Death Stranding may put a twist on the Psycho Mantis memory card trick

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Among Hideo Kojima's many strengths as a game creator is his willingness to fully embrace the hardware of the time. In case of Stranded Deaththis translates into using features like the DualShock 4's motion controls as a surrogate for Sam Porter Bridge's hands, with players swinging the controller in real life to calm BB from tantrums, for example. It will be interesting to see how future Kojima games handle this hardware-centric design philosophy, especially like similar games Death Stranding 2 become available not only on PlayStation consoles.




Kojima used motion controls, haptics, and 3D audio in new ways, but perhaps the most iconic example of this holistic design approach can be seen in the first Solid metal gear on PlayStation 1: the famous Psycho Mantis fight. True to its name, Psycho Mantis plays with Snake's mind, and these manipulations manifest as fourth-wall breaking maneuvers, such as forcing the player to move the controller to Player 2's slot and reading the memory card to produce taunts and grabs around curated by Mantis. The ubiquity of wireless controllers makes the first tactic essentially impossible in the modern era, but the second could be replicated in a unique way on contemporary devices, perhaps in Death Stranding 2 or other Kojima games in the future.

Death Stranding Xbox Release OD PlayStation Port

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How Death Stranding 2 (or other Kojima games) can modernize Psycho Mantis memory card reading


Trophies and achievements are similar to modern memory cards

With the advent of trends like cloud saving and purely digital gaming, memory cards and their equivalents, with the exception of SD cards on some devices, have essentially fallen by the wayside. Of course, these systems still save user data, making it theoretically possible for a future Kojima game to repeat Psycho Mantis' memorable tricks, though this would obviously be somewhat predictable and run the risk of retreading old ground.

A more exciting technique could, however, be based on trophies and achievements, which are almost inevitable in modern games. Perhaps a character like Higgs or some other enigmatic antagonist could break the fourth wall through these means, drawing on a player's gaming history and ironically praising them for platinuming certain games or achieving hard-to-achieve achievements. Conversely, this character might scold players for not getting all the achievements in a certain game or for missing particularly easy ones. It may be tricky to implement on devices like the Switch 2, which may not feature an achievements feature, but it's also unclear whether future Kojima games will be ported to this platform.


Because focusing on outcomes could be a fun way for Kojima games to break the fourth wall

The Psycho Mantis fight Solid metal gear it persists in the spirit of the game largely because of its fourth-wall breaking elements. There's something about an antagonist addressing the player directly that makes them particularly intimidating and scary, as it immediately establishes them as somehow omniscient. It eliminates the comfortable boundary between the player and the narrative conflict, drawing them in and making them feel less safe and detached.

It's an effective scare tactic that more games should use. This goes double for Kojima games like Stranded Deathwhich establish themselves as cerebral and mystical stories conveyed through unconventional means. Kojima Productions clearly doesn't shy away from unconventional techniques, and with Death Stranding 2 possibly coming to Xbox and PC, reading achievements would be a unique, non-platform-specific way to make a new generation of gamers uncomfortable.


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