal Gear series timeline is Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance, where the final boss is Senator Armstrong, also voiced by Alistair Johnston.
So, we’re kind of in an alternate universe here, where, with enough tin foil, you could probably convince yourself that the Metal Gear and Death Stranding universes—sorry, I mean multiverses—are connected. We have alternate versions of Snake, we have Rex, we have Armstrong, and the Death Stranding Director’s Cut already added a bunch of Metal Gear-style elements (this video shows most of them).
It’s all tied to elements of Death Stranding 2 that are already being made clear. The days of deliveries are over. While describing the original as a walking simulator was debatable at best, this time these maneuvers for carrying out the main mission will put less emphasis on straight traversal and more on, let’s say, tactical espionage action. Neil not only looks like Solid Snake with his fancy bandana, but he also leads a unit that’s distinguished by a skull image and smoking cigarettes (another Metal Gear staple). He also seems to be the equivalent of Cliff in this game, which thematically connects to the inability to forget past events: or in this case, past achievements. And then finally, with the Rex-like ship-slasher-Tar creature, we get clear echoes of the massive mech fights between Rex and Ray, which were some of the series’ high points.
I’m sure there are dozens of other small references I’m missing, and there’s no doubt that Metal Gear fans are poring over this trailer carefully as I write. It’s always been clear that Kojima would never leave Metal Gear behind, and by the time of the Death Stranding Director’s Cut, they’ve gotten more daring in discussing the series and adding more explicit references.
But this is as clear as it gets. Don’t wait for Metal Gear Solid 6 from Konami, because if the series has a future, it’s now under its original creator as a new series. Running jokes have already started about Neil’s character being dubbed Rigid Reptile and such names. But the real draw here is that one of the greats in the industry is returning to his past and feels comfortable rewriting it. Expectations for Death Stranding 2 are incredibly high, and judging by this trailer, it could very well be the game that surpasses Metal Gear.
