Death Stranding 2 Ultimate Trailer Breakdown and Wild Speculations

[@marcy7126]

I really hope Kojima will put at least 1 or 2 Low Roar songs in it to appreciate Ryan's work - rip legend ❤

[@davionelliot]

Who’s Ryan

[@marcy7126]

@@davionelliot the singer of Low Roar

[@JJMomoida]

I'm almost certain he will.

[@VexylObby]

Cool Story: He discovered them in an Icelandic music store (they are American/Icelandic). The very summer that I myself spent some time there. I very well could have walked right past him too. I was happy to see him so inspired by the land as I have been.

[@gio3061]

@@VexylObby I walked past Kojima 3x in Cyberpunk before realizing it was Kojima.

[@DoomiePookie]

One thing is for certain…im so grateful to be alive to experience kojima games.

[@rossren9691]

Hopefully you were alive to play the mgs games

[@Transformers217]

Same here!

[@Snappishnine]

I can’t disagree to that

[@KabbalahSherry]

Me too 🥹❤️🎮

[@MoogleMastery]

Seriously

[@SrStakeholder]

We start playing a Kojima game since the first trailer.

[@Bytex_TV]

Wise words👍✅

[@mattjindrak]

Deep

[@asherbond508]

The drawbridge barge appeared to be using antimatter propulsion, which was used to power the floating parcel carrier in DS1. The parcel carrier was powered by chiral crystals, which at a massive scale could conceivably trigger the dooms allergy in Sam and Fragile.

[@neutch1991]

I'm not sure if drawbridge is the name of the ship. I think its name is the DHV Magellan.

[@igamer-hehe]

​@@neutch1991nope, it's drawbridge

[@Cuiasodo]

Tar in the previous game was also stated to me made of chiralium, so standing next to one of the tar rivers while that much matter is kicked up into the air could set it off as well.

[@irishchick6315]

@@igamer-hehe its the DHV Magellan - drawbridge is a company/courier company

[@BigCheeZe209]

When you said "Higgs-Amalie cross breed it hit me", Liquid-Ocelot. I think you nailed it.

[@tomcaswell1529]

yeah I'm starting to think more and more this is the case.

[@jovedo27]

I'm not understanding, cn you explain?

[@Wozat-is8it]

​@@jovedo27red is Amelie's color, the hair is closer to Amelie's rather than Higgs, the mask is Egyptian looking and the voice is Higgs. It's like they mixed two characters who had a connection and turned them into one.

[@jovedo27]

@@Wozat-is8it ahh I get it now thnx

[@oranjebonce5437]

Few things you missed! When you freezed on Sam's dream catcher, there was an upside down rainbow next to it in the bottom right. Lou doesn't seem to be breathing when her and fragile are in the fire. Sam doesn't look older he just has gray hair. When the ship comes out of the tar: It looks like it's in a location like a dessert judging by the cliffs behind it. There's tar but the sun is shining so there's no timefall at the same time. You also see a BT falling into the tar when the ship first comes out. You freezeframed on that too but there was no mention as I don't think you guys saw it

[@GetFox3]

I would say Sam aged a little bit at least though (maybe like 2 years due to caring for Lou) because he has a thicker beard and longer hair. In writing, longer hair and beards symbolize a character taking a break and disconnecting for a long(er) period of time. So, maybe this is meant to show that sam has literally just taken a hiatus and changed his entire life due to (or thanks to?) Lou!

[@rocki_bb]

I'm glad you commented this. I swear what they think is seagulls at one point is the sound of BTs yelling as they fall off the sub back into the tar.

[@SpikeRose]

The weird thing about the scene with Old Sam is that his skin doesn't really seem affected. Kojima isn't shy to have characters look old through their skin. Ocelot and Snake in MGS4, Fragile in DS1. Sam's hair-roots are still brown as well, so it's not his natural color. Artificial bodies and such aren't entirely a new concept either. If I remember right, Deadman is a combination of dead people's organs. And speaking of organs; in egyptian mythology, four organs were placed into canopic jars. Lungs, liver, stomach, and *intestines* which could very likely be what we're seeing with guitar-person wearing Amelie's 'death mask'. The heart was seen as the most important and was not removed, while the brain...uhhh.

[@will4958]

You're right. Deadman is basically the Death Stranding version of Frankenstein's monster.

[@braidena1633]

Also might be a.. oh whats his name, the mech and character artist.. he once said with advances in age he prefers to draw younger people, but when he was younger he liked to draw older people

[@EGRJ]

@@braidena1633 Yoji Shinkawa?

[@karlos9002]

To me it doesn't look like he is older, it might be the exposure to timefall rain that affected him throughout the first game. Also considering fragile looks the same and BB is what now a year old?

[@braidena1633]

​@@EGRJ Yes I was blanking on his name when i wrote that. i wish i could find where that quote was. I want to say it was a bonus interview in the back of The Art of Metal Gear Solid 2, which is lost to time now too hah. Expensive book now, too jeez. Extent of it was just that though, he said when he was younger he liked to draw old wrinkly people, and then as the years went on he preferred drawing younger ones.

[@Naturiel]

One thing to keep in mind is that the whole "connecting" and "building a Network" from DS1 was based on Beaches. The Chiralium Network used (I think) Amelie's Beach. That makes me think that connecting all the Outposts and Cities PREVENTS Amelie from closing off her beach. That, in turn makes me think that in order for Amelie to properly close herself off we need to disassemble the entire Chiralium Network.

[@tomcaswell1529]

Yeah like maybe there's still a sliver of connectivity there. Good thought!

[@escapegulag4317]

yes thats also why before chapter 13 I thought that maybe in the end we would have to backtravel and undo all the work lol, I was right about the backtravel at least

[@Barbaroossa]

An interesting fact about the DHV Magellan is that it has C-RAM batteries on it, which means that someone is attacking shipping routes with anti-ship missiles.

[@spacedout4061]

Cool cutscene for sure

[@neutch1991]

Where does it show that it has C-RAM batteries on it?

[@brucebruceish]

@@neutch1991 @36:10 top right corner

[@viola_case]

Kojima: "Trust me, someone's going to get this. SHIPping routes. Anti-SHIP missiles. It's perfect." This man knows every part of his audience.

[@focuslikebull2.0]

I don’t know if anyone noticed this but when it cuts to the Higgs/ Amelie character, Troy Baker’s singing becomes muffled, like if he’s singing under a mask. Pretty cool.

[@pengunara8178]

Look, I have a theory that this Fragile is different Fragile as well as Sam. Before Death Stranding Kojima had been working on Silent Hills. That “s” at the end means that there’s not only one Silent Hill but multiple and they’re connected. Then, we all know, Silent Hills were cancelled and Kojima left Konami but those ideas of life and death and connecting scratched his brain so he started new project - Death Stranding. Death Stranding has a very unique world with its own rules but this world were based on ours and already have such concepts like multiverse and strand theory. Even in game when you press touchpad on controller Sam yells “Hello, I’m Sam!” and other players structures respond to you “I’m Sam too”. And I’m not even talking about obvious thing that all players connected and they’re literally all Sam from different time and space. So, returning to DS2 trailer. My theory that this Fragile from different universe where she was the main protagonist of the DS1. That’s why she has her skin normal and her BB grown. In DS1 she said that she doesn’t like kids or something like that. I know people always change their mind but it’s still looks too sweet for her, like she’s very bonded to her BB. Just Imagine whole DS1 story but Sam and Fragile switched their roles and now you see continuation of it in different universe. That’s why Sam looks different, that’s why Fragile can repatriate and that’s why there’s still tar, BTs and other weird things keep happening. I know it sounds too complicated and overthought but it’s also sounds kinda logical within the rules of this world.

[@Biglu193]

There is something about it. Just like Fringe series story for example. Something like alternative reality. Hints like another company names, another logos, props maybe even confirms this theory. Amelie may connects this realms like a god-like being, Sam,Fragile and Higgs stays, but they're different in every realm and props, like odratek,pods, structures and other stuff stays too, but look different. ( Reminds me handcuffs from DS1. Half Cuffs was different than another half, like that second was made in other place. )

[@Ridepeds]

One thing I noticed is when you guys pointed out the wings on Lous bib are just part of it. When she shows up in the tank as a BT it has the same wings that are fluttering.

[@Ganbarizer]

The red color of the clothing that the people carrying sarcophagus/casket reminds me of the medical staff since they almost all wore red uniforms and coats. I think they’re some kind of cult of rogue medical personnel who want to resurrect Amelie and or Higgs or create some kind of hybrid of the two from whatever was left of them after the events of the first game. A Frankenstein type of deal, you know? “Should we have connected?” seems to point in that direction.

[@alexanderbreems2921]

One thing is certain. We will see “A Hideo Kojima Production” at least a hundred times :)

[@IHMELBRHMHASSAN]

With all due respect. Yes, you are right

[@tomcaswell1529]

Lol there’s an Easter egg of our own that we put in our video about that.

[@Frawriest]

I hope we see it 1000 times. It did get a little old during MGSV having credits every mission to be fair.

[@danieldevito6380]

Let's just hope it's more visible

[@frenschDensch]

Yeah maybe it comes in the beginning, the end and every Minute in between.

[@richjustinYT]

The scene with Sam and Fragile is before the first scene of Fragile with the baby. Her BB was alive and inside the thing, but time goes by and they live a normal life until the attack.

[@scruffy381]

I think the stillmother of Lou was in that sarcophagus and Lou happened to be the unborn child of Sam. The pregnant woman in the picture with the face scratched off is Ella Fannings. Somehow, somewhat she is repatriated. Because Amelia didn't want Sam to have the same fate as his father, Cliff.

[@masamunemanga]

A couple things. 1. When the ship emerges from the tar there are BTs (humanoid) falling off of it. Like 2 or 3. The presence of the BTs might be why Sam and Fragile are having a reaction (tears). 2. The sarcophagus might contain Higgs. The design has a little of that Egyptian feel that Higgs outfit had. Maybe this “cult” brought him back.

[@Nicolae_Mew]

Drawbridge sounds like the antithesis of Bridges, rather than another iteration of it like you suggested. When a castle raises its drawbridge, it becomes completely cut off from the outside world. That goes against everything the Bridges team stood for. *I wouldn't be surprised if Drawbridge were the antagonists of the game.* The characters in crimson-colored outfits might be members of Drawbridge.

[@happyphiri4237]

One thing to point out is that the crimson colored dudes are robotic and they may actually be apart of APAC APAC having automated in its name which may be referring to the crimson dudes

[@thejimd]

42:16 Didn't notice until this freeze frame, but there are screaming tar dudes falling from the ship when it rises out of the liquid

[@tinkerman-q]

At 9:45 you guys talk about the structure. I believe it is indeed some type of landmark. If you pay close attention it's possible to notice some discreet, but distinct details that resemble the shape of a sitting dog, more specifically, two dogs face to face and given the desert landscape, it could be an allusion to Anubis, part of Egyptian mythology. And it does seem they are headed somewhere else "time for another journey" as Fragile says near the end of the trailer.

[@tinkerman-q]

Oh, just stumbled in something, which would be kind of amazing and make everything come together. One of the Egyptian sphinxes, the sphinx of Queen Hatshepsut was sculpted with her face and a pharaoh's beard. Would be quite something if that would be related to your theory of the merger between Higgs and Amelie.

[@professormurdoc1359]

It’s London Bridge mate.

[@kahleeb624]

Fragile's new crew ship comes out of the black tar from the ground... so yeah they are crying because allergies. The black tar generally only came from higs and the BT boses but her whole ship is appearing out of the tar so that's definitely where the tears are coming from. Also Higgs had a Odredek with that creepy messed up baby doll inside and the doll was what connected him to Amelies beach same as Sam's dream catcher.

[@innstikk]

Sam's dream catcher is next to the circular dream catcher in the roof. When Fragile starts to escape you can see the same plant in the room. Notice the inverted rainbow in the same room. When Sam comes up the stairs it is not inverted. Unicycle has Drawbridge logo. The machine that rises from the tar has a APAC logo too (above the squid logo, left of the first rail, close to cockpit window)

[@chadwolf3840]

I can’t wait for this game. I LOVED DS1. Great analysis. I’d been scouring youtube for a breakdown ever since I saw this video. Thanks so much!

[@blokin5039]

Chad the love I never had, sad and very bad to be had.

[@TheWanderingJewel]

I’m not sure why everyone seems so set on a Higgs/Amelie combo. Amelie is Ka separated from Ha, so what if the cultists made an artificial Ha for her to come back to? As has been said before, it could be that her beach wasn’t able to completely close because of the chiral network. Her original Ha (Bridget) was incinerated, so maybe the cultists drew her to the artificial Ha with the quipu. I also strongly suspect the Lou is a repatriate because the ending of DS1 where she comes back to life reminds me of what happened to Baby Sam (which made Sam a repatriate). I think the implication that Lou turns back into a BB is a fake out.

[@PorterCBlue]

Yes, I agree with you. Regarding Lou being a repatriate. I thought it was sort of a given considering Lou has a Quipu with a necklace chain on it during the ending scene at the incinerator.

[@DBurgerous]

Just one thought on drawbridges... I suppose they have 2 or 3 purposes, first as a brige, second as a portal (letting a boat through for example), but third in a defensive sense -- like a castle drawbridge that you can pull up to keep things out. In my mind that would match the 'rope and stick' idea -- for connection but also for attacking/defending.

[@uctutrong2705]

yes, you were right, Kojima spoke in an interview that with him, a bridge is also a wall

[@danielmodesto4959]

Honestly I thought of DrawBridge as an ideology. Now that Bridges has the Chiral Network and a massive infrastructure capable of holding out in this new world I feel the name implies that they feel as though they are the gatekeepers to humanities future. "To Protect and Connect. Together for tomorrow".

[@thedarkknight2221]

I’m personally hoping we get to play as both Sam AND Fragile. Léa Seydoux was phenomenal in the first game and deserves to share the lead with Sam. Also my 2 biggest questions are how did Higgs come back and how did Fragile get her normal body back?

[@jerryvarela9497]

Not sure about Fragile, but it looks like Higgs is using an artificial body.

[@tomcaswell1529]

So many different things could be going on with Fragile! But yes. I think you’ll play as Fragile as well.

[@mhosni86]

What if Elle Fanning is adult Lou and we get to play as her in some sections as well?

[@Godzilladad]

What film can I watch her in?

[@AaronRandy]

nanomachines

[@CrazyCarnieCory]

(Just a Theory) A drawbridge can be open and closed. The mysterious structure is an artificial bridge/gate to the beach. The Enemy is using a artificial beach connection for instant travel/shipping/War like fragile was able to use her dooms and connection to her beach. Using that connection, they traveled to Amalie's beach and took her off the beach and into our world Via the Red Coffin to prevent her from changing her mind and going forth with the extinction and walking into the Ocean, and at the same time keeping the beach network open and working for them to exploit

[@Pie_Wagon]

I think you’re gonna end up being right my boy! That’s exactly what I was thinking too! I’m SUPER excited for Death Stranding 2!!!!

[@MrTmm97]

32:16 I’m pretty sure something connecting him to Amelie slowed his aging similar to how Amelie stopped aging. So maybe he looks his true age now vs looking younger than he was before. I also wonder if the stuff at the beginning with Fragile and Louise was in the past. It’s possible she had a baby in the past and had something like that happen. Unlikely with the name being the same as Sam’s BB and later baby (and unborn baby). An alternate timeline is the easiest to explain the unaged skin. It could also have been some type of nightmare. Nightmare is a simple Occam’s Razor explanation though which I don’t think is Kojima’s style 😂 Super hyped.

[@_BlackPaladin]

So why is Fragile’s body not old / messed up from Higgs making her run in the time fall in the first game 🤔

[@jjclv_]

This is what a healthy KZbin comment section looks like. I love DS and the fanbase, such a cool community.

[@spencer_abrams]

Here's a cute one. At 31:36 there's a little glint of rainbow when we first see Sam (it even gets a little sound effect in the trailer) just like the last shot in DS1!

[@GraveyardSurf]

3 minor observations: The figure carrying the coffin/sarcophagus (on the lead right) is holding a "cult staff" with his/her Odradek. My tear theory is that it's simply the chiral reaction to BT BB, who is in the carrier during that scene. The Cryptobiotes floating around the broken carrier are ghostly white and spiky after emerging from their tank, as opposed to when we saw them earlier in their fleshy, round, familiar form. Great video and Keep On Keeping On! 👍

[@janachten3167]

Am I the only one that sees the three tar people in the tar falling down as this huge ship thing rises out of the tar? Around 33:18

[@obamaruntz902]

those are definitely bodies! i see them too

[@kadubrantis]

I was trying to compare this trailer with one of the first released trailers for DS1 and I believe that all the scenes from Fragile+Louise are like memories SAM sees when connected to BT-LOU’s pod. Similar to those memories from Cliff. The Trailer also seems to be created on the same way.

[@kadubrantis]

Another things - Grey Sam sounds like TIMEFALL AGED Sam even when we assume that BT-Lou is with Fragile in the same scene and that all BT/TimeFall are back. Attention for the fact that in that take Fragile is all covered.

[@kadubrantis]

I also tend to believe that Higgs somehow merged with Amelie. That final take got me thinking of it.

[@carlosmoyajr907]

You can see on the scene of the broken bb pod the BT inside has the same wings Louise has on from the beginning of the trailer.

[@paulcantshutup]

Looks to me that Drawbridges has harnessed the power of the Beach to travel incredible distances without regard for spacetime. The vehicle seems to be rising up out of the tar from the Beach--and we know those with strong connections to the Beach can jump space and time, as Fragile does. Also, notice the BT corpses falling from the tar on the ship as it ascends. As for the tears that we see from Fragile and Sam? Chiral allergy, definitely.

[@BalkanOkami]

Very interesting, enticing breakdown of one heckuva trailer. The only question/correction I want to raise is the continued assertion that BTs don't exist anymore at the end of the first game. Having just replayed it (the Director's Cut, technically), my understanding from Amalie's final conversations with Sam (before sending him away and closing off her beach) was that the current world and its challenges (BTs, timefall, etc.) WOULDN'T be fixed by her decision to forestall the final stranding. I.e. she would be buying humanity more time, but even with HER beach closed off/isolated, the connections between all other beaches (and whatever lies beyond them) were still thinned/frayed enough that BTs would still be able to encroach upon the world of the living, and the other post-stranding hazards would remain present as well. I'm not sure it's correct to say that Amelie/the Extinction Entity is the SOURCE of BTs/tar/etc... she described her own role as being a *conduit* through which all beaches would be connected, allowing the antimatter from whatever lies beyond the beaches to flood and annihilate the world of the living, as opposed to being the source of the annihilation herself. Either way, I love DS1 even more now on second playthough AND the fascinating possibilities presented by this trailer. Thanks for the coverage!

[@Fey418]

Well...here goes my speculation: 1) The structure where the pilgrims are passing with a casket evokes a "Tori" gate to me. In Japanese culture a Tori gate symbolizes that you are entering a sacred place like a temple or metaphorically, the realm of the dead. 2) Fragile appearing first on the cover and having more screen time seems to imply she will be the main character this time around. 3)The baby she is holding in the prep bunker might be Sam's real daughter. The one implied on the first game that he lost but we never learned how. Maybe Fragile has this dark past we do not know about, in which she was an unintentional accomplice to Louise #1 kidnapping and subsequent death. 4) If that is the case, maybe Louise #1, has some sort of power just like Sam. 5) I do not think the ship shown on the trailer is to go to other countries. Seeing it has emerged from the tar, I am guessing this time we will be traveling through people's "beaches", which would make sense with Fragile's ability, if she is in fact the main character. Also the "Drawbridge" logo evokes two hands closing to pray for me. Knowing Kojima likes to play with words, it might mean to "draw" the dead or to bring people closer together as well. 6) I am guessing Elle Fanning will play either Louise #1 or Louise #2 given Sam's apparent age. 7) Don't think Higgs will be coming back since it was implied he killed himself in the first game, but maybe some kind of proxy that uses his voice.

[@Kiy86]

I like where you are going here. To continue in the same vein, what if after Louise #1's death she came back from the beach as a repatriate and a bridge baby, Sam's BB. Therefore making Louise #1 and #2 the same person, and having similar abilities to Sam. The wings on Louise #1 and the BB we see after both have the same wings. Also as a side note, the Louise in the trailer definitely looks like Elle Fanning.

[@Praisestothemosthigh369]

Fragile says to same time for you to go on a journey again so idk if she the main character maybe they do a switch like mgs2

[@chriskrakoczki28]

i was thinking maybe the story would be split into parts, where some time you play as Sam, some as Fragile.

[@Syriandeeno]

I think Higgs will be back, he is signing and Troy baker is mentioned multiple times in the trailer so he’ll deffo be back

[@EzaneeGires]

The motif under the Amelie effigy looks like the inverted version of the UCA patches for connected cities

[@okeoi]

In Death Stranding, it's told to Sam that BBs are harvested from still-mothers at around 28-weeks. Knowing this and that Lou was in use as a BB already, it can be reasonably assumed that Lou is about 30weeks old at the beginning of DS (a little over 2 months premature). Based on how big Lou is in this trailer, I am guessing maybe she's a year at most now. So it seems based on that, we're coming in relatively shortly after the end of the first game. Maybe there's some weird time distortion going on with the beach after it was closed, because the natural overgrowth outside of the private room that Fragile is in definitely seems like more than a year has passed. Ofc maybe the timefall came back and influenced said growth. Tons of questions but no matter what I am really excited to see a new chapter in this story.

[@darrendelima2909]

Another weird thing - Fragile's bare arms are young. I thought she was aged from the neck downwards by the rain.

[@StArShIpEnTeRpRiSe]

What I find interesting is: Bridges connect people like they connect the 2 side of a river. And it's a permanent connection. Drawbridge also do the same, but sometimes they stop the connection. So it connect people, but not always.

[@professormurdoc1359]

Amelie sings the song “London Bridge is Falling Down….Falling Down…Falling down…My Fair Lady” at the end of DS1 just before walking into the ocean on the beach with Sam. I think the drawbridge we see in the trailer is 100% supposed to be London Bridge. It is the most iconic drawbridge in the western world AND Amelie already referenced it’s destruction. I think we’re headed to London folks. And it’s rainy there. Maybe timefall works differently there?

[@cjbrown1979]

Great analysis and dissection of the DS2 premiere trailer. Definitely raises more questions than answers. Looking forward to future trailers to add more context/mystery to Kojima's masterful world building and storytelling. Cannot wait for this game!

[@danielg7680]

My wild theory: The adult woman we see is actually Louise (many years after DS1). This explains old Sam. But i dont know why she looks like Fragile lol

[@lordexohunter558]

I mean, time travel was hinted at being a thing in game so it's very possible that Louise is Fragile and that death stranding 1 and 2 is a time loop

[@tdx341]

No, elle fanning is Louise

[@fridayafternoons1]

I don't think sam is aged, his skin looks the same age as before. he seems to have lost his pigmentation both in his hairs and irises. my theory is the constant chiralium exposure may have done so

[@obamaruntz902]

That sounds like the most reasonable expectation i’ve heard so far. Sam looking different is probably something extremely small to throw us off

[@Dying_Decorously]

I'm thinking it's some form of accelerated aging due to the amount of time he spent on the beach at the end of the game

[@wolfy9011]

@@Dying_Decorously if the beach doesn't experience time Wouldn't he not age?

[@Dying_Decorously]

@@wolfy9011 I think time moves quicker on the beach, I could be wrong tho

[@cosseybomb]

I like this theory

[@nikolakizz7201]

From the phrase SHOULD WE HAVE CONNECTED the only letters that never touch the red lines are the letters H,U,L,D,E,H which is very interesting because googling it i found that its an actual name whose owners are usa residents and one specically is the mother of LOUisa Charlotte .I also found out that the owners of this name are mostly lived the period o 1820-1940 which i connected to the world wars .

[@Bethune_Groundstaff]

This is he type of rabbit hole I’m looking for lol

[@crazyaces4042]

@17:16 a magazine is laying there and says "we all love pizza" this makes me think of what would've been the past when things were sort of normal and also brings back memories of Peter Englert wanting Sam to deliver pizzas and in the end it is Higgs' bunker with all the cool weapons if you do everything to get it. SO many things just in a few shots of this trailer.

[@heybri]

I think the cryptobiotes that they have in the acquarium is why Fragile has no scars.. Some "Super" cryptobiotes healed her and she has to keep taking them.. she had to keep taking them in the first game, so i'm guessing this is connected to that..

[@mckh3841]

That is what I am thinking. She did say a cryobiote a day keeps the time fall away.

[@beattywhite11]

The wings I think symbolize that Lou was a savior, and the crying I think is simply an allergic reaction to chiral energy which is more prevalent around “precipitated” areas.

[@SyntheticMemoriesGuy]

I think Magellan would rather mean a passage, a strait between two worlds. In DS1 a bomb was thrown into the lake of tar, to avoid a catastrophe. Several emails or cutscenes specify that perhaps the bomb has passed to the other side. And that it might be possible that some things come back from it. Also called the bottomless lake, the tar, for those who have played looks like a passage to the shore. This is where the hands grabbed you to take you away from the living world. Of course Fragile was using the beach to teleport. Via the tar lake to reach the beach, it would be possible to travel quickly. Which would perhaps be the goal of creating a device capable of supporting a swim in this tar lake. I'm not going to expand because I don't speak English, but I think the character at the end could be Louise, heir to her father's dooms (see side quests on Lucy, his wife and the first obliteration or Louise would have survived). And at the beginning of the trailer, I don't really see a coffin in this procession, but an adult pod. Filled with tar (review the scene). We're bringing someone back, that's for sure. And why tar on this pod?

[@MADDROBB]

best breakdown of the trailer so far. Some of the theories may just be reaching but I think you guys nailed the idea that Amelie and Higgs have fused in some way or another

[@jayjenzo2786]

I think if you think about it using egyptology for examples then you won't go too far away from the gist of where this is really going. I think Higgs has taken certain body parts from Amilie and using that and her trinkets of power he is able to exist maybe even as some kind of god. I think Amilie is being held in the Sarcophagus and is maybe still alive just maybe missing certain body parts, I belive higgs and his red army are hoping to take her to this monolithic structure in what appears to be in the northern or southern Pole. Maybe this is to send her in to the afterlife like a pharaoh or maybe to open a gateway of dimensions. It's a theory.

[@Bae_Dreary]

Random thought it had. Maybe 20 years had passed, Sam has aged 20 years and Elle Fanning MIGHT be Lou. Considering Cliff was able to time travel through the beach, maybe the drawbridge vehicle is able to navigate the beach through the tar

[@tomcaswell1529]

Definitely think there's traveling via the beach shenanigans happening but I love the idea of also using it to travel through time.

[@Bae_Dreary]

I may also be one way, so traveling forward in time but not back. Tbh not entirely sure how it works with Cliff

[@cosseybomb]

The cliff we see isn't the same cliff we see who talks to BB Sam.. dude is a paranormal entity at that point from the afterlife and simply has nothing to do with time travel as you think

[@markiewicz77]

Those baby little wings give me "messiah” vibe, an 2000 game. Winged child is cerubin a being standing very high in the hierarchy of beings, often in the immediate vicinity of God.

[@tishyo77]

APAC has Automated in it. I think the last bunch of people we see maybe APAC and the guys at the back are some kind of automation with emojis as their means of expression on their heads which is the reason they turn into exclamation marks on the guitar strum, signifying they are startled or something.

[@Tacdelio]

maybe its less automation and more "automation" in the same vein that the warhammer 40k servitors are "automated." the last bunch of people we see also have that yellow see-thru stomach the person up front has, so maybe they're all bio-automatic

[@farzadsw]

These are what I noticed: About the dream catcher; there are two of them (Sam's one and the other circular one) at 00:46. There are some (egyptian symbols?) on the barrel of the handgun at 01:49. The stick on the logo can hit about the game play (more action). When the vehicle comes out of the tar, some bodies drop from it (02:51), This machine probably is used to tranport/travel to the beach.

[@michacuranda5603]

The place the pilgrimage is going to is hallgrímskirkja in Reykjavík. As most of death stranding 1 being heavily inspired by Iceland.

[@tinkerman-q]

Another one... Perhaps the reason fragile looks Yong and Sam older, could be some type of sacrifice he made to saer her, by absorbing some of the age she was inflicted during the bom run.

[@Dying_Decorously]

I think Sam is undergoing rapid aging due to the time he spent stranded on the beach at the end of the game, we already know time passes differently on the beach compared to reality

[@Barbaroossa]

Also, Higgs is the lead singer and guitarist of a glam rock band now, his gig is called Higgs and the Metal Gears, that's why he has such a fabulous hair and flamboyant outfit. Trust me on this one, my uncle works for Hideo Kojima.

[@derryfh]

Structure at 7:10 looks like a Tower Bridge in London

[@FleyDragon]

27:20 BTs don't exist anymore? I don't remember hearing that. Where did the game mention that?

[@Austinxheath]

The casket being carried reminds me of a BB tank with the pipe coming out of the bottom. Maybe this is used somehow to connect to the beach revive Higgs/Amelie?

[@DuxRyuPro]

or maybe to prevent a voidout?

[@jayjenzo2786]

I think if you think about it using egyptology for examples then you won't go too far away from the gist of where this is really going. I think Higgs has taken certain body parts from Amilie and using that and her trinkets of power he is able to exist maybe even as some kind of god. I think Amilie is being held in the Sarcophagus and is maybe still alive just maybe missing certain body parts, I belive higgs and his red army are hoping to take her to this monolithic structure in what appears to be in the northern or southern Pole. Maybe this is to send her in to the afterlife like a pharaoh or maybe to open a gateway of dimensions. It's a theory.

[@DuxRyuPro]

@@jayjenzo2786 nice theory

[@GetFox3]

28:24 I just realized! Deadman says "both stick and rope" while describing die-hardman's gun! Which could mean deadman, sam (maybe die-hardman) and fragile made their own company as a hurrah to bridges!

[@jerryvarela9497]

Seems like theres a cult built around Amelie led by the villain from the previous Death Stranding. I also bet in his rebuilt body the face he’s actually using is a facsimile of Amelie’s face. Also I think their on Mars! Crazy guess but I think the franchise will end up in space at some point.

[@ciaranelson1936]

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[@pheaseyy]

I was definitely getting space vibes from the dialogue for sure, mars is a good guess.

[@big.gib.4L]

It will be mind blowing if we get the same exploration we love from DS1 but on crisp mars landscapes

[@jayjenzo2786]

I think if you think about it using egyptology for examples then you won't go too far away from the gist of where this is really going. I think Higgs has taken certain body parts from Amilie and using that and her trinkets of power he is able to exist maybe even as some kind of god. I think Amilie is being held in the Sarcophagus and is maybe still alive just maybe missing certain body parts, I belive higgs and his red army are hoping to take her to this monolithic structure in what appears to be in the northern or southern Pole. Maybe this is to send her in to the afterlife like a pharaoh or maybe to open a gateway of dimensions. It's a theory.

[@jerryvarela9497]

@@jayjenzo2786 A very good one! Seems extremely plausible.

[@zeallexandre]

The first time I saw it I thought this guy was Keanu Reeves

[@crazyaces4042]

@14:50 yeah I noticed Fragile's skin right away as she was badly scarred and now she isn't? Makes you wonder what is really going on here unless she supposedly got treatments or something? IDK It is so cute to see here with Lou though. 💖💖

[@alderoth01]

On the 2 dream catchers it would support the idea of 2 time lines, or that she is the main character in this time line because if you flip things around, she lilves, and sam gets old. She is the one that is hanging onto everything like Sam did with the dream catcher. Also, instead of a sister she has a brother, which is probably the guy in the red later on, since sam's sister is in red on the first one.

[@DuBstepAnDa98]

10:15 it could represent a Torii Gate. A quick google search says that Torii Gates in Shinto religion represent the transition from mundane to sacred. There's also one in the first game.

[@tetmayer2015]

The thing about a bunker fakeout is that those are the same room and there just could be multiple dream catchers. You can see even with the depth of field this is definitely the same room. Look at the right of the screne, there are multiple colors (toys in later shot) and the layout is exactly the same (look at traveling cases at the top and the room's colors). What you say is a chair is actually one of those old vinyl players with "trumpet" thingy I'm pretty sure.

[@tomcaswell1529]

I don’t necessarily think it’s a different room. I just don’t think the two shots are happening at the same time.

[@KarleaKALAMITII]

A 2 and a half foot baby would be around 8 or 9 months old considering Louise is a baby girl.

[@masamunemanga]

That chair you guys speak of in the trailer past Sam’s dream catcher, inside the shelter looks like Heartmans record player.

[@giomorrison9531]

As mentioned in the video, Sam and Fragile have an allergy to chiralium which causes them to cry whenever they are close to it. The reason why they're crying when the Magellan (the name I assume belongs to the ship) rises out of the tar is because it probably contains some amount of chiralium. Chiralium is capable of floating which is why it's been used in floating platforms like the floating carrier from the first game. The Magellan probably uses chiralium in the round parts of the ship near the bottom to achieve levitation so it wouldn't require technology capable of levitation to be developed so the ship could function.

[@Oldpangolin]

Maybe the drawbridge represents the function of breaking connections to protect what’s on one side. Drawbridges are used on castles as well to prevent access to the castle. So it’s no longer just about connecting but making connections more cautiously.

[@waypastamped]

Amelie is dead in the red casket, perhaps Higgs absorbed her powers. Higgs is playing the guitar taking over Amelie's duty. That's why he's wearing her necklace and the mask. Higgs lost most of his body coming back from the beach that's why you can see his organs floating through his chest covering. Or perhaps she confronted him on the beach and he fought with Amelie because she stalled the final death stranding and the open chest cavity was the outcome.

[@cantonphantom]

Btw, even though we don't see exactly what happens to Higgs, Fragile does say she gave him a choice and didn't end up killing him. So, we assume he's trapped on the beach. But, if I'm not mistaken about the timeline, after the events on the beach with Fragile, Higgs, and Amelie and during Bridges preparing for the inauguration of Die-Hardman we receive one more request for pizza from Peter Englert (Higgs). In fact, they even change the name of the person requesting it to Higgs. So, unless he's sending pizza requests from the beach, Higgs is still alive.

[@davidduncan-sl1ls]

~27:00 the BB has wings in the tank. i think it may have been missed, bound to be important

[@CodeRed001]

I have a theory that Drawbridge might be a new mechanic. A drawbrige can connect but it can cut off those we don't want in. So maybe we will have a enemy that attempts to pursue us and we will be cutting them off logistically in places. Just a guess. I 100 percent believe that is Higgs in the red suit. The golden eyelashes are his exact style, he stole and wore the necklace. He wasn't shot by Fragile (or he was) and somehow his body is placed on life support is some suit. He's using Amelie's visage as a religious symbol and he's the leader of the red cult we see. They retrieved her body and his. The voice actor is a dead giveaway. He has probably brainwashed these people into believing Sam is the antichrist who killed their god. Or worse, his soul is now connected to her corpse and he's going to use it to do very bad things. I believe the cult is Apac, also known as the private company.

[@a_Deadbeat]

I think what we might be looking at with the Higgs-Amelie character is a Rebis, bringing together male and female form in body and spirit.

[@jayjenzo2786]

I think if you think about it using egyptology for examples then you won't go too far away from the gist of where this is really going. I think Higgs has taken certain body parts from Amilie and using that and her trinkets of power he is able to exist maybe even as some kind of god. I think Amilie is being held in the Sarcophagus and is maybe still alive just maybe missing certain body parts, I belive higgs and his red army are hoping to take her to this monolithic structure in what appears to be in the northern or southern Pole. Maybe this is to send her in to the afterlife like a pharaoh or maybe to open a gateway of dimensions. It's a theory.

[@likopinina6803]

im not sure if higgs cries tar actually. i always assumed it was his runny mascara. that would mean cliff was the only one crying tar in ds1 and maybe it's a thing dead ppl do

[@zeusdiaz3335]

Did you guys notice the handprints in the throat of the repatriation section??? What does that mean? If BTs leave handprints where ever they travel, is that a message like the last stranding is trying to repatriate through Dooms?

[@ghostwxlf]

the odradek "butterfly" thing is pretty on point, i think. butterflies symbolize metamorphosis. amelie said she needed to seperate her beach from everything to stall out extinction. i feel like higgs, stranded on the beach, somehow figured out (maybe with the equations?) how to merge beaches - and he merged his and amelie's. he worshipped her, to the point of obsession ("amelie, the one true savior") and whatever higgs is now, is the result of that merger. higgs is the butterfly that emerges the cocoon to try and bring about extinction once again, thus dragging sam back out to fight again.

[@carlosmoyajr907]

Did you guys see the BTs falling from the Magellan machine when it is coming out of the tar? 😮

[@MrIplaybaseball]

Maybe a stretch, but I could see this game exploring ideas of nationalism or something similar. Drawbridge seems to be much more exclusionary than Bridges. It creates the idea that we are connected but we want to keep things separate. Considering this game was rewritten during the pandemic (when people were more online than ever) I can see it also extending the series metaphor for social media/the internet. It connects us but it can also divide is by pushing us further into our bubble, making us intolerant of those that oppose us. Going further, I think the art deco styling plays into this. Art deco was popular in the 1920s and 30s, which was a time of extreme nationalism that eventually lead to a war (that was especially significant to Kojima’s home country) and some of history’s greatest tragedies. Not to mention how timely this is since its the 20s again in real life.

[@_TheViewer_]

15:40 the wings on Lou are later shown in the shadow, I’m thinking she will be corrupted by some kind of power or madness, wondering hard about the tentacle baby too ! 🎉

[@KabbalahSherry]

The tentacle scene is probably just from a nightmare Sam will have down in a safe room. 🙄🤣 I'm not falling for that trick again!

[@_TheViewer_]

@@KabbalahSherry uuuh, i Hope so, got a feeling he gets a new BB but it’s polluted with some strange kind of evil 😂

[@MrBengalskiy]

While looking at this “Structure”, there is a clear nod to “Die Toteninsel”, “Isle of Dead” by A. Bocklin (especially third version, 1883) and “Shore of Oblivion”, “Gestade der Vergessenheit” by E. Bracht; both of those painting is about dead, beaches, and latter is about human extinction.

[@Tacdelio]

both of those paintings invoke the style of death stranding, thank you for talking about them! the isle of dead trees look a lot like the top of the amile effigy.

[@Twilligtwalker]

at 48:26 min you can see the belly through the yellow part of the suit are there her intestines to see or worms? or what do you think?

[@thatvideogamesshow]

Great discussion here guys!

[@tomcaswell1529]

Thank you so much!

[@PedroLima-oo6ue]

I'm surprised you guys didn't notice the bt goo creatures on the tar reaching for the ship.

[@JVE003]

I noticed that when the drawbridge rose from the tar a figure (look like a human) fell from the drawbridge which could confirm that the drawbridge can indeed travel between the beach and our world.

[@mishmakol5077]

The one thing that struck me was why was Fragile running? She has this amazing ability to transport herself through beaches, and can take others as well. Why did she not do that? As far as I remember the beaches weren’t destroyed, just Amelie disconnected her beach from all the others. Has she lost her DOOMS, or perhaps does not yet have it?

[@tomcaswell1529]

This is a good point. Maybe she sacrificed her DOOMS for getting her youth back? That being said, I think there is a chance that DOOMS are tied to Amelie's beach still. We just don't know at this point.

[@jesumill4861]

Maybe the baby cant survive the jump .

[@RealTylerDurden]

@@tomcaswell1529 It's a flashback

[@autyzmoskop8595]

Beaches are closed

[@DaltonBlume1030]

also wanna add the man with the gun looks to be wearing golden gloves, which is interesting since the shot of sam's dreamcatcher does actually look to have someone sitting in a chair with what looks like gold gloves on with their hands together.

[@MUTANTACADEMYGAMING]

I have done some research from an odd source and this is what i found... (from page 513) ''When the Pre-OT has a transparent body and a clear area around it to some distance (barring perception of other people’s difficulties) and when he realized he is alive and very much himself” and from the same document (current final level) 'refers to and i quote ''actual super powers'' and ''ability to handle infinite power, at some point during the running of this series of processes the person will reach a state wherein they are speechless. They will laugh with wild abandon. Their TA will be floating! They will probably also be exterior and will be unable to communicate in words what they are experiencing''. Time to dig deeper i think.

[@theiglooarchitect9232]

Someone on Reddit noticed that the Higgs / Amelie character is definitely Higgs under the mask because it has the exact same ear shape as Troy Baker

[@finalstarmanwd4739]

20:27 where was there moth or butterfly imagery in the first game? Im not sure I follow or remember anything like that.

[@Praisestothemosthigh369]

Hideo also used octopus stuff in metal gear solid 4

[@doctorowl2004]

Odrateck - didn't sees BT, it's scanner. But it can co-uses with BB, but even with BB odrateck didn't SHOWING BT itself, just direction where closest BT is. Sam can see BT when he connect odrateck to BB. BB boosts his DOOM.

[@D4rkst4rr]

if you look closely there is a second dream catcher hanging to the round one, so could be that the one wo do not fully see in the scene is sams

[@boomboominroom]

The Moth mx branding and the butterflies seen on Amelie casket could be symbolism of her coming back to life?

[@marcvis8329]

Just want to mention I don't think the baby is Lou. I think the Fragile character we are seeing is Lou grown up, which explains Sam's aging and Fragile's non old skin.

[@lexradu]

Except she calls him Sam, not Father.

[@AcleurZaeris]

What if the structure is supposed to represent “London Bridge”, which is also a drawbridge? This realization came up after mentioning DS2 might be about connecting the world outside America. Good speculations!

[@firefox4751]

I think sam is the only repatriot, because amelie brought him back to life after he was killed alongside cliff and died in cliffs arms, because amelie shot both of them with die-hard-mans revolver. Sam was the only one we know of who got revived by the extinction entity . And sam as like the BB-1 was something special because he was so heavily guarded as cliff tried to escape with sam his child after he saved his wife lisa from suffering because she couldn’t wake up from coma.