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NieR: Automata (2017)

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My copy arrived this morning and I've managed to put a few hours into it and so far I'm bloody loving the game.

 

I've only done the first few bosses, who have been incredible and on one occasion truly bizarre but the game is shaping up nicely. The story hasn't properly taken off yet although that could be just me having a what the hell moment really early on (the sequence shortly after the bit where the demo ended) but the premise is certainly there.

 

I've not done too much exploring yet and have mostly just cracked on the early missions, although I have found one hidden weapon and I do intend to set about exploring a lot more from this point forward. The world is a little sparse but given the narrative that is to be expected but it does look nicer than I expected it to and there has been one truly brilliant and equally bizarre location already.

 

I do think I may have been better off starting on a slightly harder difficulty as I've only died once so far and even that was down to my pressing the wrong button to heal. Also due to the way death is handled, if you play online you can get free healing and items should you choose to retrieve the dead bodies of other players. On that note,the way death is handled is certainly interesting and I am curious to learn more about that, so maybe a couple of suicides beckon.

 

It also goes without saying that the soundtrack is absolutely incredible, although I'm not yet convinced that it surpasses that of the previous game. Then again, that game boasts my favourite game soundtrack of all time so topping that would be a tall order.

 

There are still a few other gameplay mechanics that I'm trying to get my head around but so far so good and I expect to spend a significant amount of time with this, although that's also dependent on how I can decide to manage my time between this, Horizon Zero Dawn, Tales of Berseria and Nioh's NG+, all games equally deserving of my time.

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I was already interested in this game.

 

2qlwupc.gif

 

 

Interest has gone up, among other things.

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Completed Ending 'A' earlier and all I can say is 'wow', what a truly fucking amazing game. I would love to elaborate but the story is crazy good, maybe not quite up there in the emotional rollercoaster stakes of the previous game but still an excellent story in its own right. The last few hours in particular really upped the ante and were just incredible.

 

The combat remains absolutely brilliant throughout and the depth, by way of how you choose to spec your pod, is simply breathtaking. Whilst the environment/world could do with being fleshed out a little more it didn't become too much of a chore to explore, especially once you unlock fast travel. In the interim you could always ride a couple of animals to aid getting around.

 

Some of the sidequests are also interesting although there is also a fair share of fetch quests. That said, due to my advancing the story many got locked out and I've only done 35% of them so far, there were also some that were seemingly beyond my level so I'll see how that plays out. It was also great to see the return of some previous characters.

 

I've gone straight back to continuing after Ending A and the game continues to surpass itself, I can't wait to see what lies ahead and there appears to still be a hell of a lot to do.

 

If you have even the slightest interest in this game you really need to grab it at the earliest opportunity and it's crazy to think that in a year that has already given us the brilliant Horizon (which I still need to finish :blush) and the fantastic Nioh there is another, IMO, early contender for those GotY lists. Yes, it really is that fucking good.

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Easy Allies

* * * * *

Review

 

 

It's reviews like this and hearing so many positive impressions which make me want to buy this game now... :D

 

...it's sense which is telling me to wait and clear some of the other games which are in my already expansive backlog. :indeed:

 

Even so, I'm currently hovering over buying *Nier Automata and the previous game. :blank:

 

*I bought them both... who knew that the original game would become so rare, oh well £80 later...

 

There really is no hope for me. :heh:

 

R.I.P. Wallet

 

: peace:

 

Edited by S.C.G

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I got really annoyed with the way Jones was saying Automata in that review, every time he said it I cringed!

 

Apparently they pronounce it that way in the game at one point but it's still wrong :heh:

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Easy Allies

* * * * *

Review

 

 

It's reviews like this and hearing so many positive impressions which make me want to buy this game now... :D

 

...it's sense which is telling me to wait and clear some of the other games which are in my already expansive backlog. :indeed:

 

Even so, I'm currently hovering over buying *Nier Automata and the previous game. :blank:

 

*I bought them both... who knew that the original game would become so rare, oh well £80 later...

 

There really is no hope for me. :heh:

 

R.I.P. Wallet

 

: peace:

 

 

Have fun playing the original. Average gameplay (with a few Cavia hates completionist caveats) and fantastic story and music.

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I got really annoyed with the way Jones was saying Automata in that review, every time he said it I cringed!

 

Apparently they pronounce it that way in the game at one point but it's still wrong :heh:

Eh, Automato, Automatoe.

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So while I have bought the first game - at reasonable expense - in addition to the latest title, I'm unlikely to be investing myself in it any time soon.

 

However, I did happen to notice that a channel on YouTube devoted entirely to uploading videogame OST's with regular uploads has just put this up...

 

 

Really excellent stuff and it makes me excited for when I do get to delve into this universe which right now for me is so *NieR yet so far away. : peace:

 

*Sorry... :heh: but this is a game series I will become invested in, some day... so I'll make for that terrible play on words by actually playing the games.

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Jim Sterling was absolutely glowing about the game from the bit I skimmed. (26 endings whaaaat). He gave it a 9/10 straight up called it art, and his conclusion paragraph was he would want budding game developers to play the game to completion. And that's all I skimmed.

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This game is keeping me from platinuming Nioh. It's a bit special but I sometimes feel that I wish the camera and combat stayed in third person ala DMC rather than constantly transitioning. Ah well. Achieved Ending A. Emotional. Loving that I researched the previous game, played the drakengard games, and understand what's going on. It matters.

 

But I have a major gripe. WHY IS THERE NO SOUNDTRACK, digital or otherwise. For some reason, games with the best soundtracks like Transistor and this don't seem to have them for digital pre-order download, yet I get one with ME Andromeda which I truly do not care for. Ah well. Hopefully its on Spotify.

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But I have a major gripe. WHY IS THERE NO SOUNDTRACK, digital or otherwise.

 

Three CD set (with a bonus 4th disc for initial orders) releasing in Japan on March 29th. No news on a Western release although I'm sure something will follow in due course. Either way, I'm sure someone will torrent it shortly after. I downloaded the OST for the previous game not long after originally playing it and it still gets a frequent listen even now.

 

By way of a progress update, finished Ending B after spending ages in that playthrough trying to do some of the sidequests I'd previously missed, and the game is fast appraoching 'masterpiece' status. I would love to say more but all I will say is that you NEED to get to Branch C as quickly as possible ;)

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Well fuck.

 

Ordered this off Amazon, it arrived and now I see that I've been sent the EU version instead of NA. The biggest thing that makes me hesitant to just playing anyways is if there is DLC I want I would need to get a European PSN to purchase it then. If I understand things correctly.

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Onto Loop C finally myself. Being out of town for a month really sucks for gaming. The game really is a masterpiece with believable characters. And I love the resolution of many of the side quests.

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Whelp through certain events a trophy glitched out on me annnnd I had to buy one despite doing it legitimately. Oh well.

 

Platinum'd this fantastic game. Everyone should play this at some point. There is literally no excuse for a person to not complete the main endings, an easy mode that basically plays combat itself is provided.

 

The Naughty Children trophy. Apparently it won't unlock in route C period, I didn't realize I missed it until after upgrading all weapons which put Emil into his end state where you fight the copies in the desert. Post that fight I can't get him to spawn outside of cutscenes and his home is locked. Soooo fuck it.

 

 

Edit @Deathjam https://www.amazon.com/NieR-Automata-Soundtrack-Various-artists/dp/B06XS88HK9

Edited by Nolan

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Whelp through certain events a trophy glitched out on me annnnd I had to buy one despite doing it legitimately. Oh well.

 

Platinum'd this fantastic game. Everyone should play this at some point. There is literally no excuse for a person to not complete the main endings, an easy mode that basically plays combat itself is provided.

 

The Naughty Children trophy. Apparently it won't unlock in route C period, I didn't realize I missed it until after upgrading all weapons which put Emil into his end state where you fight the copies in the desert. Post that fight I can't get him to spawn outside of cutscenes and his home is locked. Soooo fuck it.

 

 

Edit @Deathjam https://www.amazon.com/NieR-Automata-Soundtrack-Various-artists/dp/B06XS88HK9

 

Glad you agree that the game is a masterpiece. Shame about the trophy but they built in a way to fix that issue.

 

And thanks for the link. Unfortunately in my haste, I bought it as soon as it appeared on iTunes and now I realise I can only play it from my phone which refuses to push the music to my tv or ps4 which I can do with Spotify and I believe amazon prime. Grrrrrr.

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Wouldn't really help for listening while gaming, but if you have a soundbar with Bluetooth it could play the music. Alternatively I think the only method would be to use a program to convert the files to something DRM free and play them that way.

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Glad you agree that the game is a masterpiece. Shame about the trophy but they built in a way to fix that issue.

 

And thanks for the link. Unfortunately in my haste, I bought it as soon as it appeared on iTunes and now I realise I can only play it from my phone which refuses to push the music to my tv or ps4 which I can do with Spotify and I believe amazon prime. Grrrrrr.

I thought iTunes was DRM free these days so you could just copy that music to wherever you like?

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Negative. Far as I can tell it's still DRM, or at least Apple Music is. I suppose I haven't downloaded straight from iTunes in quite some time.

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I've started to get a bit bored of playing indie games on my Switch so figured I would jump back to the PS4 and start working through the insane backlog that i've amassed. This was the first game on the list.

I ended up finishing the game over the weekend and really enjoyed it. The story is a bit weird but given the history of the series this is no surprise. I only done the first ending so I imagine a lot of stuff will be cleared up during other playthroughs. 

I loved the gameplay in this. Everything is so fast and fluid. It felt very much like I was playing Devil May Cry or Bayonetta. I also enjoyed the sections where the game turned into a vertical and horizontal shooter. Even these sections were done very well.

The absolute highlight of the game has to be the soundtrack. I've heard many say that it's the best gaming soundtrack of the year and they aren't wrong. Even when I haven't been playing the game i've found myself just listening to the soundtrack while doing other things. The Weight of the World is my favourite tune out of the lot. I've been listening to various versions of the song and here are a couple of my favs.

Original Version

Cover

Metal Cover

 

I'm looking forward to playing more of the game and seeing how the other endings play out.

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About damn time!

 

The music is absolutely fantastic as always when dealing with Yoko Taro. You’re in for a treat once you start doing the other main endings. Every ounce of which is spoiler territory. 

 

I never did get around to the DLC myself :/

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On ‎11‎/‎13‎/‎2017 at 12:00 PM, Nolan said:

About damn time!

 

The music is absolutely fantastic as always when dealing with Yoko Taro. You’re in for a treat once you start doing the other main endings. Every ounce of which is spoiler territory. 

 

I never did get around to the DLC myself :/

DLC is a fun short distraction. To be honest, I just wanted to give more money for thanks for Automata. It really is one of those games

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I completed the game again last night and got the second ending. I was a bit disappointed with this route as it was essentially just a retread of my first time through the game but with a few different story beats. I immediately started the game again and see that this route starts after the events of my last playthrough, so it looks as though i'll be playing a lot more new content this time through.

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I've just finished the game and nabbed the platinum. The credits for ending E has to be one of the best I've ever seen.

Spoiler

Flying around and playing as if it was a shooter was fun enough, but having the Weight of the World playing in the background was fantastic. The moment where I kept getting killed over and over again, asked for help and then the song got louder and louder as people who had finished the game rallied to my side was simply magical. I had a huge smile on my face and tears in my eyes. Amazing stuff.

I already loved Weight of the World but playing through the game, getting different endings and seeing how the full story played out really gave it a lot more meaning and impact. Hands down one of my favourite gaming songs ever and the OST is probably the best of the year. It will be criminal if it doesn't pick up some awards.

I loved the game but I'm still a little confused with some of the story elements. I plan on watching a YouTube video to help clear some things up.

A fantastic game that is worthy of being my 200th platinum. :bowdown:

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13 minutes ago, Hero-of-Time said:

 

I loved the game but I'm still a little confused with some of the story elements. I plan on watching a YouTube video to help clear some things up.

A fantastic game that is worthy of being my 200th platinum. :bowdown:

Congrats on 200, and what story elements have left you confused?

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