Last Wednesday, Death Stranding patch 1.08 went live, and the official patch notes revealed only that the update brought “various performance fixes” to Hideo Kojima’s divisive new title. However, fans have discovered that update 1.08 does a little more than is indicated in the notes, adding a somewhat surprising bit of Christmas spirit to the post-apocalyptic world of Death Stranding.
Specifically, players that have updated Death Stranding to version 1.08 will find that many Bridges staff members are now wearing Santa hats. Considering the dire state of Death Stranding’s world, it may seem somewhat surprising to see its inhabitants get so festive, but there is undoubtedly an underlying silliness in the title that makes these seasonal hats feel not completely out of place.
Additionally, Santa hats have appeared in the game prior to update 1.08, as Death Stranding’s main protagonist, Sam Porter Bridges, can obtain one for himself by establishing a specific connection level with a particular prepper. This means that the headgear’s place in the world of Death Stranding has already been established for many players, and these fans will likely not be shocked to see the hats in more widespread use for the holidays.
To note, Santa hats may not be the only holiday offering added to Death Stranding, as more could come in an update that Kojima Productions previously stated would be released in “mid-December.” It is said that this Death Stranding mid-December update will make a number of fan-requested changes, like allowing players to increase text size and dispose of individual vehicles, and perhaps there are some more seasonal additions in the patch as well.
That said, mid-December has essentially come and gone, and it is now possible that fans will be waiting until 2020 to see this highly-anticipated update, which will make Death Stranding cargo transparent when encountering BTs, go live. While this may be a bit of a disappointment to players that have been looking forward to some QoL improvements, perhaps getting the opportunity to see Death Stranding’s colorful cast of characters celebrate the season will be enough to tide fans over until the update arrives.
Death Stranding is out now for PS4 with a PC release to follow in the summer of 2020.
