Famitsu gives Death Stranding a perfect 40/40 review score

Japanese magazine Famitsu has awarded Death Stranding a perfect 40/40 review score.

The publication’s four reviewers each gave the Hideo Kojima title a 10/10 score, resulting in 40/40.

Gematsu reports that it’s only the 26^th time Famitsu has awarded a perfect score in its 33-year history.

[UPDATE: Hideo Kojima has said he expected a mixed reaction to Death Stranding because of its unique design.]

However, the publication is clearly a fan of Kojima titles, having awarded perfect scores to the designer’s previous three full releases: Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain, Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker and Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots.

The last two games to receive 40/40 scores from Famitsu were Dragon Quest XI and The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild.

Death Stranding reviews have been mixed in the West, with scores ranging from 35/100 to full marks on review aggregation site Metacritic.

Death Stranding’s Metascore currently sits at 84 based on 76 reviews. That’s despite the game racking up 15 perfect scores, seemingly suggesting publications assigned more importance by Metacritic have scored the title lower (the site gives products a weighted average score).

The PS4 game’s critical reception suggests Death Stranding sales won’t reach the “high end” of the spectrum, an NPD industry analyst has said.

VGC’s Death Stranding review called the game “a bloated, showy post-apocalyptic melodrama that makes a meal of some engrossing mechanics and themes.”

See what other critics thought of the game in our Death Stranding review round-up.

Death Stranding releases this Friday, November 8. It’s available to pre-order from retailers including Best Buy, Walmart, ShopTo and Game.