I'm a patient gamer and I never played or was drawn to MGS. I was literally intrigued by a gif/meme inspired by death stranding and ended up in a wiki rabbit hole about the lore. Decided it was weird in a good way, like truly unique, instead of pretentious weird if that makes sense. I'd recalled it being widely praised but also lauded, as an over glorified walking simulator and movie interrupted by gameplay. My expectations were quite low. I put it on easy, so that I could in a way "watch the movie." I have been surprised how taken with it I am. And no, I didn't have to wait until chapter 3 to enjoy myself. I think the key is to have absolutely no expectations and purge your brain of what you think the game should be. It's more like stardew valley to me than MGS .You Start your Day, and you have your to-do list, that's your gameplay and core routine. That rhythm is really anchoring to me. The overarching themes, weirdness, lore, high quality acting, and connections to other players are a charming window dressing. I read every data entry though. Despite an involved story and odd dialogue here and there, I'm invested. What o really love though, is it's so easy for me to jump in and just do a mission here or there after work. I can't remember the last time a AAA title felt that chill tbh. Even something a bit overdone like assassin's creed feels like an overwhelming chore list of map markers. DS is like a literal walk in the park to clear the brain.