505 Games announced that Kojima Productions’ Death Stranding would be coming to Game Pass for PC on August 23. 505 Games released a press release stating, “The original Hideo Kojima’s genre-defying epic is now available on the Microsoft ecosystem, accessible to subscribers to the PC version Xbox Game Pass”.
The key phrase in the sentence above is “The original version”, which means that the Game Pass version doesn’t include the enhancements and additions made to Death Stranding Director’s Cut by Kojima Productions. This includes new story missions, weapons, delivery equipment, and combat mechanics.
It could be because of licensing agreements between Kojima Productions (Sony) and Sony. Director’s Cut was released on PS4/PS5 in September 2021. While the upgrade was available on Steam in March, an existing console exclusivity agreement may prohibit the upgrade from being made available on Microsoft’s platform. This deal is the one Microsoft has provocatively called blocking fees. It could also be that Kojima Productions isn’t interested in making all Death Stranding content available to Game Pass members.
Vanilla Death Stranding has plenty to offer. Kojima Productions’ epic has you playing post-apocalyptic delivery man Sam Porter Bridges. It is large in scope and extremely mechanically rich with all kinds of systems and gadgets that allow you to build routes and delivery networks through its amazing recreation of Icelandic landscapes. (This is supposed to represent a broken United States).
Kojima Productions will release Death Stranding on Game Pass Tuesday at 5 pm Pacific Time. For us Brits, that’s 1 am. Although I love Death Stranding, it’s not the best time to play. You won’t finish the introduction before the sun rises.
