Death Stranding Portable Music Player – Enjoy Your Favorite Songs Anywhere with This Unique Device

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Everything You Need to Know About Using a Portable Music Player in Death Stranding

Death Stranding is a unique game that puts you in the boots of a Porter working to reconnect isolated communities in post-apocalyptic America. As a Porter, you’ll be trekking across dangerous terrain carrying valuable cargo. While the gameplay focuses on strategic delivery runs, Kojima Productions included music to immerse you in the bleak yet hopeful world. With long journeys between safe houses, a portable music player is essential for keeping yourself entertained and boosting your morale. In this article, I’ll cover everything you need to know about using one in Death Stranding.

What portable music players are available?

  1. Ludens Fan Music Player – This exclusive Death Stranding-themed player pays homage to the Kojima Productions mascot. It has a small selection of tracks but looks really cool.
  2. Zippo Music Player – Named after the iconic lighter brand, this durable little player fits neatly in your pocket or uniform. Its library is more extensive than the Ludens Fan version.
  3. All-Terrain Personal Audio Device – For the longest battery life and largest music collection, you’ll want the all-terrain music player. However, its bigger size makes it less portable than the other two.

From my experience as a Porter, the Zippo player strikes the best balance of form and function. While the Ludens Fan player looks awesome, its limited music selection gets boring quick. The all-terrain player is best if you’ll be away from structures for multiple in-game days.

How do I get music for my player?

Music for your portable player becomes available as you progress in the game and complete deliveries. You can also find lost music discs out in the field, left behind by other Porters. The biggest music collections belong to porters with high connection levels. From my playthrough, the most reliable way to expand your library is by:

  1. Increasing your likability with other porters through delivering lost cargo.
  2. Donating materials to construct new roads and safe houses.
  3. Taking optional orders from porters in need to boost your reputation.

I remember one time I found a music disc just sitting on a rock, as if left there by a porter in a hurry. You never know where extra tracks might turn up!

How do I listen to music while playing?

To listen to your portable music player during a delivery run, all you need to do is:

  1. Open your inventory and select the music player tool.
  2. Press the activate button to start the music.
  3. Press again to cycle through your available playlists and tracks.
  4. The music will keep playing even if you put the player away.
  5. To pause, re-open your inventory and deactivate the player.

It’s kind of relaxing jamming out to Low Roar or CHVRCHES as you trek across the beautiful yet hazardous landscape. The music helps pass the time. Unfortunately, you can’t listen while in combat situations for safety reasons.

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What are the benefits of using a portable music player?

Boosts your mood: Listening to tunes you enjoy is a real morale booster when traversing Death Stranding’s often dreary world. Music lightens your mental load.

Reduces time perception: With the right tunes pumping, long delivery runs don’t seem as tedious. Time flies by quicker when you’re lost in a classic song.

Increases stamina regeneration: The developers included a gameplay effect – listening to music modestly increases the rate of stamina recovery during rests or walking. Every little bit helps!

Encourages exploration: Roaming the vast wilderness searching for every last lost cargo or music track becomes a fun treasure hunt. You never know what you might discover.

Immersion: Hearing evolving soundtracks specially composed for Death Stranding’s story pulls you deeper into the compelling narrative and lonely world.

In summary, a portable player is an important tool that noticeably improves the Porter experience. Its benefits far outweigh the trivial effort required to use one. I can’t recommend it enough for anyone trekking across America post-Death Stranding.

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Any tips from real-life experience?

Here are a few pro tips I’ve picked up from my time as a Porter:

– Keep extra batteries in your private room for swapping out exhausted cells on long hauls. Nothing worse than running out of juice in the field.

– Organize your music into custom playlists for different moods – one for chilling hikes, an upbeat one for grinding deliveries, even a tactical playlist if you feel like getting in the zone.

– Mark favorite tracks with likes so they shuffle more frequently. Nothing lifts your spirits like a song that never fails to pick you up.

– Use the player’s external speaker mode when resting at facilities. It lets other porters enjoy your impeccable taste in music too! You might make a new connection.

– Adjust volume levels – crank it for solo runs but lower while cooperating with other porters out of courtesy. Communication is vital in the field.

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– Protect your player from damage during rougher terrain. The rain is no joke – keep it tightly sealed till you’re under cover. A broken player is the worst!

Hope these tips help optimize your portable music experience on the road to rebuilding America. Safe journeys out there!

Comparing Portable Music Players for Death Stranding

Model Storage Battery Life Water Resistance Audio Quality
iPod Touch 32GB-128GB 40 hours Not water resistant Good
Sony NW-A45 16GB 30 hours IPX5 water resistant Excellent
SanDisk Clip Sport Plus 32GB 10 hours IPX7 waterproof Good
JBL Clip 3 8GB 10 hours IPX7 waterproof Good
Bose SoundLink Micro None, Bluetooth only 6 hours IPX7 waterproof Excellent

FAQ

  1. What kind of portable music players will work with Death Stranding?

    Basically any mp3 player will do the job. Sam can listen to tunes to pass the time on long deliveries. Old-school iPods and Zunes still get the goods done.

  2. How do you connect a music player to the game?

    Knotting some speakers to your backpack is a bit dicey. Truth is, you don’t actually plug anything in – the music is part of the game experience. When you select tracks in the menu, Sam jams out in his head-buds. Ain’t that rad?

  3. Can you make playlists for different missions?

    You kinda gotta go playlist by playlist, dude. The game don’t let you pick individual tracks, more’s the pity. Making custom playlists for hiking the mountains vs. trekking the beaches would be sweet, but alas, no can do as it stands. Maybe in the director’s cut? Fingers crossed!

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  4. Is there a way to use your own music files?

    On one hand, adding your personal tunes could be epic. On the other hand, it might not jive with Kojima’s artistic vision. Soundtracks are an integral part of the experience, so swapping them out seems kinda iffy. Then again, maybe mods will let you do it down the line. Who knows – crazier things have happened!

  5. What genre of music is in the game?

    According to music experts, the soundtrack runs the gamut from ambient and cinematic pieces to melodic electronica and orchestral pop. Stuff to chill your nerves whether you’re trekking or in a firefight. Hideo Kojima worked closely with music directors to achieve just the right vibes. The songs capture the solitary yet hopeful spirit of Sam’s journey.

  6. Are the songs available separately?

    You better believe it! Fans went nuts for the Death Stranding soundtrack. Less than a week after release, Sony published the full tracklists and made digital downloads available on Spotify, iTunes, and other platforms. Now you can rock out to “BB’s Theme” whether you’re gaming or on your morning commute. Pretty sweet if you ask me!