With Death Stranding fast approaching, we have a better idea of what Hideo Kojima’s next is actually about. And a new trailer certainly helps untangle some of the threads.
The video below is of a cutscene that revolves around a character called Heartman, played by Danish director Nicolas Winding Refn. Heartman, the official blurb says, is a member of Bridges and “is committed to researching the truth of the Death Stranding”.
In a tweet, Kojima explains that Heartman’s heart stops every 21 mins, after which he’s revived. This means he must live in 21-minute chunks. After one such revival, Heartman talks to Sam Bridges (Norman Reedus) to explain what it’s like to live this way. There’s a lot you can pack in to 21 minutes it seems, including that, and yes, that too.
HEARTMAN cutscene that I introduced at SDCC is out now. HEARTMAN is a member of BRIDGES. His heart stops every 21 mins,spends his time in the world of the dead for 3 mins and comes back by AED. 60 times/day. Thanks to my best friend & filmmaker Nicolas W Refn for his appearance! https://t.co/pcjg8dE4cI
— HIDEO_KOJIMA (@HIDEO_KOJIMA_EN) July 27, 2019
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The video gives us a better idea of what the Death Stranding is – and it sounds like some kind of apocalyptic event in which the worlds of the living and the dead collided somehow. Heartman talks about things from before the Death Stranding – films, television shows and short stories. His 21 minutes of life is “downtime” spent waiting to go back to “the search”. “My body may be present, but my soul is on the beach. I’m already dead.”