[Death Stranding - What it All Meant (Youtube) / Timestamp 31m45s] ...For of course, in a story about the value of connections, death is the ultimate antagonist; the definitive way to break a connection. This is also reflected in the gameplay. During these warzone battles, the game most resembles a typical shooter game, but the experience is specifically framed as tragic, and pointless. In fact, back in the real world, taking a life is an act of extreme consequence. You are given lethal weapons, but if you actually use one towards that purpose, you have to make sure you take the body up to an incinerator before the timer ends and you trigger a voidout. The interesting thing is that while it doesn't really change the gameplay mechanics as you can still shoot and disable enemies with non-lethal force, it does reframe it. It makes you reflect on the violence that is so often committed in others games. Something similar can be found in the way you fight BT's as the weapons you get to battle them also drain your own blood. Again, it's a simple subversion of a familiar gameplay mechanic, but it does add the suggestion that every time you break a connection, you also sacrifice a little part of yourself, a point that is emphasized once you get a special...
