TGS 2018: Death Stranding Continues to Confound with the Man in the Golden Mask

Oh, this is good – this is very good. Kojima Productions simply can’t resist showing off Death Stranding, and as part of its TGS 2018 stage show, it’s put up an 80 second clip introducing Troy Baker’s character, who’s aptly known as “the man in the golden mask”. The newcomer – who’ll be voiced by Satoshi Mikami in Japan – seems like a potentially ominous foe (or is he?), as he uses his face gear to summon an Eldritch enemy that would impress even H.P. Lovecraft himself.

We really do like this scene: Baker’s in vintage anime mode, cranking up the melodrama with ease, and the animation on the gelatinous bull creature is just brilliant – particularly when it begins pawing at its mask like a cat would to clean its face. There’s some serious Grade A talent attached to this project, so while we appreciate the frustration regarding gameplay footage, we can’t help but feel enthusiastic about it – creatively, it appears to be shaping up to be something special.

In other news, American actor Tommie Earl Jenkins has been signed up to play protagonist Sam’s boss. He’ll be voiced by Solid Snake actor Akio Otsuka in Japan, but the developer’s keeping the reason for his mask a secret for the time being. According to director Hideo Kojima, the project’s still coming together in a timely fashion, although a firm release window has yet to be announced. There are some cryptic clues pointing to 2019, but we’ll have to wait and see.