NeiR : Automata - Do Androids Dream...

NieR: Automata

I finished NieR: Automata almost 3 weeks ago. Since then I've been rolling around in my head what I was going to say about it. How was I going to write about this game? How was I going to approach was NieR: Automata is? Well lets see...

At it's core NieR: Automata is a super stylized third person action fighting game in the style of Bayonetta or Devil My Cry from the mind of Yoko Taro - the man behind the strange Drakengard series and "NieR" the precursor game. The game begins with a rather long (30-45 minute) sequence that acts as both the tutorial and the introduction to the game world. Some people have had issues with this because if you die during this sequence you have to start it again from the beginning, which I agree is bad design but didn't bother me.

You play as the character 2B - a white haired, leather clad, blindfolded no nonsense android. She is very much about getting the job done and doesn't have time for the chit-chat your companion (named 9S) tries to indulge in. The voice acting is very good (I played in Japanese with subtitles) and each character is distinct. They narrate the situation well and get you up to speed in the games story, while giving you clues that there is more going on in the background. Add some really pretty graphics and one of the most wonderful game soundtracks (almost 100 different pieces of music) I have heard in a while and you have a recipe for greatness.

The basic story is that humanity is on the verge of extinction, and hiding out on the moon after a global virus infection, alien invasion (unrelated to the infection) and mass robot attack (created by the aliens). You belong to a group called YoRHa - androids tasked with going to earth and wiping out the robots while helping the remaining resistance members stationed on earth get the supplies they need.

The first level guides you through the three styles of combat; third person sword/gun, side scroller style and flying a small combat craft bullet style. There is crossover between the three styles and the combat is very fluid. You have a small floating companion robot that acts as your "gun" while you wield a fancy floating sword. Tight, responsive controls allow you to strafe, perform combos and dodge incoming attacks. This is a game full of fast action and reflexes.

Except when you realize it isn't.

The first thing that made me squint at what the game offered mechanically was when I realized how the dodge mechanic worked. During a dodge you are invulnerable and you can chain dodges as many times as you like - it has no cool down. Basically as long as you are dodging you can't be hurt but still move around your enemies till you get to a safe position to attack from. This seemed odd to me. Why have all this combat focused content when with a series of button presses I can trivialize it?

Further looking into the game systems will present you with a series of programmable chips that you slot into your character as skills. Everything is a skill, from your HUD elements to combat bonuses to special abilities.  There are also a series of skills labeled "Auto" - such as auto-dodge and auto-attack, which do exactly as advertised. Now some of these can only be slotted on the Easy setting - but again, why would a game that so heavy invests you in combat have a built in way to bypass it?

Because NieR: Automata is not about combat. It's not about leveling up, boss fights, dropped loot, improved skills, better weapons or any of the many interesting systems it asks you to engage with from it's beginning to it's very final [E]nd.

NieR: Automata is about sadness and lies.

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SPOILER WARNING

This will be as spoiler light as I can make it. I will not divulge any major plot points 

or spoil any of the surprises. I am just putting this break here so people don't 

stumble upon more than they may wish to know. Honestly if you are even a little

 intrigued by what I wrote above stop here and go play NieR: Automata now.

Concluding thoughts are at the bottom after the spoiler break.

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The first thing I am going to address is the talk about how many endings NieR has and how many times it needs to be played through. Yes is has 26 endings, but 21 of those are "joke" endings - stuff that happens during the game because of things you do (or don't) and afterwords they immediately reset you to you last save. There are 5 true endings and because of this a lot of talk about having to play the game 5 times through has floated about. That's not how it actually works in the game, it's more like 5 chapters than having to play the entire game through more than once. Only the second chapter is really another play through and even it offers such a huge perspective change on the events of the game and such additional context to the story that it doesn't feel repetitive. The third chapter is entirely different and the fourth chapter is about 10 minutes long. 

I feel that however the talk about multiple play throughs got out its unfortunate. Now interestingly enough after the first ending you are given a screen encouraging you go play again - this was added by the publisher and not part of Yoko Taro's initial design. Without this no one would have originally known that there were more chapters or that there was so much more to the story. It would have gotten out fast (thanks internet) but it is an interesting design decision.

As to the actual meat of the story NeiR : Automata really takes you on a roller coaster. Initially everything seems quite cut and dried. Your purpose and the mission are clear. But it doesn't take long for the wheels to start to come off. The character of A2 has a number of subtle interactions and lines dialogue that are easy to miss on first pass. It's not until later chapters that missed or throwaway lines have huge impact on the deeper story. And your companion 2S is tragic in the most Shakespearian way, except that until the end of later chapters he doesn't even realize it.

Which leads me to what NieR : Automata is really about - the story leads you down to asking the question "What do you do when your entire reason for existing is gone?". How do you react? 

Going any deeper is far to much into spoiler territory so I am going to leave it at that. If you have played NieR : Automata but are looking for more concise summary of what happens and the characters I suggest taking a look at this YouTube channel - she does a great job of putting all the story stuff together in a way that's a little easier to digest than the game.

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Spoiler [B]reak End

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I don't usually buy games brand new and at full price. In part because I am cheap but also I have a huge backlog so i can wait a year or so for a game to hit one of the Steam sales. Something about they pre-release talk surrounding NeiR : Automata prompted me to get it release day and I am very glad I did. This is one of the best games I have played in a while. Both the story and the mechanics are fantastic and continuously surprise. I am already starting a second play through of the game from the beginning (not that I had any choice - if you have finished the game you will know what I mean) to get further into the side quests and some of the smaller things I have missed as well as the additional DLC content. 

NieR : Automata is very very good.