This would certainly make sense given all the Metal Gear Solid homages in the Director’s Cut teaser. Impossible to miss, as they included things like Sam jumping into a cardboard box, fans have been wondering if some Metal Gear-like action could be coming to Death Stranding. While this is still not confirmed, the ESRB’s increased focus on stealth takedowns in its updated rating certainly supports the theory.

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In the original version of Death Stranding, players could perform takedowns on MULEs, the human enemies of the game. In these takedowns, Sam would sneak up behind the enemies and take them down with his strand. This same “strangling” is referred to in the ESRB rating, though curiously, it was not mentioned in the rating for the original game. As pointed out by Gematsu on Twitter, this is an entirely new line, and it does seem to suggest that Kojima Productions is doubling down on stealth.

As for what this could mean, perhaps Sam could have more refined CQC skills like Solid Snake or Big Boss. This could mean more takedowns, quicker stealth attacks, or new abilities. While the stealth in the original Death Stranding is serviceable, and works well in the Vietnam encounter with Cliff, it is nowhere near the quality of Metal Gear Solid. Given all the references to the iconic series in the announcement of the PS5 Version, Kojima could be hinting that stealth combat will be the star of this expanded version.

The new line also mentions “stages,” which seems a bit odd given the open world nature of the game. The description writer could be referring to the underground base Sam enters in the Death Stranding: Director’s Cut reveal, as players may explore several locations like this in the PS5 version. While gamers do not see the MULE base being cleared, it certainly looks as if Sam could be securing the area to gather more resources for Bridges. These levels could be entirely built around stealth tools and mechanics, and if there are enough of them, this new line from the ESRB would make sense.

Though the line could just be referring to the old strand takedowns, it would be odd to include the comment in the new rating and not the old one. With new Metal Gear Solid content from Hideo Kojima highly unlikely, extra stealth elements in Death Stranding could be a good compromise.

Death Stranding is available now on PC and PS4, with a Director’s Cut in development for PS5.

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