Death Stranding: How Multiplayer Works

Death Stranding is a largely solitary experience. While you do occasionally meet an NPC to talk to, more often than not they're a hologram rather than the actual physical versions of themselves. Fortunately, some of this loneliness can be mitigated by multiplayer, which actually does exist in Death Stranding even though you might overlook it.

It doesn't quite turn the game into a co-op cover shooter but there are a bunch of unique and interesting ways that you can collaborate with other players to make life in this post apocalyptic wasteland a lot easier for each other. In this guide, we're going to detail all of the ways in which you can communicate with your fellow players.

How to Leave Messages For Fellow Players in Death Stranding

Much like in Dark Souls, you can leave cryptic messages for your follow players in Death Stranding. These can be simple messages of encouragement, warnings of impending doom, or instructions on how to navigate difficult terrain. It's not quite as simple as literally writing a wall of text for others to read. Much like in the modern day, you actually communicate by leaving symbols or emojis for your fellow players to decipher.

To leave a message, simply press and hold L1 then press triangle. This brings up a Create Sign window that allows you to select an emote to place in the nearby area. Most of them are self-explanatory, warning players of impeding BTs, Timefall, or falling rocks. Others, are less obvious like simply leaving a smiley face or asking people not to pee. That's right, you can pee at any point in Death Stranding for some reason.

We would advise you to try and be as helpful as possible. Advise people to use ladders to climb up mountainous regions or to cross deep rivers. Letting people know where shelter is is also very helpful, as Timefall can strike at any moment and do serious damage to your cargo. The best part is, any messages you leave for other players will appear on their radar, which can help them to plot a route between them. And, if you're nice, you'll get likes for your trouble.

How to Collect Cargo From Other Players

Other players might end up dropping cargo when they've got too much to carry and you can pick it up for them and drop it off. Simply tap R1 while travelling the world to scan your nearby environment. You might end up discovering nearby cargo that's been left by other players. Simply navigate over there and press triangle to place it on your back.

You can then either deliver it to its intended destination by, well, walking there, or you can leave it in a Postbox, Waypoint, or City for other players to deliver for you. Even that is helpful in itself, as you'll get likes for dropping lost cargo off to these locations – even if it's not their intended destination.

Lastly, whenever you visit a Postbox, Waypoint, or City, you can check the Share Locker to see if any cargo has been left for you to claim. We recommend checking this whenever you're about to set out, as you might find cargo that needs to go in the same direction as you anyway. This will provide you with more likes and help to increase your standing with the destination location.

How to Assist Other Players to Navigate Difficult Terrain

If you come across a steep cliff, deep river, or treacherous slope you can leave suggestions for other players using the messages system or, even better, you can simply place a ladder or rope that they can use. This does mean you'll lose that piece of equipment (though you can go and get it back at any moment) but you'll get likes from any player that uses it – provided they're polite.

You don't even have to do anything special. Simply place your ladder or climbing rope in a suitable location and don't collect it when you're done. This will then remain in the world for other players to use whenever they arrive at that location. If you really want to get some free likes, you can leave a message declaring that a ladder or rope is there, as your fellow players might use it as a waypoint when plotting a route. It literally pays to be nice and helpful in Death Stranding.

How to Setup Helpful Structures For Other Players to Use

As you progress in Death Stranding you'll unlock structures that you can place anywhere in the world, provided you've connected it to the Chiral Network. To setup a structure, simply visit the nearest Waypoint or City and select 'Fabricate Equipment' when accessing the terminal. Here you can create the equipment you need.

You will need to have the requisite materials to craft the structures, which might require you to increase your standing with that particular waypoint by delivering packages to it. If that's the case, we'd recommend checking for lost cargo to claim and travelling back to the nearest city and then doing the same there and back. That will help you increase your standing in both cities, providing you with rewards and more materials to use.

When you've got the required resources, build the structure you want and then head out into the world to place it in a suitable location. Postboxes, for example, are best placed between two Waypoints or Cities, as other players can then use them to drop off cargo when they're carrying too much.

Also, once you've placed a structure, no other player can place one in that vicinity. This gives you a monopoly on likes in that area, which can prove very lucrative. We'd recommend you use the message function to place a signpost to your Postbox so other players know where it is and can plot a route between that and their destination. The more players that use it, the more potential likes you'll get after all.

How to Donate Equipment to Fellow Players

The last multiplayer function we've discovered so far in Death Stranding is the helpful ability to donate unwanted equipment to your fellow players. You can perform this at any Postbox, City, or Waypoint, and you can pretty much leave anything you've got lying around, from ladders to climbing ropes, spare boots, and other resources.

Simply visit the terminal at any of the above locations and hit 'Donate Weapons and Equipment' in the 'Share Locker' screen to drop anything you're carrying there. You can also claim unwanted equipment from other players by visiting the 'Claim Cargo' screen. It's best to check this before you fabricate equipment you need, as you might end up getting it for free.