This is all just my wild-ass speculation, but hear me out. TL;DR at the bottom.
Why would a Gran Turismo game have motorcycles?
Gran Turismo's developers Polyphony Digital once made a motorcycle game for the PlayStation 2 called Tourist Trophy. Just like how Gran Turismo has many Japanese cars old and new, Tourist Trophy included plenty of new and old bikes from the big four Japanese brands Honda, Yamaha, Kawasaki & Suzuki along with a few European and American ones like Triumph, Aprilia, BMW, and Buell (Buell was an American brand using engines from and later owned by Harley-Davidson).
What does Death Stranding have to do with it?
It has in-game collectible items called Memory Chips that when found and inspected tell stories about real-world objects, movies, music albums, etc. from the time before the apocalyptic events of Death Stranding. Of those 56 Memory Chips, ten describe certain motorcycle models from past and present (screenshot gallery). These are exactly the sorts of bike I'd expect to see if there was a new Tourist Trophy. Honda, Yamaha, Kawasaki, and Triumph have two each while Harley-Davidson has one. Many of them models are the same or similar models that were included in Tourist Trophy. Even the Harley isn't a typical cruiser, it's the Pan America adventure bike. Harley hasn't made this sort of bike before under that brand, but the Buell Ulysses was relatively similar.
Why are so many of Death stranding's collectibles about motorcycles?
Good question, and one I can't fully explain. The game stars Norman Reedus, an actor and motorcycle enthusiast with a a motorcycle travel show on TV called "Ride with Norman Reedus". In the game, your first available vehicle is a motorcycle of sorts called a "Reverse Trike", and a special variant of it is emblazoned with the logo of his TV show.
That said, the game doesn't really mention motorcycling other than these collectibles. There aren't any other vehicle-related collectibles, nor are any of the other collectibles such a niche subject.
Why would Death Stranding reference a PlayStation game via collectible items?
Death Stranding itself was referenced in collectibles in Horizon: Zero Dawn, released 32 months earlier. These so-called Stranded Items are a BB doll, cuff links, and Q-pid from Death Stranding. Death Stranding and Horizon share the Decima engine created by Horizon's devs Guerilla Games. Guerilla and Polyphony are both Sony-owned studios. Although Death Stranding's devs Kojima Productions aren't owned by Sony, the game was made in partnership with them and is not available on non-PlayStation consoles.
Why would motorcycles be in a new Gran Turismo game instead of in a standalone game like Tourist Trophy 2?
Tourist Trophy was essentially Gran Turismo 4 with bikes. I think with today's capability of DLC packs and live service games it makes less sense for Polyphony to make a two distinct games using the same engine, same tracks, and different vehicle types.
How likely do you think any of this is true?
Like, 5%. It really is just my wild-ass speculation. Of course the PS5 is just around the corner and many people are hoping and speculating about the next Gran Turismo game. Even if Polyphony is making a motorcycle game, it might be standalone and the Death Stranding collectibles have nothing to do with it.
TL;DR
Death Stranding has a disproportionate amount of motorcycle-related in-game collectible items. They're somewhat out-of-place in the game, and the makes and models featured are strikingly similar to what were included in Tourist Trophy. Death Stranding has a precedent of using in-game collectible items to tie-in with a first-party Sony game. There's probably a new Gran Turismo game coming for the PS5, so why not tease it this way in 2019.
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