AKUREYRI, ICELAND — Icelandic authorities report 5 dead of exhaustion and dehydration after trying to hike the hilltop of Ytri-súla. All 5 were American tourists taking a hiking trip who were inspired by Death Stranding according to their Discord chat history.
At the request of their families, their real names have not been disclosed, but we have received permission to report their Discord usernames: The_Sockstuffer, i need a goth mother, Jilk (stylized in a unique font), RIP_T’Challa, and Bridges2bridges. The victims ranged in age from 21 to 32
“I told him it was a terrible idea,” stated Jilk’s sister. “He has never shown any knowledge of hiking. You can’t just decide to walk up a hill without expecting serious risks. Honestly, he was better off snorting cocaine than attempting any form of exercise. He gets out of his chair twice a day max. For god sake he keeps a urine bottle under his desk so he doesn’t even have to leave his computer to go to the bathroom.”
Emil Andersson, an Icelandic physician reviewing the case, expressed concern over the influence of video games on real-world decision-making.
“I do not understand why gamers think they could hike our hills. It’s very irresponsible for these games to normalize this kind of behavior because it leads to real world hiking. Just because you can do it in a game, doesn’t mean it’s possible in real life. I think that is the real danger of video games. It creates this expectation for people to think they could do the impossible. Relatively speaking of course. These impressionable American gamers need to go back to their shooting games.”
Since this incident, many countries with highly popular hiking and mountain climbing spots have put up updated warning signs for anyone planning on accomplishing the same feat. Grand Canyon officials have stated that they will be checking everyone’s play time averages from steam before allowing people to enter the canyon itself. Mount Kilimanjaro officials will fine those that have even touched a video game in the last 3 years if found climbing the mountain. Everest Sherpas have installed signs at the base of the summit that read, “Don’t Even Think About It” in perfect English.
At press time, a digital ceremony is to be held on the Death Stranding discord. It is unknown if Kojima Productions plans to include easter eggs in the sequel for these victims.
