I don’t know about you, but whenever Hideo Kojima says something, I assume there’s a 50 percent chance he’s joking and a 100 percent chance he’s serious. That’s exactly how I felt when I read about the Easter eggs in Death Stranding 2: On the Beach. According to Kojima, he personally added those little self-referential nods because his staff refused to do it for him. When he asked them to include his jokes, they would pretend they didn’t hear him. Honestly? I can picture that meeting perfectly. 😂

Maybe Kojima was exaggerating. He does that. But he also gave a concrete example of where one of his Easter eggs hides. If you visit a hot spring and look up at the sky, then zoom in on the stars, you’ll find it. That’s such a Kojima thing to do. It’s not a giant neon sign. It’s a quiet, weird, almost romantic moment that rewards players who slow down and stare at the sky while soaking in a hot spring. I love that. In a game about connecting a fractured world, the best secrets are the ones that make you pause and appreciate the view.

Now, I’ve been playing Death Stranding 2: On the Beach since it arrived on PlayStation 5, and I keep discovering things. Some are intentional. Some feel like happy accidents. Players have already noticed that you can create roads in the wilderness simply by following the same path over and over. That’s not exactly an Easter egg, but it’s the kind of emergent detail that makes the game feel alive. You walk, you leave a trace, and eventually the world bends around your footsteps. It’s very Kojima, and it’s very satisfying.

There’s also a birthday Easter egg. If you play the game on your birthday, something special happens. I won’t spoil it, but I will say that it made me feel seen in a way that few games manage. It’s a small thing, but Death Stranding 2 is full of small things that add up to something bigger. That’s the magic trick Kojima keeps pulling. He makes you care about delivery routes, rope, and lonely landscapes, and then he hides a birthday message in the code like a note passed in class.

So why did Kojima add these himself? According to him, his staff refused. They would pretend not to hear when he asked them to include his self-referential jokes. I have to laugh at that. Imagine being on Kojima’s team and deciding, nope, not doing that. But I also get it. When your boss is a legendary auteur with a very specific sense of humor, you might worry that adding his jokes will make the game feel like a vanity project. Kojima, of course, went ahead and did it anyway. That’s the same energy that gave us a game where you deliver packages, build zip lines, and cry at a cutscene about a baby. You either vibe with it or you don’t.

For those who want even more behind-the-scenes detail, The Art of Death Stranding 2: On the Beach offers an in-depth look at the creation of the game. I’m not sure if it includes any references to Kojima’s Easter eggs, but I hope it does. I want to see the whiteboard notes. I want to see the moment someone wrote “hot spring stars” and someone else wrote “no.” That’s the kind of drama I’m here for. 😅

Here’s a quick breakdown of the known secrets and details so far:

Kojima has also said that Death Stranding 2 was his most challenging game to date. It was almost canceled. That’s wild to think about now, especially since the game is out and people are finding roads, birthdays, and hot spring stars. But it tracks. Kojima doesn’t make safe games. He makes games that risk being too weird, too slow, too emotional, and then he somehow makes them work. When you’re swinging for the fences like that, cancellation is always lurking in the dugout.

And what about Death Stranding 3? Kojima has ideas for it, but he has indicated that he doesn’t plan to make that game himself. I have mixed feelings about that. On one hand, I want more of his weird, hopeful, sci-fi delivery sims. On the other hand, I respect that he might want to pass the torch. If someone else takes over, I hope they keep the hot springs, the birthday surprises, and the roads that appear because someone else walked there first. Those details are the soul of the game.

So, if you’re playing Death Stranding 2: On the Beach, do me a favor. Find a hot spring. Look up. Zoom in on the stars. Then walk a path you’ve walked before and see if the world changes. You might find a secret Kojima hid himself, or you might just find a quiet moment that makes the journey worth it. Either way, that’s the point. 🎮✨