Highlights
- Death Stranding is getting a special edition controller for the upcoming release on the iPhone 15 Pro, featuring a transparent orange-yellow design.
- The limited edition Backbone One controller will be available to purchase on January 30 and comes with a free iOS game code for Death Stranding: Director's Cut.
- The new controller is only compatible with iPhones that have a USB-C port, and it is the first time Backbone has collaborated with a specific game for a themed controller.
Death Stranding is getting a special edition controller to commemorate the game’s upcoming release on Apple’s iPhone 15 Pro later this month. Hideo Kojima’s 2019 action title earned warm reviews for its haunting dystopian atmosphere, themes of connection and isolation that grew increasingly resonant in the years that followed its launch, and an ambitious cast of celebrity actors that included the likes of Norman Reedus and Mads Mikkelsen. Two years after the original’s PS4 release, Death Stranding: Director's Cut was launched for the PlayStation 5 in 2021, featuring enhanced graphics and a wealth of new gameplay content.
Although Death Stranding was published by Sony Interactive Entertainment as a PS4 console exclusive, it would eventually be ported to PC by way of 505 Games in 2020. Death Stranding: Director’s Cut would follow in March 2022, six months after its initial PS5 release. Back in June, Hideo Kojima revealed that Death Stranding: Director’s Cut would be ported to Apple platforms like macOS and the iPhone 15 Pro, though this release would eventually be delayed from its initially planned 2023 launch to January 30 to allow 505 Games more time to finish getting it ready.
What to Expect From Death Stranding 2 in 2024
Death Stranding fans have been in the dark about its highly anticipated sequel, and Kojima Productions could turn on the lights in 2024.
With a week to go before Death Stranding: Director’s Cut launches on iPhone 15 Pro, mobile gaming controller maker Backbone is releasing a limited-edition Backbone One controller themed after the game. As noted on the official Backbone website, this marks the company’s first game-centric collaboration, as it is joining forces with Kojima Productions to release the transparent orange-yellow controller. The inner center is decorated with the logos for Backbone and Kojima Productions, while the back sports the Death Stranding logo.
Only a limited number of Backbone One Death Stranding Limited Edition controllers will be sold, and they will become available to order on January 30 at 9 AM Pacific Time (or 12 PM Eastern). Anyone who picks up the controller will also receive a free iOS game code for Death Stranding: Director’s Cut. Said copy is a universal purchase across all M-series chip-powered Apple devices, including iOS, iPadOS, and MacOS. However, as the iPhone 15 Pro series is the only iPhone that can run Death Stranding: Director’s Cut, the new controller is only available for phones with a USB-C port.
Backbone previously worked with PlayStation to produce a PS5 DualSense-themed iOS mobile controller variant back in 2022, but this new Death Stranding controller is the first time the company has worked to promote a specific game. It won’t be too much longer before gamers can take Sam Porter Bridges and his BB companion with them on the go thanks to the iPhone 15 Pro, and this limited-edition controller will ensure they are playing in style when Death Stranding: Director’s Cut’s mobile port launches later this month.
Death Stranding
The first title from iconic game designer Hideo Kojima since starting his own game studio, Death Stranding stars Walking Dead icon Norman Reedus as a sort of Sci-Fi-Fantasy-inspired delivery man. Players will need to make their way past mysterious creatures known as BTs as they attempt to make it from one location to the next.
