Death Stranding Series Hits 28 Million Players as Kojima Marks 7th Anniversary

Hideo Kojima celebrates seven years of Death Stranding and confirms the series has now reached over 28 million players worldwide, thanks to the original game and its sequel.

Seven years on, and the Death Stranding fanbase just keeps growing. Hideo Kojima took to X to mark the anniversary of the series' debut and shared a pretty big milestone: the Death Stranding franchise has now passed 28 million players worldwide.

In his post, Kojima thanked the community in his own signature way, writing: "Today marks seven years since Death Stranding was released! Thank you to all the Sam Ones around the world." The number came alongside an anniversary image from Kojima Productions.

If you need a refresher, Death Stranding is the open-world action adventure from Kojima Productions, the studio Kojima founded after leaving Konami. The game first landed on PS4 on November 8, 2019, putting you in the boots of Sam as he hauls cargo across a fractured world, reconnecting isolated communities after a mysterious catastrophe tore society apart.

A PC version followed, and then September 2021 brought Death Stranding: Director's Cut, packing in extra content and gameplay tweaks. The series then expanded with Death Stranding 2: On the Beach, which launched on PS5 on June 26, 2025, before arriving on PC on March 19, 2026.

The sequel picks up with Sam again, sending him into new territory to face tougher environments and threats while continuing his mission to link what's left of humanity back together. Those new adventures clearly helped push the franchise past that 28 million player mark.

So from that first divisive, genre-defying delivery run in 2019 to a full-blown sequel, the Death Stranding saga has come a long way in seven years. Kojima used the anniversary as another chance to say thanks to everyone who's been along for the ride.

Have you played both games, or are you still working through your backlog of deliveries? Let us know which entry won you over.