Hideo Kojima shreds on an electric guitar at ‘Death Stranding 2’ event

Hideo Kojima celebrated the release of Death Stranding 2: On The Beach by shredding on an electric guitar at a special launch event.

• READ MORE: ‘Death Stranding 2: On The Beach’ review: arty masterpiece sequel is loads of fun

Appearing in Tokyo last night (June 26) as part of the Death Stranding 2: On The Beach world celebration tour, creator Hideo Kojima was gifted a new guitar by PlayStation. Taking to the stage of the fan event, he showed off his new instrument with some fancy finger work.

“We made Kojima a gift. Saw him spin it. All on Death Stranding 2 launch day. Perfection,” wrote PlayStation Studios in a post on social media, alongside a brief clip of Kojima’s playing abilities. The guitar is a replica of Higgs’ instrument from the original Death Stranding.

We made Kojima a gift.
Saw him spin it.
All on #DEATHSTRANDING2 launch day.

Perfection pic.twitter.com/3Ato1Twtck

— PlayStation Studios XDEV DS2 London Tour (@Sony_XDEV) June 26, 2025

“That’s the happiest I’ve ever seen him,” wrote one fan. “He never ceases to surprise me,” added another. However other fans have cast doubts on whether Kojima was really playing the replica instrument. “People will believe anything,” said one X/Twitter user.

Since the clip was shared, fans have since added various songs to the video, including Bring Me The Horizon’s ‘Ludens’ which was originally released as part of the Death Stranding soundtrack album ‘Timefall’.

Hideo Kojima played Ludens by Bring Me The Horizon on guitar at a recent event in Tokyo promoting the release of Death Stranding 2.

The song is featured in the original Death Stranding, of which he is the director. pic.twitter.com/JE9TeMk0A6

— State of the Scene (@SOTSPodcast) June 26, 2025

The Death Stranding 2: On The Beach world celebration tour continues tomorrow night in Paris, before touching down in London on Monday (June 30). The event at Outernet will see Kojima joined by Caroline Polachek, who created the title track for On The Beach.

In November, a musical Death Stranding concert tour will kick off, with the ‘Strands Of Harmony’ world tour featuring music from the 2019 original and the sequel.

Earlier this year, it was reported (via Rolling Stone) that halfway through the development of Death Stranding 2, creator Hideo Kojima approached composer Woodkid and told him they had a problem because “players liked it too much.”

“That means something is wrong; we have to change something,” he added. “If everyone likes it, it means it’s mainstream. It means it’s conventional. It means it’s already pre-digested for people to like it. And I don’t want that.” However, Death Stranding 2: On The Beach already has a Metacritic score of 90, making it one of the best reviewed games of the year.

In a five-star write-up, NME said: “Death Stranding 2 doesn’t take well to bingeing: it’s a slow-burning game that remains an acquired taste. But it’s far more accessible and fun to play this time around, with simply more entertainment between the quieter ‘walking simulator’ phases. For sheer creativity and daring in a blockbuster game, you owe it to yourself to check it out.”

In other news, Jack Black will return to Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 3+4 as playable skater Officer Dick and his british counterpart, Constable Richard

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