Ever since Platinum Games released the first official gameplay trailer for Nier: Automata in 2015, interest has been high on the sequel to the 2010 action RPG Nier.
The release of Nier: Automata has now arrived, and according to reviews from all over the internet, it is a title that gamers should not pass up on.
The Story Of 'Nier: Automata'
While Nier: Automata is being described as a sequel to Nier, the connection between the two games is very thin. The two titles take place in the same world, but with thousands of years in between them, Nier: Automata can be treated as a standalone game.
In Nier: Automata, players take on the role of a female android named 2B. Do not let her lolita cosplay-like looks fool you, though — 2B is a deadly fighting machine who is part of the a group of artificial soldiers looking to save the world from aliens and the robots that the invaders have created. The humans, meanwhile, were exiled to the moon hundreds of years ago and are waiting for the androids to make the planet safe again so that they can finally come home.
The Many Modes Of 'Nier: Automata'
Mike Fahey of Kotaku describes Nier: Automata as starting off as a scrolling shooter and then changes into a twin-stick shooter, a third-person action RPG, and a 2.5D platformer.
Platinum Games, the studio behind hits such as Bayonetta and Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance, was able to marry fast-paced, dodge-heavy action with an open world environment, and to quote CGM's Elias Blondeau, "the results are nothing short of magnificent." Blondeau then goes on to say that Nier: Automata is not just all about combat similar to Bayonetta, with the combination of different game modes enclosed within an open-world RPG.
'Nier: Automata' Offers Massive Replay Value
The story of Nier: Automata is one of the game's biggest selling points and the aspect that sets it apart from other open-world action games, as it is able to tie together the various featured game modes.
After players reach the first main ending of Nier: Automata, of which there are several available to players, the story goes off the rails, in a way that only lead writer and director Yoko Taro could. Taro is the man behind the Drakengard series and the original Nier, but his work in Nier: Automata outshines all his other projects.
Each playthrough will last about 15 hours to 20 hours, and after each ending, New Game+ abilities are made available. After Destructoid's Chris Carter loaded up his save file after completing the game, he found himself in a unique section that he had never seen before.
According to Carter, the many available endings makes Nier: Automata unpredictable, leading to massive replay value that will likely get players hooked for multiple playthroughs to know more about the game's story and to gain new abilities. This is because, as Rishi Alwani of Gadgets 360 writes, subsequent playthroughs not only change a few scenes, but rather provides entirely different perspectives on characters and events.
Is 'Nier: Automata' An Instant Classic?
Nier: Automata comes with several game modes, a very polished combat system, a thought-provoking story, and an engaging soundtrack, all of which combine to create what should be an instant classic on the PlayStation 4 and PC.
The game's release might be overshadowed by the launch of the Nintendo Switch and The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, along with Horizon Zero Dawn for the PlayStation 4, but Nier: Automata will surely rise up from these shadows before long.
