Compare Death Stranding 2: On the Beach vs The First Berserker: Khazan

Reviewers described the sequel as more understandable and more accessible, with lore and design changes that reduce friction for more players.

Reviews note an easy mode, summon help, and an arachnophobia toggle, giving players several ways to soften the challenge.

Enemy AI was a rare weak spot, with one review saying it was not especially sharp even as combat remained playful.

Aiming drew a small caveat because one reviewer wanted gyroscopic aiming despite the stronger focus on ranged weapons.

Animation and motion capture were praised as elite, with reviewers pointing to fantastic performance capture and some of the best motion work they had seen.

Enemy and combat animations are repeatedly praised as smooth, expressive, and satisfying in motion.

The cel-shaded, hand-drawn-inspired presentation stands out as one of the game’s clearest strengths.

The atmosphere was consistently praised for haunting landscapes, calm-chaos contrast, and strange moments that made the world linger.

A bleak palette and tense environmental presentation reinforce the revenge story’s grim mood.

Boss fights were broadly improved and visually striking, though several reviewers said they could be simple, optional, or less challenging than expected.

Bosses are widely seen as the highlight—demanding, readable, and memorable—though a few reviews still call out frustrating mechanics.

Technical issues seem limited overall, with one review seeing no glitches and another reporting only a few minor bugs.

Camera impressions are mixed: some found it solid and helpful, while others mention occasional trouble in specific situations.

Character arcs landed unevenly: some reviewers warmed to the cast and late-game moments, while others felt arcs happened away from Sam.

Khazan and the broader cast are often seen as underdeveloped, with arcs and growth that do not fully capitalize on the setup.

Checkpoints placed right before bosses are a major quality-of-life win and sharply reduce runback frustration.

Combat was widely seen as improved, snappier, and more flexible, though a few reviewers found it clunky, overemphasized, or easier to avoid.

Combat is the game’s defining strength, consistently praised for its speed, depth, and rewarding parry-dodge interplay.

The community layer was a highlight, with reviewers praising the sense of shared infrastructure and collaborative help across the world.

Summoned allies can help as distractions, but their AI is often described as unreliable and sometimes wasteful.

Weather, hazards, floods, earthquakes, fires, and other systems made the world and deliveries feel more varied and reactive.

Controls were generally praised as refined and smoother, including PC input options and better feel compared with the first game.

Movement and combat inputs are consistently described as smooth, responsive, and precise.

The delivery loop remained central but was described as tighter, more addictive, and more player-friendly across several reviews.

The mission-to-boss structure successfully recreates a satisfying soulslike loop even when it feels familiar.

Crafting is straightforward and easier to understand than some genre peers, though its full utility opens up a bit later.

One long-play review reports a couple of crashes across roughly 60 hours, suggesting minor but real instability.

Dialogue drew a mild caveat from one reviewer who found some cutscenes too long, even while praising the cast overall.

Difficulty was mixed: reviewers noted optional harder settings and late-game challenge, but many felt vehicles, weapons, or BT changes made parts too easy.

The difficulty is rewarding for many, but boss balance is one of the most divisive parts of the game.

Vehicles were one of the biggest improvements, arriving earlier and handling better, though some reviewers felt they trivialized traversal.

Many reviewers found the final hours, sincere human stories, and emotional stakes powerful, while one review felt comparatively unmoved.

Enemy variety was praised for making combat more engaging, especially with better-equipped bandits, BT variants, and Ghost Mechs.

Enemy variety is generally strong, though some later impressions say repetition can creep in over long play sessions.

The Australia and Mexico environments were repeatedly praised for variety, vistas, textures, weather, and visual detail.

Levels and locales are repeatedly described as detailed, attractive, and enjoyable to move through.

Exploration was praised for making the next horizon feel exciting and for encouraging movement through a striking world.

Exploration offers worthwhile secrets and shortcuts, but several reviews still say stages are fairly linear or limited in optional discovery.

Facial capture and character work were strongly praised, with reviewers calling the faces and cutscene direction exceptional.

Reviewers agreed the sequel keeps Death Stranding’s identity but debated whether the stronger Metal Gear-style action sands away some original friction.

Fast travel through the Magellan and key waypoints was useful, though some reviewers noted scoring tradeoffs or occasional restrictions.

Returning to checkpoints or missions is convenient, and the hub structure makes travel between objectives fairly painless.

Performance notes were positive, with reviewers citing 60fps on PS5 and high, steady PC frame rates.

Performance is usually steady, with little to no frame-rate trouble outside occasional rare drops.

Despite its strangeness and length, reviewers often found the sequel more fun, more gripping, or never boring.

Even skeptical or genre-weary reviewers say the game is consistently exciting and hard to put down.

The mechanics were broadly praised as a major sequel upgrade, with richer delivery tools, stronger systems, and more approachable play.

Visuals were one of the strongest consensus points, with repeated praise for stunning landscapes, fidelity, faces, and next-gen presentation.

Raw fidelity is seen as good rather than best-in-class, with visual appeal driven more by style than technical showmanship.

One reviewer specifically noted that the game can be played at a relaxed pace without needing to grind it out.

The PC review found Steam Deck and handheld play workable, though at a fairly low resolution on Steam Deck.

The one Steam Deck-focused review says the game is verified and plays very well on the device.

DualSense haptics were singled out as excellent, bringing surfaces, weather, gear, and action details into the controller.

Immersion was praised through the world’s quiet storytelling and lingering human moments.

Khazan adds some smart twists, but most reviews still see it as heavily derivative rather than especially original.

Early bosses and systems can be harsh, and several reviewers say the game teaches its ideas abruptly.

The new continent was praised for a far greater variety of locations and terrain challenges.

Level design trends positive overall, especially once the game opens up later, though some mission layouts can feel samey.

Load times received a rare explicit rave, with one review saying transitions from menu to play were almost instant.

Loot is plentiful but generally manageable, with enough gear and sets to support build tinkering without becoming overwhelming.

The Corpus lore tracker was noted as a helpful way to manage the sequel’s dense terminology and story context.

Supplemental tools like the relationship map help flesh out the setting and backstory for players who want more context.

Route planning and the 3D map were praised as important, clearer tools for planning long deliveries.

Mission maps and shortcut-heavy layouts are helpful, but backtracking and mission-reset behavior can be clunky.

Menus were viewed as improved overall, though at least one reviewer still found inventory and menu handling fiddly.

Mission design was praised for moreish delivery structure and some fun, weird orders, though the core remains delivery-focused.

Reviewers praised more varied cargo conditions, hazards, objectives, and mission setups that kept deliveries fresher.

Movement on foot was described as smoother, more responsive, and still satisfyingly weighty when hiking mattered.

The asynchronous multiplayer remained a signature strength, praised for paths, structures, likes, and indirect collaboration.

Narrative response was mixed-positive: many reviewers praised the story and themes, while others found it opaque, messy, or oddly paced.

The revenge premise and setting are engaging enough to keep players moving, but the story rarely matches the strength of the gameplay.

The sequel was seen as more welcoming and quicker to grab players, especially compared with the first game’s slow start.

Tutorials help, but the opening hours and early bosses do not always showcase or teach the game cleanly.

One review encountered servers going down before launch, making this the only direct stability caveat in the review set.

One mixed review still called it a strong open-world sandbox checklist game, even while missing the first game’s sparer approach.

Originality remained a strength, with one review calling the sequel exciting and original despite its imperfections.

Pacing was one of the most divided attributes: many reviews praised improvements, while others criticized slow burns, filler, or poorly paced story delivery.

Performance was strongly praised on PS5 Pro and PC, with several reviewers reporting flawless or dreamlike optimization.

Across platforms, reviewers frequently describe performance as polished, stable, and well-optimized.

PC and controller support were praised for deep options, upscaling support, and broad input compatibility.

Polish was frequently praised through streamlined tasks, quality-of-life upgrades, tighter design, and a more focused sequel structure.

Reviews consistently present Khazan as a notably polished release with strong presentation and solid overall finish.

Progression was praised for APAS, RPG-like upgrades, freely swapped perks, and systems that reward how players approach deliveries.

Lacrima rewards, skill growth, and multiple advancement layers make repeated attempts feel productive instead of wasted.

Sam drew a mixed note from one review that still found him emotionally hard to connect with despite more range.

Khazan’s setup is strong, but some reviewers still find him flat or emotionally distant as a lead.

Quest design was mixed, with some reviewers finding filler or insufficient challenge despite the stronger overall delivery structure.

Replay value was split between extensive remaining missions and one reviewer saying they would not replay from scratch.

Replay value is decent thanks to NG+, weapon differences, and build experimentation, though customization limits cap long-term variety.

One reviewer praised the sandbox for giving players broad choice across traversal, combat, and stealth.

Autosaving appears dependable, with one reviewer specifically noting that crashes did not cost meaningful progress.

Side characters were a major strength for several reviewers, though some felt the new cast was underused or less forceful.

Supporting characters are often described as underused or too slight to leave much of an impression.

The APAS and skill systems were described as useful and flexible without being overly bloated.

Weapon-specific trees are a major strength, offering meaningful abilities, combos, and build direction.

Social features were praised for ziplines, shared structures, likes, and infrastructure that made helping others satisfying.

Sound design was praised as immaculate or immersive, including 3D audio, voice work, and soundscape details.

Weapon impacts, combat audio, and environmental sound all earn strong praise for adding weight to fights.

The soundtrack was strongly praised for licensed music, original tracks, and emotional placement during key moments.

The soundtrack is well-liked and effective at supporting bosses and dramatic moments.

Stealth was broadly improved through more tools, better combat integration, and added tactical options, though not always as deep as Metal Gear.

The tutorials are clear, helpful, and generally unobtrusive.

The upgrade system was praised because unlocked tools felt useful and rewarding during deliveries.

Gear and character upgrades are broad and useful, though some reviewers note they come online a bit later than ideal.

UI and UX were praised in one review for making objectives clearer and loadout handling smoother.

Reference tools like the compendium and encyclopedia make systems easier to parse and support experimentation.

Value was supported by the long runtime and substantial post-credits content, with the caveat that it asks for a major time commitment.

Reviews that address price directly frame the game as worth buying at full cost.

Combat and boss effects are repeatedly highlighted as a good match for the game’s stylized presentation.

Voice acting and performances were widely praised, especially Troy Baker and the broader ensemble cast.

Voice acting is a consistent positive, with several reviews singling it out as strong or believable.

Weapon balance was mixed, with reviewers noting a large arsenal but also saying it could overpower enemies or trivialize friction.

World-building was praised for being unique, expanded, bizarre, and richly thought out, though sometimes delivered through dense exposition.

The DNF setting, factions, and supernatural backdrop help the world feel broader than the revenge plot alone.

World interactivity was praised through player-built structures that improve both the user’s route and other players’ journeys.

Writing quality landed mostly positive but not unanimous, with praise for Kojima’s charm and story highs alongside some criticism of nonsense or opacity.

Writing impressions are mixed, landing between entertainingly edgy and formulaic.