"DEATH STRANDING 5th Anniversary Exhibition & Popup" was held at Shibuya PARCO in November 2024. This event is KOJIMA PRODUCTIONS' popular game "DEATH STRANDING" (Death Stranding). The exhibition and pop-up shop commemorating the 5th anniversary of the launch of "Deast") will be scheduled to visit Nagoya PARCO (January 17 to February 3, 2025) and Shinsaibashi PARCO (February 7 to February 17, 2025).
"Desst" is the first original title of his studio, designed by game creator Hideo Kojima. The stage is the Americas continent where people and cities were torn apart by the emergence of the mysterious phenomenon Death Stranding. Sam Porter Brydges, who is called the "legendary carryer," receives a request and delivers various supplies to various places, connecting the network infrastructure "Cyral Communication" to unite the divided world.
The role of Sam is Norman Reedus. The mysterious man Cliff, who meets on the battlefield, shows Mats Mikkelsen, Lea Sedo as president of the shipping company Fragile Express, and Hollywood actors. Film director Guillermo Dell Toro, who has a close relationship with Hideo Kojima, has also appeared as Deadman.
A spectacular and breathtaking storytelling, an open world depicted in stunning graphics, an attractive cast. And the unique game. These factors are intertwined, making it a masterpiece boasting a total of more than 19 million players worldwide, and it continues to be loved even now, five years after its launch.
In this article, we will report on the exhibition and pop-up shop held at Shibuya PARCO.
- Photo
- Sachiko Saito
- Photo
- Koki Morishima
- Text
- Neo Iida
- Edit
- RIDE Inc.
Index
- P.1 KOJIMA PRODUCTIONS × PARCO “DEATH STRANDING 5th Anniversary Exhibition & Popup”
- P.2 KOJIMA PRODUCTIONS Interview
KOJIMA PRODUCTIONS × PARCO「DEATH STRANDING 5th Anniversary Exhibition」
What is worth noting in the “DEATH STRANDING 5th Anniversary Exhibition” is the reproduction of a space inspired by the “delivery center” that appears in the game. There is a "delivery center" at each location, and a small delivery terminal is installed in the center. Sam accesses this terminal to receive orders for missions, deliver deliver delivery, and rest in a private room. You can relive that place where it is inorganic and faint, but somewhere relieved.
In the space inspired by the "delivery center", there is a statue of Sam holding a BB (bridge baby) in the pod in the center.
In addition, a number of valuable archive materials such as production materials and contexts that have not been released to the public until now are on display.
There are plenty of visuals of concept art such as characters, creatures, and stage created by the art director Yoji Shinkawa and his team.
It is common for a lot of users to get into the game immediately after the launch and clear it quickly. “Desst,” of course, many fans have already finished experiencing Sam’s story early, but that intense experience will not fade even after five years. In addition, since it was deployed on various platforms, it has continued to increase the number of users gradually. A lot of people have already started their iOS version of Death Stranding Director’s Cut. Also, there are always hot topics, such as the release of the sequel "DEATH STRANDING 2: ON THE BEACH" ("DEST 2") and the production of a live-action movie with A24, is one of the reasons why fans don't cool down.
DEATH STRANDING 5th Anniversary Exhibition, where you can enjoy the atmosphere of the distribution center and touch the archives of the production, is a place where you can meet again with Sam who ran through the wilderness.
Some of the showcases are important items that appear in "Desst", as well as those that lead to the sequel "Desst 2", which is currently under development, where the teaser is released. For example, Doleman in the photo (left) is a new character announced at the "Tokyo Game Show 2024" held in September 2024.
Entei Ryu's work "Ryudens", which was displayed until March along with the statue of Ludens installed at the KOJIMA PRODUCTIONS office in the New Year of 2024 and the Dragon Year, will also be specially exhibited.
From the character visuals drawn by Yoji Shinkawa with a brush pen, the personality of the person is exuded through the soft strength of the ink.
It is decorated with replica costumes of Sam and Cliff. The uniform containing "BRIDGES" in the hood was arranged based on Sam's costume design and worn by Hideo Kojima when he appeared at the Tokyo Game Show in 2018. The military jacket was worn for reference at the time of scan and is signed by Mats Mikkelsen.
The baby doll was the “Lou 1” used during the production of the E3 2016 public teaser trailer. The central handprint model was used as Lu's handprint appearing in the published teaser of E3 in 2016. There is also a 1/1 scale BBPOD (with Hideo Kojima, Norman Reedus and Mats Mikkelsensign).
At the entrance, there is a handprint that symbolizes "Deast". Designed based on the handprint of Hideo Kojima himself. There is also a signature from Hideo Kojima who visited the venue before the exhibition.
In one corner of the venue, along with the establishment of the studio in 2015, "Loudens", a symbol character of KOJIMA PRODUCTIONS, is installed. Ludens said, “I want to create things that I can’t imagine and expand the world through play.” The idea was created by Hideo Kojima and Yoji Shinkawa. The ceiling and floor are finished in a pure white space like the entrance of the studio, and you can enjoy taking pictures with Ludens.
Shibuya PARCO will be held on the B1F “GALLERY X BY PARCO”. The key visual shows Sam heading to the K2 West Distribution Center, where the characters PARCO are arranged.
DEATH STRANDING × Kome to circus Collaboration Menu
Shibuya PARCO offers a special collaboration menu inspired by the world view of the game at Kome to circus, an izakaya specializing in game and insect dishes on the B1F, the same as GALLERY X BY PARCO. It was an event where you can experience "Deast" from the side of the food.
Various menus inspired by Sam's orders appeared in the game, such as sweets inspired by "Cryptobiosis" motif that restores Sam's blood gauge, pizza that had to be delivered horizontally, and onion fly sprinkled with gold powder that imitates chiral ore.
Mr. Hideo Kojima and other members of KOJIMA PRODUCTIONS, Mr. Yoji Shinkawa, art director of DEATH STRANDING, and concept artist and digital modeling artist Entei Ryu, also sampled the menu. Not only the taste, but also the molding of Cryptobiosis and the quality of the pizza package were cheered.
KOJIMA PRODUCTIONS × PARCO「DEATH STRANDING 5th Anniversary Popup」
Among KOJIMA PRODUCTIONS' original goods, "Desst" T-shirts and toy "Ahiruden" with motifs of symbol characters Ludens and ducks are popular. In the POPUP area on the 5th floor, in addition to these items, exhibition original goods are sold. T-shirts and hoodies using the 5th anniversary original logo using Hideo Kojima's actual handprint, stickers and trading pin badges are also available.
In addition, we collaborated with the popular street brand Brain Dead from Los Angeles to produce T-shirts and Hoodies, and other special features unique to PARCO. The limited design by Brain Dead, which employs graphics such as the BRIDGES logo and BBPOD, is a irresistible item for fans.
