Death Stranding Holograms - customize structures with sound and celebrities

death stranding holograms how to
(Image credit: Sony)

You'll see Death Stranding holograms and wonder how to do them when you reach a certain point in the Director's Cut. Annoying that is actually a little bit before you can actually do them yourself, so you'll have to wait a while once you know they're a thing. These holograms are rewards you can earn in game that can be added to items - bridges, delivery stations, generators, and pretty much anything else you can build can have holograms attached as decoration in Death Stranding, you can even play music. 

It all comes from the Death Stranding hologram customization system, which you eventually get to play with in the Eastern Region. It's reasonably early in the game but still not straight away and nothing is explained that clearly so it's easily overlooked. With that in mind let us explain exactly how the Death Stranding hologram system works so you can join in on the fun.

How to unlock holograms in Death Stranding

How to unlock holograms in Death Stranding

(Image credit: Sony)

To unlock holograms in Death Stranding you simply need to deliver cargo to the stations dotted around the map. There are a few story-specific Death Stranding holograms that unlock after main missions, but the bulk of the rare ones you can find are achieved by delivering cargo and levelling up preppers, who often provide holographic versions of themselves as rewards. Keep pushing through those stars until they unlock, and if you’re keen to get a holographic version of a certain prepper, make sure you focus on them first!

How to use holograms in Death Stranding

How to use holograms in Death Stranding

(Image credit: Sony)

Once you’ve unlocked a fancy Death Stranding hologram to use on your structures, progress the main story until the wizards at Bridges offer Sam the PCC, a tool that lets you build things like postboxes and bridges. The game will give you a handy tutorial for each new structure as you get it but don't really go into much more detail. However, once you’ve made something you'll see you can level it up and once the structure is level two you can customize it. Hold the Options Button to access the structure menu when you’re stood in front of the structure, and add materials to upgrade it (these will depend on the structure). 

Once the process is finished you should be able to see a ‘Customize Structure’ prompt in the structure menu. Advance the menus until you reach the structure customisation screen and you should see a set of tabs: Music, Voice, Holograms and Rare Holograms. Select the hologram you want and hold X to confirm the choice and you should see the hologram appear on your structure when you approach it.

How to add music to structures in Death Stranding

You can't have both music playing and a hologram on a structure, so choose wisely as to which you’d like other players to experience once they come across your souped-up gilded generator. Maybe you want some Bring Me The Horizon to greet the player instead of a concerned Guillermo Del Toro? That part is up to you.

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Leon Hurley
Managing editor for guides

I'm GamesRadar's Managing Editor for guides, which means I run GamesRadar's guides and tips content. I also write reviews, previews and features, largely about horror, action adventure, FPS and open world games. I previously worked on Kotaku, and the Official PlayStation Magazine and website.