NieR To The Heart - Opinion Piece

NieR: Automata  will release in Japan for PS4 on February 23rd, in North America on March 7th, and in Europe on March 10th, 2017. A PC version is also scheduled to come next year, but no release window has been announced for that one. It's definitely a hotly anticipated game. It won our staff-pick for Most Anticipated Game of 2017 , and it ranked third among our read

Nier, which creative director Taro Yoko has stated is the direct follow-up to Drakengard 2, follows suit perfectly for what these games offer up. Nier might take place a thousand-plus years in the future, but that changes nothing. There could easily be a whole essay on how all the games are connected (there probably is), but that’s not what this article is about. The series is asking deep questions, questions that might not be as obvious at first. The series, for as wacky and bombastic as it can be, is a reflection on events taking place in our world and how "we" fit into that world. It flips over rocks that might be hiding something nasty and at other points opens doors most people never want to peer behind. Not everyone wants to look at these things, nor should they be forced to. For those who usually let curiosity get the best of them or are looking for a deeper understanding of something, it’s worth pulling back the veil.

On paper, Nier sounds like a strange game. It's an action RPG where the player controls the titular protagonist who is on a quest to cure his daughter Yonah from a disease called Black Scrawl and takes place 1312 years after the year 2049. Nier is accompanied by a talking floating book known as Grimoire Weiss, "female" warrior Kaine with a mouth that could make a sailor blush, and Emil, who has something in common with gorgons and ends up looking like something retrieved from the nether regions of Tim Burton's mind. This game is actually about as weird as it sounds, but that is part of the charm that has made the title nier and dier to many gamers. The emotional story, memorable characters, humorous dialog and fantastic soundtrack have made it a cult hit among action RPG fans, and because of this there is a certain level of excitement over the upcoming Nier: Automata, which recently received a playable demo.

All that said, Nier: Nierautomatafans.Com Automata is looking to be as equally impressive as its parent games. This series shines and maybe releasing earlier in the year will garner the attention Nier: Automata deserves. This is no JRPG newcomer; these games have been there the whole time and stand up to the best of them.

The world of Nier: Automata appears to be more technologically advanced than its predecessor. This shouldn't be too surprising as this title takes place 9929 years into the future, though things appear to have fallen into disrepair since the last time players got to visit this world. Instead of a wise cracking spell book 2B has a floating gun turret. The NPC android that assists 2B during her mission, 9S, has a pretty sweet flying apparatus that is equipped for battle. Humans are no longer on Earth, and the androids left behind are at war. The factory where the demo takes place is enormous, and is completely overrun by hostile machines.


The latest build of the game, playable at Tokyo Game Show, felt smooth and solid, with absolutely gorgeous visuals, engaging gameplay , and a powerful emotional impact felt from the first minute (but you haven't seen that part yet, unless you played the demo in pers


YS: As you may know already, the previous title was not what you'd call a "huge success," but it does have a big cult following. When we thought about creating a new title for the franchise, I thought that it needs to become a greater success. To do that, I wanted to have my favorite composer, my favorite director, my favorite artist and my favorite designer, so I asked everyone to join and to create a success that I think is necessary for this franchise. I'm very glad that you feel the same


YS: In this world there are many androids, and many mechanical lifeforms as well, but we will be revealing more than ten of them in a trailer that we plan to release at Tokyo Game Show. Please look forward to t


Keiichi Okabe: When I was working on the previous title, the difference that I felt with other projects was that NieR uses a lot of vocals in its tracks, and I placed importance on the emotions that that conv


Square Enix Japan doesn't seem to have trouble showing it off even in official promotional screenshots, as you can see below, and during the latest livestream, Producer Yosuke Saito even took some time to clarify that the white underwear worn by 2B isn't actually panties, but the bottom of a leot

The gameplay of Nier: Automata is very similar to Nier. The bulk of the demo plays like a beat 'em up action RPG, where 2B has a strong and weak attack that she can string together in combos and can jump and dodge, all while using the right bumper to provide support fire from her floating gun turret. Platforming is thrown into the mix, though nothing really too elaborate was encountered. There is a section of aerial combat that was actually quite fun and added some variety, and the scale of the enormous enemy that was fought in this dogfight fashion was an impressive spectacle to behold. While this was a sudden shift in play style the transition was seamless, suggesting that the execution of incorporating multiple game genres is improved this time around. The battle controls in Nier: Automata make combat as enjoyable to control as it is to watch.