A little over halfway through the year, and 2025 has already proven to be jam-packed with major game successes, Kojima Productions’ Death Stranding 2: On the Beach being one of the latest. Unlike the first game, which was a bit more split in its scores, Death Stranding 2 has been doing very well for itself, with a Metacritic score of 90 at the time of writing. This effectively positions it as one of the front-runners for 2025’s coveted Game of the Year award, though it may find winning that race to be more complicated than it seems with Sandfall Interactive’s Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 on its tail.
What makes this particular Game of the Year face-off so unique is that the outcome won’t solely come down to which game has the better score, as Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 has Death Stranding 2 beat by only a few percentage points there. Rather, what might ultimately be the downfall of Death Stranding 2 is its willingness to play it safe, whereas Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 chose the riskier path of innovation and turn-based gameplay, and yet it has still achieved critical acclaim. Add to that Clair Obscur‘s indie underdog status, and Death Stranding 2 has its work cut out for it.
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Death Stranding 2 Is Excellent But Mostly Plays It Safe
There is no denying that Death Stranding 2 is an excellent game, with an addictive gameplay loop, emotional and compelling story, and visuals that make just about every other game ever made look like a cartoon by comparison. However, regardless of how good it is, it could be argued that the sequel mostly plays things safe. Rather than being a leap in innovation (apart from its visuals, perhaps), it’s more a refinement of everything that made the original Death Stranding what it was.
What might ultimately be the downfall of Death Stranding 2 is its willingness to play it safe, whereas Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 chose the riskier path of innovation…
For all intents and purposes, Death Stranding 2 is an enhanced version of its predecessor, offering mostly the same experience players had before, only it looks better, sounds better, feels better, and plays better this time around. Sure, there are some new systems at play — like environmental hazards and an increased number of traversal options — but it still feels like Death Stranding through and through. While that might not necessarily be a bad thing, it could still negatively impact its chances at walking away with 2025’s Game of the Year award, especially with Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 having taken the opposite approach.
Clair Obscur Brings Innovation as an Indie Underdog
Unlike Death Stranding 2, Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 not only brought an immense amount of innovation and creativity to the table, but it also dared to adopt a genre that the industry has largely disowned in recent years. As a turn-based RPG, Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 might have normally been regarded by many as not worth the time, and it actually is by some. However, it successfully balances its turn-based gameplay with real-time mechanics to keep players engaged, allowing those who aren’t normally interested in the genre an opportunity to find enjoyment in it.
Furthermore, Clair Obscur: Expedition 33‘s characters, art style, visuals, score, storytelling, and world-building are all both original in design and brilliantly executed, offering players something that feels familiar and yet unlike anything they’ve ever experienced before. Add to that the fact that Clair Obscur is a brand-new IP from an indie developer, and it stands out even more.
Death Stranding 2 is still an incredible achievement, but its path to Game of the Year is not as straightforward as it might seem. In a season where big ideas and creative risks are being celebrated, Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 may have the edge simply because it dares to do something different. Whether Death Stranding 2 can hold its ground in that kind of competition remains to be seen, but the race is shaping up to be one of the most interesting in years.
Death Stranding 2: On the Beach
- Released
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June 26, 2025
- ESRB
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Mature 17+ // Violence, Blood and Gore, Partial Nudity, Strong Language
- Publisher(s)
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Sony Interactive Entertainment
- Engine
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Decima
- Franchise
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Death Stranding
- Number of Players
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Single-player
