Death Stranding 2 is official, and the sequel’s first trailer has given gamers plenty to talk about. Sam appears far older than he did at the end of the last game, sparking theories about the character getting caught in some Timefall or the passage of time. Elle Fanning’s character remains a complete mystery, Fragile seems to have a far bigger role to play in the next chapter of the story, and, surprisingly, Higgs is back from the dead. Based on the trailer he will be more intimidating than ever before, partly due to his increased infatuation with Amelie.
Higgs’ return in general is shocking, as it was heavily implied that he died off-screen in the last game. Beyond that, he appears to be leading a cult dedicated to worshiping Amelie, who was revealed to be an extinction entity at the end of the first Death Stranding. Worshiping a being with the power to instantly destroy humanity is obviously problematic, though it lines up perfectly with what gamers know of Higgs.
Higgs Leading an Amelie Cult is Hardly a Surprise
Obsessed with being “the particle of god,” Higgs Monaghan was an unhinged porter that essentially became Amelie’s puppet. Manipulated and twisted by Amelie, Higgs went on to do everything that she told him. Considering how he endured an abusive upbringing, as his uncle beat him whenever he asked about life outside their doomsday shelter, Amelie offering Higgs her love and attention saw him crumble instantly.
Higgs was lucky enough to have DOOMs, which were triggered through death, something he was first exposed to when killing his uncle in self-defense. This made him a useful tool for Amelie, and he quickly agreed with her line of thinking that the end of humanity was inevitable. Together, they planned to speed up the process, though Higgs quickly grew tired of waiting around for Amelie and became frustrated with her love for Sam. As such, he grew jealous of Sam and tried to commit acts of terrorism to keep him away from Amelie while simoltaneously hastening humanity’s extinction. Through it all, though, he remained loyal to Amelie.
With Amelie trapped on her beach for eternity and putting off the next extinction event for as long as possible, it is unclear if she will have any role in the next game. However, as shown by Higgs’ cult, her influence is clearly still being felt. Beyond just carrying effigies of Amelie, Higgs has modeled his new appearance off of her, wearing a mask that resembles her face alongside a wig that matches her own hairstyle.
The very nature of Amelie drove Higgs insane, and that insanity will likely lead to a lot of challenges for Fragile and Sam Bridges to deal with. What exactly Higgs wants is unclear, but a safe bet would be that he is still determined to bring about humanity’s extinction. After all, only Sam was there to see Amelie changing her mind and refusing to destroy the human race. As far as Higgs is concerned, her goal has not changed, so he may still be trying to bring about the next extinction event through his own actions.
Alternatively, Higgs’ new look in Death Stranding 2's first trailer suggests that he is trying to literally become Amelie. As such, he may be looking for a way to amplify his DOOMs so that he can gain the power of an extinction entity, and unlike Amelie, there would be no talking him down from destroying everything. Either way, it seems like Higgs is still driven by his Amelie obsession, though whether he is trying to replace her or is simply devoted to carrying out her old goal remains unclear.
Death Stranding 2 is currently in development for PS5.
