As a fan of the OG Nier before Automata was released, I'm just happy to see countless TH-cam analyses after years of obscurity. Im happy people are coming around to this game, and this world.
Same here! I fully completed nier gestalt back in like 2013... ish lol and it was one of the best gaming narratives I had ever come across. Automata may have left more of impact on me though, if I had to compare. Playing through the Replicant remake is elevating the original for me. I've heard a lot about Ending E, the new ending that includes stuff from the novel I never got to read.
@@jramirez4310 I acknowledge that automata is a better "Game", but Nier is a better soundtrack, and story IMO. Same way ME2 is better than ME1, but damn do i love ME1 soooooooo much!!!! Both games originals are clunky, making the comparison more apt. In terms of the OG Nier, I am so happy they remade it and made it play and look better, but for the original Nier, I will happily embrace the jenk, because I feel this game is a benchmark for video game stories being seen as art, alongside Bioshock 1, and Spec Ops the Line.
I'll admit I was a little disappointed with Nier Replicant. It just ended up being a slog to get through because the game isn't bad per say, but it isn't challenging or thoughtful in its combat design either. That lack of polish lead to some REALLY easy methods for cheap enemy disposal and even more brain-dead boss mechanic denying as using the 1 of 2 different options that are straight up handed to the player negates any reason to think about how to beat the boss. Instead it just devolves to either A. I'll shoot it dead with dark blast or B. I'll refresh dark wall before it runs out and spam heavy attack till it's dead. Heck, I even beat the new extra side boss and post content underleveled before I even passed 22 hours of total play time. So of course anyone who loves this franchise would say, you have to play through all the endings yadayada, but guess what? I watched the gestalt recapitation (which covers D) because I was interested in the story before replicant, and I bought the game to see if I was missing out on gameplay too, which I can definitively say I haven't. If I had to land a telling blow to it though I'd say this: If Nier/Drakengard games are stellar for their endings being replayed over and over, then Kingdom Hearts as a series should be regarded as an impeccable masterpiece if it was crammed into the one game and you had to replay it over and over to experience the series on one disc. But, as it stands, Kingdom Hearts IS a series, that most skip out on information within for, claim it's confusing when they just don't pay attention and have debates over how the story has been retconned though it hasn't over the years. If Nier/Drakengard was released as a series, people would just ignore the A to D of them all and only play the E's. Because there's no reason to as long as E exists and is easily viewable. Oh wait. That's already the case.
You could actually argue that it does actually endorse Nihilism, in a sense - not Nihilism in that "The world is meaningless and is therefore pointless" but rather "All attempts to find meaning and purpose in ideals and aspirations are fruitless, accept the world that is in front you, regardless." Kind of a Taoist (and some forms of Buddhism) positive nihilism, as opposed to the western concept of destructive nihilism.
All three of you are correct, kind of. Existentialism is the realization that you, individually, have no grand cosmic significance. Nihilism is the realization that there is no grand cosmic purpose. Absurdism is the refusal of “suicide,” that is, both literal suicide and despair at the loss of meaning. NieR Automata argues that life in of itself is worth living, and that even though there is no grand cosmic meaning, it’s the act of living/creating meaning that creates meaning. In that regard, it advocates for absurdism. It also argues that by rejecting nihilistic despair, you’ll free yourself from abusive, repetitive cycles (Samsara, if we’re using Buddhist analogies). There’s also (and this could be more up to individual interpretation) a strong advocacy for a libertarian community. The machine network gives machines a sense of comfort, but no sense of individual will. Yorha is similar in that 9S’ constant “yeah, yeah” responses is rebuked by his Operator. Pascal’s village, the Resistance, the Carnival, and the Desert Tribes all act as communities that give purpose and support without completely eroding individual senses of self. Edit: libertarian in the classical sense (ie bottom left quadrant), not in the modern American political landscape sense.
I have a feeling thats how Taro felt watching the war on terror unfold. The fact he made you feel that shows he is a writer that knows how to deliver feelings to the player effectively.
lol That's exactly my issue with that though, nothing in what the game alludes are nearly as messed up as those stories. It's a stark contrast to the sense of wonder and innocence you feel on your first playthrough with Nier.
@@AngraMainiiu I think the word you wanted is actually immersion, if there was any innocence it was gone along with Nier's innocence, and the wonder more like pure "what the hell could even lead to this" that makes you compelled to keep playing the game.
That story is one of the reasons why I overall prefer Bro Nier due to the backstory, seeing the tough times this poor boy had to go through to support himself and his sister is painful, and the creep that nearly got him in that story is just disturbing. The supplemental content such as the novels really expand a lot on the story, things such as the horrible Origin of YoRHa, Beepy blessing Machine Lifeforms with Sapientce, and the one that gave us the crucial and much needed information that Kaine jerks off after murdering Shades. And the one about the Brother is probably one of my favourites.
@@chicotheworld9763 Essentially turns out Bro Nier got the short end of the stick, since Dad nier was already old and strong enough to be a mercenary in the village he was already stablished so he could take better care for Yonah (which honestly goes pretty well with the Dad motif) , Bro Nier was too small and weak for some time and he and Yonah were basically struggling to survive so at 15 he basically had sell himself into a forced "relationship" with some old dude to get some money till he finally joined an expedition to kill shades and where he got to kill the man too.
Pour one out for The Dark Id, Demolition D, RSS Liam, and Valkyrie Aurora. Gone/diminished, but not forgotten. Clemps is still here, but he’s changed quite a bit.
NieR:Automata saved me from my depression after a breakup. The world was grey and had lost all its sound and flavor until I decided to play the game. Playing the game I related to 9S a lot and his desire for connecting with someone and dealing with loneliness. The music is the best video game soundtrack I’ve ever heard, and I even bought the CD soundtrack.
@@yuseifudo2609 much worse plot than automata for certain. Replicants plot is Mario mixed with "oh wait you've been killing people". It's basic. Too basic.
@@rayminishi689 non dynamic ost, vs dynamic ost. Music with washed out vocals and instrumentals vs clean, well balanced and fully pronounced music. Aka good sound design. Music that repeats itself too much with things like 7 different versions of the yonah leitmotiff, 2 versions of emil, 3 versions of kaine, 2 versions of grandma, 3 versions of dispossesion, 2 versions of his/this dream, and multiple uses of the hills of radiant winds leitmotiff. Vs Music that barely recycles itself, limiting the different versions of songs to just weight of the world, vague hope and city ruins. Except the different versions of each of these are so different that they are actually worth being called their own songs unlike in replicant. Automata used some of replicants songs as bases but the final results are way different and often way better than replicants original versions. Don't get me wrong, replicants music sounds nice to the ears, but so does automatas. Automata has significant improvements in its soundtrack over replicants. Heck Automata has like 3 versions of almost every song, and they don't even get included in the final ost list for the game, they're just there for flavor.
I think what taro did with DG was a lot of brutal experimentation. He implemented a variety of controversial topics and dialed it up to 11. The feedback he got from that provided him with the knowledge of what kind of content, players are interested in. Existentialism, sexuality, nihilistic tendencies, conflict in general and the motivations behind it etc. Add an incredibly awsome soundtrack on top of it and there you go.
Both nier games are very human, alot of games try to dabble in the meaning of what it means to even be alive and just fall very short. This is something both of the nier games do very very well
Just started playing through Automata again after my girlfriend got game pass, gave up on the steam version after the first dozen unprovoked crashes. Gestalt has a warm place in my heart too, mum grabbed it for me from the bargain bin wayyyyyy back when I was in highschool. I don't think it gets enough credit, especially now that it's in Automata's shadow. Anyways, thanks as always for the great content, Uncle K-Bash. Sincerely yours, CWglassworks
Rebooting mental health with the NieR Series? That's worrying. All jokes aside, I feel like the NieR series had the luck of being made after DoD 1 and in between 3. You can still see his brushstrokes in there, but compared to its predecessors, it has less of the raw hate for tropes included in direct gameplay. Feels like Taro has settled a little. He still wants you to destroy your own emotions because it's your fault this all happens. Yet he does it with more grace accompanied by really great music. NieR Gestalt/Replicant's party, to this day, is one of my favourite parties in all the games I've played. I think about them every now and then. They burnt themselves into my soul. God, I love them.
I didnt know folks disliked 9s hacking parts lol that shit was extremely fun to me and i dont even play bullet hells I also liked how it was contextualized
I plan on playing the original NieR after the first Drakengard, and when I do play NieR 1, I'll be playing the RepliCant remake. As the overprotective older brother of a 14y/o girl who doesn't want my protection (all I do is make sure she has her phone on her), I think child Nier will be more relatable.
Combat is easy they say... combat is boring they say... I bet then never stepped foot in a lvl99+ combat arena.. hah mental sanity.. hah hah (insert random drakengard noises)
Never witnessed so much snivelling about the more than decent combat and especially the funny hacking twist of a phenomenal action RPG (not action game).
These two games are one of the few games I’ve actually platinumed fully so that at least tells you I’m a big fan of the Nier games if I’m willing to put that much work into a game let alone two of them in one series
Okay this video is amazing but I have to say , the 9S part of the game with the hacking is undoubtedly my favorite part of the game. After spamming the same repetitive combos with 2B for hours 9S having his own repetitive combos ALONG with being able to jump in and out of hacking and making enemies explode mid fight made gameplay way more interesting and fun.
Personaly I could never get into the nier series there's alot of taroisms where it's just "What the hell does that or this even mean?" "Shut up it's perfect" you're not allowed to point out the flaws in this series; you're always contested or if a nier fan agrees they literally go "Yeah but it's suppose to be one dimensional or yeah this character is suppose to be generic" In comparison to darkengard yeag it's decent but I dont get this idea that nier and it's sequel are perfect and magnum opus of story telling, gameplay, characters etc I've seen so many people get pressured into getting into this series only to play it and go "There's so much unexplained." but get drowned out or shouted out by fans; I see people say how human these cahracters are but never "why" they think that, I've seen so many better writen caharacters. Like the whole "How can you kill what's trying to kill you.' and I get it he stated because their goals they missed important information. But if there's so much unexplained so much randomly flat characters or incossistent characterization characters will die and you'll go "I dont feel anything because they're personality is so singular." maybe it's not for me personally but I also wish people were allowed to dislike it without someone who pretends to understand it (live talked to plenty) or are too afraid to say they don't understand. Sometimes Yoku can write incomprehensible garbage like many other writers, and I feel like it should be okay to say that and still enjoy the media he makes. MFer literally has canon stageplays to the lore and one of the canon lore is the yorha units can get pregnant, meanigless information XD
There's a lot of on the surface obvious nonsense with Nier and Drakengard series. At times both were done that way on purpose to parody some of the ridiculous tropes of rpgs. But I think when you dig past the nonsense what captures people is the whole grey area style of storytelling where its not a typical black and white situation. Heroes can be seen as villains and villains can be seen or empathized as well.aka grey area
As KingK video about this game says... the game is a omage&parody of the game comunity or something like that 7:44 I often use Broadsword SPEEEEN at Drakengard 3 actually, more fun :P
I loved this game when it came out and still play it now. In fact I'm working towards ending D. All I gotta do is beat the bosses but the forest of myth is such a pain in the aaaassssssssss
Yoko Taro said in an interview once that he gets bored easily going through the same gameplay loop an entire game, which is why he likes throwing in multiple gameplay styles throughout the game.
Been thinking about this a lot. If there is an over-arching theme for these games it seems to be this: The world can and often sucks, but it’s made bearable by the connections you make. Do not go it alone.
The negative denotation of that theme is; "You may think you are doing the right thing with good people, but you are really the one irreparably damaging the world." I am not sure which Taro would like better, but i always read the games theme as "The road to Hell is paved with good intentions."
@@ryanpercival9823 It may also be something like how "We are quick to dehumanize those we oppose and ignore the faults of those we care for." But like you said, that's just the negative interpretation. I choose to believe something closer to while we may act monstrous, there is kindness in all of us and that those we are close to can draw that out and nurture it. Be careful you do not act without understanding.
At the cost of the minor hit to the ost and voicework, although every line is voiced now and the extra ending and “mermaid.” It isn’t 1:1. But it’s still very good.
@@TheMilhouseExperience i dont consider it a hit if theres no nostalgia glasses. Even being fully versed in the og i dont really see much difference in ost or va(i actually prefer remaster on certain scenes actually)
@@TheMilhouseExperience I don’t think they were going for the same, they were going for something new. As someone who never played the original and heard some of the OG tracks, I personally love the remaster. Music is still amazing, VAs are still amazing. Heck, I read Ending E after getting Ending E in the game, and I prefer the game’s Ending E by multiple miles compared to Grimoire NieR’s ending E.
1. Reincarnation is an entirely different game that just recently lost 2. The remaster/remake that just released is for NieR replicant *not* NieR Gestalt.
@@MrInuhanyou123 It's not about nostalgia, there is noticeable differences in both OST and VA. The latter is to be expected, it was more passionate before and 10 years is a long time for VAs. Even the Japanese VA suffers from this. And for the OST, the passion is also kind of gone. It's way too grandiose of an edit. Much like demon soul remake's new OST. Before, the OST was like from a fairytale, now it's like a dark souls boss fight. That being said, both the OSt and Va are still great
Um.. what? Are you implying that older people don't have the desire to make friends? Because I can most certainly tell you that some of them do. And don't act like brother nier is perfect in comparison, the moment where nier mistakenly thinks Yonah has a boyfriend and gets protective as a result is undoubtedly more funny and less weird with the father nier. You people need to stop acting like nier father is complete garbage.
Hey, it’s from “the game inspired by 9/11”. The awkward fumbling nature of that scene only reinforces the idea that Papa Nier could and would do what he did.
"Last remaining Earth humans" You might correct this later but its worth noting those guys are all androids too (and that isn't supposed to be a secret).
Yeah, what I got from it is that ***SPOILER*** Humanity is actually dead and those broadcasts were pre-recorded. And since the aliens are also dead, it’s turned into the androids and machines fighting each other for no reason, fighting a war their masters began with those masters not even being around any more
@@TheFawse This is all true, but that's more spoilery and learned later, and is meant to be a surprise. That is regarding the humans on the moon. I'm more referring to KBash referring to the Resistance Army as the "last remaining Earth humans". You're informed pretty quickly in that everyone on Earth, including the resistance army, are androids. Even under the false premise that humans of any kind still exist, they aren't meant to be on Earth.
@@jayczzz What was the point of the backdoor in the Bunker again? If YoraH beat the machines too well, it would take over and erase their memories? Which would make them continue fighting the machines forever? The only reason the Bunker was destroyed was because the virus didn't take control of everyone right away.
@@chrisdaughen5257 This is all tied into the true purpose of Yorha which you can read in whole in one of the short stories (from long story short book) Basically the Yorha type androids (Androids with machine cores) where originally created by an android called Zinnai. He also created the original type 2 and 9 models, at the time both unique androids. Somewhere along the line 9 found out about their origins (having machine cores) and how humanity was extinct. This caused him to go a bit insane, conclude the Yorha project Zinnai created would fail and slaughtered both Zinnai and 2 along with blowing up the space station they were on (killing himself too). Before he killed off everyone he modified project Yorha he installed a back door into the (yet to be built) Bunker to let the Machines in at a certain point. This combined with killing off anyone involved in the making of Yorha insured that Yorha would eventually be killed off and martyred, thus keeping the secret of Humanity’s demise a secret (By keeping up the illusion that humans are on the moon without fear of ever having the truth found out) and giving the remaining androids (Yorha type androids only made up a small part of the “Army of humanity” Android population) something to fight for. In short, the back door was made to kill off Yorha and keep humanity’s demise a secret. This gives the androids hope and a reason to keep living while fighting for the humans they believe are on the moon.
Nier Automata is one of my favorite games, and ending E is one of the best endings in video game history. Those saying that it's just torture porn missed the point the whole game is making. Life is absurd, the world is meaningless, pain and suffering is assured, but you can also find love, companionship and kindness, and those things are worthy by themselves. It's a message delivered so beautifully that it shakes me to my core.
Completely agree. Normally it is impossible for me to say what my favorite anything is. While that may still be true for games, I can say without hesitation that Nier Automata is the BEST game I have ever played. Not because it is the most polished or perfected, but because of how impactful of an experience it was. How everything comes together throughout the game, especially the music, is absolutely incredible. I still tear up whenever I hear the full Weight of the World, and for a good year after I beat the game that was true of any version of that song. Ending E has stuck with me ever since I finished it, and I can say without a doubt that it's my favorite ending to any game I've ever played, and is one of my favorite endings to anything (movies, shows, books even) I've ever experienced. Absolutely amazing experience, and one that I genuinely believe anyone who plays games should experience. Also really looking forward to playing Replicant once I have some free time, I watched a playthrough a couple years before Automata came out and found it one of the best stories I've ever seen in a game, so I'm super stoked to play it myself.
Can't agree more man. It's ending E that made this one of my favorite games, without it, I doubt Automata would make top 3. When the help comes during the end credits crawl shooter, when the backup vocals come on for weight of the world, man that made me tear up and understood how the game was built up to this one single moment of realization, that what we've done isn't meaningless afterall, and other people are in it together. I guess it also helps that somehow everyone manages to type encouraging messages in the final segment instead of shitty trolly ones lmao. The way the data is lost everytime you take a hit, a comrade is gone forever, just so you can get through this final scene. Man, Nier Automata is really a masterpiece.
@@ozairchishti1264 No, he went, bought the original japanese one and played it. In the West there was no Nier Replicant, it was just Nier (aka Gestalt) for PS3 and Xbox. In japan they were 2 games with the same protagonists but with different ages. These were made before the Remaster of Nier in PS4.
@@garreonlefay6703 I know there wasn't originally a Nier Replicant in the west. I'm saying Brother Nier was in one of the original versions so Brother Nier's story is just much the original Nier game as Father Nier since neither one preceded the other except in the west. In fact Brother Nier was the original intended telling of the story so if anything at least conceptually and in Yoko Taro's eyes Brother can technically be considered the original default version but that's a completely different argument. Either way the gestalt and replicant versions, as they've come to be known in the west, existed at the same time in Japan and can both be called the original Nier game. Replicant may be "new" to the west but it's just a remaster of the original with some gameplay and graphical updates along with an added story mission. Seems like you agree on that so I'm kinda confused on what discussion here is lol.
The story deserves it's acknowledgement too, I can't think of one other set of stories in the world written in a similar way of the unique manner of Taro. Everything he writes is so experimental and bold, it's a one of a kind combination of ideas.
To be fair the remaster of Replicant did fix a number of issues in the earlier versions of Gestalt and Replicant, like adding in Lock-On and upping the graphics as well as adding a new ending too! And honestly the only real difference between Gestalt and Replicant is the protag being either Yonah's dad or her brother as well as Gestalt being on xbox (and the only port to Western audiences) and Replicant being on playstation. The story still plays out the same way, but it can hit different reverberations in people because of the PoV of the protagonist.
When I bought the original Nier in 2010 I was a college kid and didn’t care for the protagonist. I would’ve killed for the shoto protagonist Japan got. Fast forward 11 years and I’m a dad to a little girl. Now I can’t really connect with the remake protagonist and love the original. It really just depends what stage of life you’re in at the time.
I like the relationship between Papa Nier and Yonah, but I like the idea of Brother Nier more in relation to the world. Brother Nier is an orphan living in a post-apocalyptic world where anyone can die at any time and his life is devoted to his sister. Like, this kid should have had his entire life ahead of him but he knows his world is dying. Fighting for his sister is fighting for his future and for hope. He's young and naive and desperate and I like that. The kid is reckless to a fault and you can tell he's never had a chance to just be a normal kid.
Yeah, i like the idea of the father Nier a lot, probably more than just another brother if only because it was such a fresh JRPG concept at the time (though not new for the west) but the brother version very clearly just lines up better. The reason why he has to rely so much on the village. The reason why the village would be so inclined to care for someone who, by virtue of some of the cutscene's implications, was probably once an outsider. Why certain interactions occur as they do. But more than anything, him being a child lines up so much better when you consider the Nier of the 'Snow in Summer' era with the failed Gestalts and the White Chlorination Syndrome. This was the era where children were being pulled from the streets by some dark underbelly of the government under claim of aid when really they just wanted to test out Maso. Emil and his sister were prime examples of this, along with the literal playground room in the facility. Sure, the father version originally being made into the core of the resurgence project and becoming what stabilizes the Gestalts still works to some degree too with enough explanation, but the circumstances that would cause him to eventually come face to face with this group isn't as tightly nit as a young boy desperate to find someone to help his sister, no matter who they are (or rather, the group would be less inclined to seek him out or make dialogue if he wasn't a child himself who they thought they could handle).
@@OsnosisBones The Square-Enix Western division (based out in Canada I believe) were the ones pushing for father Nier even if it made less sense narrative wise since the story was obviously already written for brother Nier. Because they adamantly just thought a grown older character would be more marketable in the West due to the success of older grittier Western characters in action games like God of War and also several popular WRPGs. They debated over it and finally Yoko Taro and Saito compromised and said okay they'll make a father Nier version for Western PS3 and Western/Japan XBox 360 and even then, Square-Enix Western division was like no dont do that just make one version globally for all but in the end they yielded to Taro's compromise. I feel like S-E Western division is similar to how Sony is acting now with Japanese companies. Also its not uncommon in that 7th gen era since a lot of Japanese companies were aiming to appease the West by either changing the style of their games or outsourcing them to Western studios, many with poor uninspired results.
@@budgiecat2885 I'm already well aware of the how and why, but thanks. Honestly, the dad's design alone makes it obvious. It's very obviously overly simple and just clashed with the game's art style (nier in the game and on the cover look different too, it's like American super Nintendo covers). The brother, by contrast, dresses exactly like everyone else in the village pre time skip. Then there's the fact brother nier's backstory is far more complex. And yeah, that awkward attempt to appease lingered until fairly recently too, birthing awkward and uninspired RPGs like the last star oceans uninspired plot and tacked on 'real time cutscenes that allow you to move the camera,' not to mention the many failings of 15 and it being just another 10 hour main story filled with side quests and a empty lifeless world map with 'settlements' instead of genuine towns.
@@budgiecat2885 Holy shit, just looked it up. I'm getting flashbacks to how Pandoras Tower has a protagonist and love interest ripped straight from final fantasy vs 13's original design concepts before becoming 15. The Rygar character is like if papa nier was in last story.
16:20 "Interact with the last Earth humans" ?!??! They are explicitly called "RESISTANCE ANDROIDS" though, just not Yohra androids. They even rub it in with the one quest where one of the shop's owner brings up the fact that he has already exchanged every mechanical part he originally had (Ship of Theseus paradox). Theres a sidequest where you unknowlingly help a woman rewrite her boyfriend's memory and personality. It says straight up how Anemone fought alongside A2 HUNDREDS OF YEARS AGO, how could she be human?! I understand this slipping by a new player, but I don't understand how you beat the game thinking there were still humans on Earth, when the entire conflict past ending B is sparked by the fact that humanity no longer exists at all. This is not even considering the side notes of the game about Project Gestalt and its failure, on top of any Nier ending you want to pick, because all of them spell doom for the Gestalts, and therefore, humanity's last hope, enforced by Automata's Devola and Popola to have failed miserably too.
Even so at the end of the section he still said that you should experience it yourself even if he did spoliers he couldn't do it all in a video because there is so much.
Don't need to scream at him. It was likely a slip up in writing the script, he's probably aware they're androids. Ultimately it changes very little about this video. I mean, it's still good to point out the mistake, but that's all it is. A mistake. No need to be aggressive.
SMALL STORY CORRECTION: 16:20 The people in the Resistance camp are not humans, they are androids. Humanity is completely and utterly extinct in Automata. The Resistance members are different from Yorha though, they weren't created for the specific purpose of waging a holy war against the machines, don't have black boxes made out of machine cores, and are more interested in just living their lives than Yorha.
Pleeeeease play Replicant and do a video on it at some point! It's so worth it, I swear. The combat is refined, the dialogue is mostly rewritten, and the new content is just fantastic, especially the new ending!
Spoilers So I just got done playing Nier Replicant as my first "Nier Gestalt" experience. I wanted to add how that moral dilemma boosted the stories. This overarching idea that in war, one's victory or survival only comes at the hands of someone's else's wellbeing. The ending by itself seems dull but when you pair it with all the time that had passed in the shadowlord's quest I felt horrible when Yonah decided this wasn't the life she wanted to live if it restricted the Yonah in the present time. It showed her compassion for others but I saw the shadowlord devastated, to then hear Nier say "you think I'll sympathize with you?" It does a great job highlighting the tragedy of what's happening. Two livelyhoods are at odds and someone here is leaving defeated.
"She's intersex, is that a gaming first?" Nope, I at the very least know of two examples from Digital Devil Saga. Though I'd argue they're hermaphrodites from the perspective of Reproductive Biology, as the other is capable of reproduction with their own stuff and Seraph's a reference to Ardhanarishvara.
Bruh.. love you, but.. when writers create in-universe justifications for the hyper-sexualization of their female-coded characters, _they're still hyper-sexualizing female-coded characters._ Being intersex doesn't make Kiane's character design *less* sexually objectified!
Really cool detail with what u mentioned about the blame being shifted onto the player with the shade reveal- the small shades dont attack you at all until u grab Weiss, usually u wont notice this in Gestalt since there no route E tho
Love these people bashing your for not playing Replicant as if just because Replicant came out Gestalt automatically should disappear and not be played. I personally relate to papa Nier a lot more so I kinda like Gestalt more for that reason, also love the mystical oversaturated bloom look of the original.
Gestalt is now irrelevant much like people disregard Drakengard 2. It always was irrelevant actually. The only reason it was made was because some non Japanese employees of S-E over in Canada divisoon debated with Taro and Saito that the game wouldnt sell unless they made the main character a gruff older muscular man that could realistically 'wield a giant sword' (as if gamers in the West werent already familiar with Cloud of FF VII) The concept of a father protecting his daughter is sound (we saw that in other games like GoW, Splinter Cell Conviction, Asura's Wrath etc) but this game was always clearly written for brother Nier perspective wise
@@budgiecat2885 I'm sorry but seeing them side by side? No, Gestalt HAS some definite strengths over Replicant. The fact it was inspired by corporate meddling does NOT automatically disparage the great the game does with Father. I struggled SO MUCH to get into the story with Brother and Father just instantly clicked with me as soon as I played as him. Gestalt is an amazing game just as Replicant is, and it shouldn't be made lesser. Even then, iirc, Taro himself said he had fondness for BOTH versions, and I wouldn't be surprised if he said that the version you prefer is the one that's canon.
@@budgiecat2885 Okay, but what does that have to do with I like papa Nier more than brother Nier? I also like the look of the old game a little bit more.
@@MaximumAddition yer just saying that because you played Gestalt first so it feeds into your confirmation bias nostalgia. If Taro had fondness for both versions than this new version would have also been released as both versions but Taro realized that was a mistake. He was pushing for Replicant only back then btw so if it was up to him thered be no Gestalt.
One thing I REALLY wish the devs highlighted with 9S, you can do heavy attacks with him by either delaying your second hit, or by pushing the dodge button right before attacking. WHY they don't tell you this is beyond me, but there's more depth to his combat than meets the eye.
I’m not sure if it’s intended, but the idea that you have to go out of your way to find depth in a non-combat android’s fighting style is super cool to me. The fact that 9S can replicate aspects of 2B or A2’s techniques by thinking outside of his normal gameplay loop seems almost like a feature.
I mean its a far better game and story than the original. Gestalt is kinda obsolete and the father doesnt work as well as the brother. The only advantage is westerners like old man papa over shounen nier despite brother nier and the sibling relationship fitting the story far better
"Just don't play boring" Idk even when i mixed weapons and combos up, played different builds, automata was still boring. Especially doing 1,000 hacking minigames as 9S.
As someone that was soul crushed by the original Nier, Automata kinda felt flat for me, not saying is bad but I just didn't care for most of the characters for some reason unlike in Nier.
I just finished replicant and your NieR analysis made me cry even more... "They found meaning in each other, not in the morality of their actions, they found purpose in those they cared about, and nothing else mattered..." damn
Both great games, tho I prefer personally REplicant version. Dynamics between Kaine and Nier seem to be more on par, and time passing with Nier growing up really adds up. About the last humans on Earth - well it is pretty clear from the very beginning that Resistance are not humans, they are Androids. Just not YorHa ones.
You can watch almost the first 9 minutes with basically no spoilers. He has a very obvious spoiler warning in regards to story at that point. Up until then it's just him talking about gameplay, combat, visuals, etc and why he thinks the game isn't nearly as it's reputation in regards to those things.
Its irrelevant if kaines intersex and she doesnt 'present' shit she dont give a fuck about presenting to anyone her clothes are remnants of her childhood shes literally grown out of but simply has nothing else because shes been on her own for so long
"Will Yonah be ok the next time I see her? I don't trust Taro!"
Smart man.
Never trust Taro.
I mean...
Spoiler?
They never cured Yonah's Black Scrawl
@@libb_y Spoiler:
They do at the end, when human yonah leaves replicant yonah. Thats the black scrawl. Becoming posessed or overtaken by your shade.
That's the beauty of yoko taro.
You learn to never trust him.
Spoiler!
Most of the replicants die not long after the event of the game.
As a fan of the OG Nier before Automata was released, I'm just happy to see countless TH-cam analyses after years of obscurity. Im happy people are coming around to this game, and this world.
Im playing thru the remake of it now as a fan who was introduced by automata and its such a good game
@@hamielhonel3200 Second half > first half. Ohhh just you wait for ending D!
Same here! I fully completed nier gestalt back in like 2013... ish lol and it was one of the best gaming narratives I had ever come across. Automata may have left more of impact on me though, if I had to compare.
Playing through the Replicant remake is elevating the original for me. I've heard a lot about Ending E, the new ending that includes stuff from the novel I never got to read.
@@jramirez4310 I acknowledge that automata is a better "Game", but Nier is a better soundtrack, and story IMO. Same way ME2 is better than ME1, but damn do i love ME1 soooooooo much!!!! Both games originals are clunky, making the comparison more apt. In terms of the OG Nier, I am so happy they remade it and made it play and look better, but for the original Nier, I will happily embrace the jenk, because I feel this game is a benchmark for video game stories being seen as art, alongside Bioshock 1, and Spec Ops the Line.
I'll admit I was a little disappointed with Nier Replicant. It just ended up being a slog to get through because the game isn't bad per say, but it isn't challenging or thoughtful in its combat design either. That lack of polish lead to some REALLY easy methods for cheap enemy disposal and even more brain-dead boss mechanic denying as using the 1 of 2 different options that are straight up handed to the player negates any reason to think about how to beat the boss. Instead it just devolves to either A. I'll shoot it dead with dark blast or B. I'll refresh dark wall before it runs out and spam heavy attack till it's dead.
Heck, I even beat the new extra side boss and post content underleveled before I even passed 22 hours of total play time.
So of course anyone who loves this franchise would say, you have to play through all the endings yadayada, but guess what? I watched the gestalt recapitation (which covers D) because I was interested in the story before replicant, and I bought the game to see if I was missing out on gameplay too, which I can definitively say I haven't.
If I had to land a telling blow to it though I'd say this:
If Nier/Drakengard games are stellar for their endings being replayed over and over, then Kingdom Hearts as a series should be regarded as an impeccable masterpiece if it was crammed into the one game and you had to replay it over and over to experience the series on one disc.
But, as it stands, Kingdom Hearts IS a series, that most skip out on information within for, claim it's confusing when they just don't pay attention and have debates over how the story has been retconned though it hasn't over the years.
If Nier/Drakengard was released as a series, people would just ignore the A to D of them all and only play the E's. Because there's no reason to as long as E exists and is easily viewable.
Oh wait. That's already the case.
You could actually argue that it does actually endorse Nihilism, in a sense - not Nihilism in that "The world is meaningless and is therefore pointless" but rather "All attempts to find meaning and purpose in ideals and aspirations are fruitless, accept the world that is in front you, regardless."
Kind of a Taoist (and some forms of Buddhism) positive nihilism, as opposed to the western concept of destructive nihilism.
I think ending E is more of an endorsement of absurdism, not nihilism.
It's called existentialism.
All three of you are correct, kind of. Existentialism is the realization that you, individually, have no grand cosmic significance. Nihilism is the realization that there is no grand cosmic purpose. Absurdism is the refusal of “suicide,” that is, both literal suicide and despair at the loss of meaning.
NieR Automata argues that life in of itself is worth living, and that even though there is no grand cosmic meaning, it’s the act of living/creating meaning that creates meaning. In that regard, it advocates for absurdism. It also argues that by rejecting nihilistic despair, you’ll free yourself from abusive, repetitive cycles (Samsara, if we’re using Buddhist analogies).
There’s also (and this could be more up to individual interpretation) a strong advocacy for a libertarian community. The machine network gives machines a sense of comfort, but no sense of individual will. Yorha is similar in that 9S’ constant “yeah, yeah” responses is rebuked by his Operator. Pascal’s village, the Resistance, the Carnival, and the Desert Tribes all act as communities that give purpose and support without completely eroding individual senses of self.
Edit: libertarian in the classical sense (ie bottom left quadrant), not in the modern American political landscape sense.
In essence: "Nothing matters, except that which you decide matters to you"
The NieR games are nihilist, but not in the "Nothing matters, it's pointless"
It's more "Nothing matters, so let's make it matter damnit."
The only appropriate way to feel while playing any Nier game is Existentially Terrified
Do you mean existentially lmao?
@@ShadowChief117 you'd think with how often I think about that word that I'd have an easier time spelling it in a comment
I have a feeling thats how Taro felt watching the war on terror unfold. The fact he made you feel that shows he is a writer that knows how to deliver feelings to the player effectively.
You play games to feel that?
@@arcanefury3666 For real, I feel that shit when I'm just trying to relax anymore lol
Bless you for staking your mental health for all of this journey.
Hey wanna check crazy compilations of Nier and GTA 5 on my channel!
Brother Nier. “Genki.”
Anyone wanna talk about the prostitution and murder side story?
lol That's exactly my issue with that though, nothing in what the game alludes are nearly as messed up as those stories.
It's a stark contrast to the sense of wonder and innocence you feel on your first playthrough with Nier.
@@AngraMainiiu I think the word you wanted is actually immersion, if there was any innocence it was gone along with Nier's innocence, and the wonder more like pure "what the hell could even lead to this" that makes you compelled to keep playing the game.
That story is one of the reasons why I overall prefer Bro Nier due to the backstory, seeing the tough times this poor boy had to go through to support himself and his sister is painful, and the creep that nearly got him in that story is just disturbing.
The supplemental content such as the novels really expand a lot on the story, things such as the horrible Origin of YoRHa, Beepy blessing Machine Lifeforms with Sapientce, and the one that gave us the crucial and much needed information that Kaine jerks off after murdering Shades.
And the one about the Brother is probably one of my favourites.
Don't remember. Remind me
@@chicotheworld9763 Essentially turns out Bro Nier got the short end of the stick, since Dad nier was already old and strong enough to be a mercenary in the village he was already stablished so he could take better care for Yonah (which honestly goes pretty well with the Dad motif) , Bro Nier was too small and weak for some time and he and Yonah were basically struggling to survive so at 15 he basically had sell himself into a forced "relationship" with some old dude to get some money till he finally joined an expedition to kill shades and where he got to kill the man too.
Just hearing the neir music makes me all kinds of emotional
I saw the notification and all I heard in my head was Plankton saying "Yes, YEEEEESSSSS".
Pour one out for The Dark Id, Demolition D, RSS Liam, and Valkyrie Aurora. Gone/diminished, but not forgotten.
Clemps is still here, but he’s changed quite a bit.
Liam and valkyrie. ✊ 😔
man the original knights of round head table 😔 it's was them who carry nier legacy here
Woah what happened to dark ID?
NieR:Automata saved me from my depression after a breakup. The world was grey and had lost all its sound and flavor until I decided to play the game. Playing the game I related to 9S a lot and his desire for connecting with someone and dealing with loneliness. The music is the best video game soundtrack I’ve ever heard, and I even bought the CD soundtrack.
Then prep for an even better soundtrack from Replicant.
@@rayminishi689 and better plot imho
@@yuseifudo2609 much worse plot than automata for certain. Replicants plot is Mario mixed with "oh wait you've been killing people".
It's basic. Too basic.
@@rayminishi689 non dynamic ost, vs dynamic ost.
Music with washed out vocals and instrumentals vs clean, well balanced and fully pronounced music. Aka good sound design.
Music that repeats itself too much with things like 7 different versions of the yonah leitmotiff, 2 versions of emil, 3 versions of kaine, 2 versions of grandma, 3 versions of dispossesion, 2 versions of his/this dream, and multiple uses of the hills of radiant winds leitmotiff.
Vs Music that barely recycles itself, limiting the different versions of songs to just weight of the world, vague hope and city ruins.
Except the different versions of each of these are so different that they are actually worth being called their own songs unlike in replicant.
Automata used some of replicants songs as bases but the final results are way different and often way better than replicants original versions.
Don't get me wrong, replicants music sounds nice to the ears, but so does automatas. Automata has significant improvements in its soundtrack over replicants.
Heck Automata has like 3 versions of almost every song, and they don't even get included in the final ost list for the game, they're just there for flavor.
I just wrapped up replicant and man they sure did remove all of the fog and severe bloom in the re release lmao
At least it spared your eyes from the intense bloom.
I missed that too... ._.
I think what taro did with DG was a lot of brutal experimentation. He implemented a variety of controversial topics and dialed it up to 11.
The feedback he got from that provided him with the knowledge of what kind of content, players are interested in.
Existentialism, sexuality, nihilistic tendencies, conflict in general and the motivations behind it etc.
Add an incredibly awsome soundtrack on top of it and there you go.
Both nier games are very human, alot of games try to dabble in the meaning of what it means to even be alive and just fall very short. This is something both of the nier games do very very well
Just started playing through Automata again after my girlfriend got game pass, gave up on the steam version after the first dozen unprovoked crashes.
Gestalt has a warm place in my heart too, mum grabbed it for me from the bargain bin wayyyyyy back when I was in highschool. I don't think it gets enough credit, especially now that it's in Automata's shadow.
Anyways, thanks as always for the great content, Uncle K-Bash.
Sincerely yours,
CWglassworks
poor kbash didn't figure out the backwards hop was the fastest form of transportation in original nier.
16:22 Earth Humans? I thought all of them were Androids?
This series truly deserved the praise.
Lol I put to do "Nier series" in one of your recent videos to come back to your channel to see you did make one and I watched it already
Rebooting mental health with the NieR Series? That's worrying.
All jokes aside, I feel like the NieR series had the luck of being made after DoD 1 and in between 3. You can still see his brushstrokes in there, but compared to its predecessors, it has less of the raw hate for tropes included in direct gameplay. Feels like Taro has settled a little.
He still wants you to destroy your own emotions because it's your fault this all happens. Yet he does it with more grace accompanied by really great music.
NieR Gestalt/Replicant's party, to this day, is one of my favourite parties in all the games I've played. I think about them every now and then. They burnt themselves into my soul. God, I love them.
Game veteran here, some of us are around.
I didnt know folks disliked 9s hacking parts lol that shit was extremely fun to me and i dont even play bullet hells
I also liked how it was contextualized
No series has left me with an existential crisis like Nier has
We need a video on the tales series with the newest tales of Aries releasing soon
Some of us appreciate your dashes of vulnerability 😉 Well-written work, sir
I plan on playing the original NieR after the first Drakengard, and when I do play NieR 1, I'll be playing the RepliCant remake. As the overprotective older brother of a 14y/o girl who doesn't want my protection (all I do is make sure she has her phone on her), I think child Nier will be more relatable.
Idk why but storys like these are sorta like my weird comfort thing
It's a crime that you didn't comment on the music
I really love this channel
The #1 best book in gaming will always be the ultimate badass overlord Zetta from Makai Kingdom.
Combat is easy they say... combat is boring they say... I bet then never stepped foot in a lvl99+ combat arena.. hah mental sanity.. hah hah (insert random drakengard noises)
Thank you for playing the original. Fuck Replicant.
Never witnessed so much snivelling about the more than decent combat and especially the funny hacking twist of a phenomenal action RPG (not action game).
Overlord Zetta?
Gestalt+Replicant and Automata are my favorite games of all time
These two games are one of the few games I’ve actually platinumed fully so that at least tells you I’m a big fan of the Nier games if I’m willing to put that much work into a game let alone two of them in one series
Good stuff. Great games.Dying earth genre is my favorite stting. All my favorite books and games
Is it weird that I actually like hearing the patron read now haha?
Scrolled through the comments for a bit, didn't see one mention of the Sequilitis joke you made. So I'm pointing it out now. Good joke.
Okay this video is amazing but I have to say , the 9S part of the game with the hacking is undoubtedly my favorite part of the game.
After spamming the same repetitive combos with 2B for hours 9S having his own repetitive combos ALONG with being able to jump in and out of hacking and making enemies explode mid fight made gameplay way more interesting and fun.
menial tasks, collecting boar tusks.
Personaly I could never get into the nier series there's alot of taroisms where it's just
"What the hell does that or this even mean?" "Shut up it's perfect" you're not allowed to
point out the flaws in this series; you're always contested or if a nier fan agrees they literally go
"Yeah but it's suppose to be one dimensional or yeah this character is suppose to be generic"
In comparison to darkengard yeag it's decent but I dont get this idea that nier and it's sequel are perfect
and magnum opus of story telling, gameplay, characters etc
I've seen so many people get pressured into getting into this series only to play it and go "There's so much unexplained." but get drowned out
or shouted out by fans; I see people say how human these cahracters are but never "why" they think that, I've seen so many better writen caharacters.
Like the whole "How can you kill what's trying to kill you.' and I get it he stated because their goals they missed important information.
But if there's so much unexplained so much randomly flat characters or incossistent characterization
characters will die and you'll go "I dont feel anything because they're personality is so singular." maybe it's not for me personally but I also wish
people were allowed to dislike it without someone who pretends to understand it (live talked to plenty) or are too afraid to say they don't understand.
Sometimes Yoku can write incomprehensible garbage like many other writers, and I feel like it should be okay to say that and still enjoy the media he makes.
MFer literally has canon stageplays to the lore and one of the canon lore is the yorha units can get pregnant, meanigless information XD
It sucks cause you can have the most minor issues with the series and get decried as an ignorant 'smooth brain' by hardcore fans.
There's a lot of on the surface obvious nonsense with Nier and Drakengard series. At times both were done that way on purpose to parody some of the ridiculous tropes of rpgs. But I think when you dig past the nonsense what captures people is the whole grey area style of storytelling where its not a typical black and white situation. Heroes can be seen as villains and villains can be seen or empathized as well.aka grey area
What sort of medicine is there for a calligraphy rash?
The algorithm is fucking with your videos
My fellow Canadian lunatic has posted again 😈
I cried when I beat automatas last ending
I just started playing replicant and I’ve been running around as a young kid taking care of the sick girl….who is this older dude???
Finally somebody who hates the hacking minigame as much as I did . It made me hate 9s during my first playthrough
If only you'd done this with the New Replicant!
As KingK video about this game says... the game is a omage&parody of the game comunity or something like that
7:44 I often use Broadsword SPEEEEN at Drakengard 3 actually, more fun :P
You and dunkey are one of the few youtubers that i instaclick on the notification.
Awesome contentent as always
dunkey needed a jrpg loving alternative
Yeah so I tried to watch the Drakengard video but it kinda seems like a fever dream I don't want to experience, so Nier it is.
I loved this game when it came out and still play it now. In fact I'm working towards ending D. All I gotta do is beat the bosses but the forest of myth is such a pain in the aaaassssssssss
Yoko Taro said in an interview once that he gets bored easily going through the same gameplay loop an entire game, which is why he likes throwing in multiple gameplay styles throughout the game.
Funny cause Nier is one of the most repetitive games ever made
Automata did that WAY better than Gestalt/Replicant, honestly
Than in gestallt/replicant makes us play the same game like 4 times? I mean i don't mind but still...
@@aeroga2383 NieR Replicant? Absolutely.
NieR Automata? Not really actually
He suffered through it. So now he will make everyone else suffer through it. This sounds like his idea of a sense of humour.
The thesis of this series is that you don't need to be a monster to commit evil. You just need to believe that you're right.
and don't trust YT.
Take notes, Jimmy Space
Maybe we're the joke ending. Ever think about that?
Oh shiiiiiiiiiiiiii-
Maybe the joke endings are the friends we made along the way.
This makes a lot of sense.
“Deep thoughts with the Deep”
Been thinking about this a lot. If there is an over-arching theme for these games it seems to be this:
The world can and often sucks, but it’s made bearable by the connections you make. Do not go it alone.
That, but also Conflict. And more specifically the critic of how people tend to always be prone to conflict.
@@ThatGuyNikolas Sounds like twitter.
@@andr0zzsenpai Twitter is much worse than that mostly it's just all conflict
The negative denotation of that theme is; "You may think you are doing the right thing with good people, but you are really the one irreparably damaging the world." I am not sure which Taro would like better, but i always read the games theme as "The road to Hell is paved with good intentions."
@@ryanpercival9823 It may also be something like how "We are quick to dehumanize those we oppose and ignore the faults of those we care for." But like you said, that's just the negative interpretation. I choose to believe something closer to while we may act monstrous, there is kindness in all of us and that those we are close to can draw that out and nurture it. Be careful you do not act without understanding.
After finishing Automata, I felt like I was from that world. It's really one of those games that stays with you.
Play Tsugunai: Atonement for PS2 by Atlus
Reincarnation/gestalt remaster just dropped and it significantly improves so much of the little mechanics of the game it makes it significantly better
At the cost of the minor hit to the ost and voicework, although every line is voiced now and the extra ending and “mermaid.” It isn’t 1:1. But it’s still very good.
@@TheMilhouseExperience i dont consider it a hit if theres no nostalgia glasses. Even being fully versed in the og i dont really see much difference in ost or va(i actually prefer remaster on certain scenes actually)
@@TheMilhouseExperience I don’t think they were going for the same, they were going for something new. As someone who never played the original and heard some of the OG tracks, I personally love the remaster. Music is still amazing, VAs are still amazing. Heck, I read Ending E after getting Ending E in the game, and I prefer the game’s Ending E by multiple miles compared to Grimoire NieR’s ending E.
1. Reincarnation is an entirely different game that just recently lost 2. The remaster/remake that just released is for NieR replicant *not* NieR Gestalt.
@@MrInuhanyou123 It's not about nostalgia, there is noticeable differences in both OST and VA. The latter is to be expected, it was more passionate before and 10 years is a long time for VAs. Even the Japanese VA suffers from this. And for the OST, the passion is also kind of gone. It's way too grandiose of an edit. Much like demon soul remake's new OST. Before, the OST was like from a fairytale, now it's like a dark souls boss fight. That being said, both the OSt and Va are still great
”Yes, you and I are friends now” says the fifty years old man to a younger lady.
He was actually 39 in that scene, but yeah he was very socially awkward
@@shadowthehedgehog181 😅, yes but the scene is too good.
The only weird thing was the animation straight from Replicant
Um.. what? Are you implying that older people don't have the desire to make friends? Because I can most certainly tell you that some of them do. And don't act like brother nier is perfect in comparison, the moment where nier mistakenly thinks Yonah has a boyfriend and gets protective as a result is undoubtedly more funny and less weird with the father nier. You people need to stop acting like nier father is complete garbage.
Hey, it’s from “the game inspired by 9/11”. The awkward fumbling nature of that scene only reinforces the idea that Papa Nier could and would do what he did.
"Last remaining Earth humans"
You might correct this later but its worth noting those guys are all androids too (and that isn't supposed to be a secret).
Yeah, what I got from it is that
***SPOILER***
Humanity is actually dead and those broadcasts were pre-recorded. And since the aliens are also dead, it’s turned into the androids and machines fighting each other for no reason, fighting a war their masters began with those masters not even being around any more
@@TheFawse This is all true, but that's more spoilery and learned later, and is meant to be a surprise. That is regarding the humans on the moon.
I'm more referring to KBash referring to the Resistance Army as the "last remaining Earth humans". You're informed pretty quickly in that everyone on Earth, including the resistance army, are androids. Even under the false premise that humans of any kind still exist, they aren't meant to be on Earth.
was looking for this comment xD
@@jayczzz What was the point of the backdoor in the Bunker again? If YoraH beat the machines too well, it would take over and erase their memories? Which would make them continue fighting the machines forever? The only reason the Bunker was destroyed was because the virus didn't take control of everyone right away.
@@chrisdaughen5257 This is all tied into the true purpose of Yorha which you can read in whole in one of the short stories (from long story short book)
Basically the Yorha type androids (Androids with machine cores) where originally created by an android called Zinnai. He also created the original type 2 and 9 models, at the time both unique androids. Somewhere along the line 9 found out about their origins (having machine cores) and how humanity was extinct. This caused him to go a bit insane, conclude the Yorha project Zinnai created would fail and slaughtered both Zinnai and 2 along with blowing up the space station they were on (killing himself too).
Before he killed off everyone he modified project Yorha he installed a back door into the (yet to be built) Bunker to let the Machines in at a certain point. This combined with killing off anyone involved in the making of Yorha insured that Yorha would eventually be killed off and martyred, thus keeping the secret of Humanity’s demise a secret (By keeping up the illusion that humans are on the moon without fear of ever having the truth found out) and giving the remaining androids (Yorha type androids only made up a small part of the “Army of humanity” Android population) something to fight for.
In short, the back door was made to kill off Yorha and keep humanity’s demise a secret. This gives the androids hope and a reason to keep living while fighting for the humans they believe are on the moon.
Nier Automata is one of my favorite games, and ending E is one of the best endings in video game history. Those saying that it's just torture porn missed the point the whole game is making. Life is absurd, the world is meaningless, pain and suffering is assured, but you can also find love, companionship and kindness, and those things are worthy by themselves. It's a message delivered so beautifully that it shakes me to my core.
Completely agree. Normally it is impossible for me to say what my favorite anything is. While that may still be true for games, I can say without hesitation that Nier Automata is the BEST game I have ever played. Not because it is the most polished or perfected, but because of how impactful of an experience it was. How everything comes together throughout the game, especially the music, is absolutely incredible. I still tear up whenever I hear the full Weight of the World, and for a good year after I beat the game that was true of any version of that song. Ending E has stuck with me ever since I finished it, and I can say without a doubt that it's my favorite ending to any game I've ever played, and is one of my favorite endings to anything (movies, shows, books even) I've ever experienced.
Absolutely amazing experience, and one that I genuinely believe anyone who plays games should experience.
Also really looking forward to playing Replicant once I have some free time, I watched a playthrough a couple years before Automata came out and found it one of the best stories I've ever seen in a game, so I'm super stoked to play it myself.
Can't agree more man.
It's ending E that made this one of my favorite games, without it, I doubt Automata would make top 3.
When the help comes during the end credits crawl shooter, when the backup vocals come on for weight of the world, man that made me tear up and understood how the game was built up to this one single moment of realization, that what we've done isn't meaningless afterall, and other people are in it together.
I guess it also helps that somehow everyone manages to type encouraging messages in the final segment instead of shitty trolly ones lmao. The way the data is lost everytime you take a hit, a comrade is gone forever, just so you can get through this final scene.
Man, Nier Automata is really a masterpiece.
"Rebooting My Mental Health with NieR"
HA!
More like I gotta to check myself after Nier
8:40
40 minutes of text?
What is this, disc 2 of Xenogears?
Only a select few know about this.
"Oh neat, did he wait until Replicant to play the first game?"
>Gestalt footage
KBash you hack.
more power to him by going through the original
@@garreonlefay6703 Tbh they're both the original. They were just region locked alternative versions of each other.
@@ozairchishti1264 No, he went, bought the original japanese one and played it.
In the West there was no Nier Replicant, it was just Nier (aka Gestalt) for PS3 and Xbox.
In japan they were 2 games with the same protagonists but with different ages.
These were made before the Remaster of Nier in PS4.
@@garreonlefay6703 I know there wasn't originally a Nier Replicant in the west. I'm saying Brother Nier was in one of the original versions so Brother Nier's story is just much the original Nier game as Father Nier since neither one preceded the other except in the west. In fact Brother Nier was the original intended telling of the story so if anything at least conceptually and in Yoko Taro's eyes Brother can technically be considered the original default version but that's a completely different argument. Either way the gestalt and replicant versions, as they've come to be known in the west, existed at the same time in Japan and can both be called the original Nier game. Replicant may be "new" to the west but it's just a remaster of the original with some gameplay and graphical updates along with an added story mission. Seems like you agree on that so I'm kinda confused on what discussion here is lol.
This game broke me the moment you could hear...the voices...
If nothing else Nier has to be appreciated for it's music
True.
Still not as good as Asterix & Obelix XXL soundtrack tho
Fr. You could hate everything about it but the music has to be respected
@@oneofthekindscarf8612 i mean, I fucking hate nier but I love the track
I honestly wasnt really a fan of the tracks. Loved the game in general though
The story deserves it's acknowledgement too, I can't think of one other set of stories in the world written in a similar way of the unique manner of Taro.
Everything he writes is so experimental and bold, it's a one of a kind combination of ideas.
Nier Gestalt veteran here, glad to see you make this video!
Also the spear dash/Weiss fist got me through that game if you're curious
To be fair the remaster of Replicant did fix a number of issues in the earlier versions of Gestalt and Replicant, like adding in Lock-On and upping the graphics as well as adding a new ending too! And honestly the only real difference between Gestalt and Replicant is the protag being either Yonah's dad or her brother as well as Gestalt being on xbox (and the only port to Western audiences) and Replicant being on playstation. The story still plays out the same way, but it can hit different reverberations in people because of the PoV of the protagonist.
When I bought the original Nier in 2010 I was a college kid and didn’t care for the protagonist. I would’ve killed for the shoto protagonist Japan got. Fast forward 11 years and I’m a dad to a little girl. Now I can’t really connect with the remake protagonist and love the original. It really just depends what stage of life you’re in at the time.
I like the relationship between Papa Nier and Yonah, but I like the idea of Brother Nier more in relation to the world. Brother Nier is an orphan living in a post-apocalyptic world where anyone can die at any time and his life is devoted to his sister. Like, this kid should have had his entire life ahead of him but he knows his world is dying. Fighting for his sister is fighting for his future and for hope. He's young and naive and desperate and I like that. The kid is reckless to a fault and you can tell he's never had a chance to just be a normal kid.
Yeah, i like the idea of the father Nier a lot, probably more than just another brother if only because it was such a fresh JRPG concept at the time (though not new for the west) but the brother version very clearly just lines up better.
The reason why he has to rely so much on the village. The reason why the village would be so inclined to care for someone who, by virtue of some of the cutscene's implications, was probably once an outsider. Why certain interactions occur as they do. But more than anything, him being a child lines up so much better when you consider the Nier of the 'Snow in Summer' era with the failed Gestalts and the White Chlorination Syndrome.
This was the era where children were being pulled from the streets by some dark underbelly of the government under claim of aid when really they just wanted to test out Maso. Emil and his sister were prime examples of this, along with the literal playground room in the facility.
Sure, the father version originally being made into the core of the resurgence project and becoming what stabilizes the Gestalts still works to some degree too with enough explanation, but the circumstances that would cause him to eventually come face to face with this group isn't as tightly nit as a young boy desperate to find someone to help his sister, no matter who they are (or rather, the group would be less inclined to seek him out or make dialogue if he wasn't a child himself who they thought they could handle).
@@OsnosisBones The Square-Enix Western division (based out in Canada I believe) were the ones pushing for father Nier even if it made less sense narrative wise since the story was obviously already written for brother Nier. Because they adamantly just thought a grown older character would be more marketable in the West due to the success of older grittier Western characters in action games like God of War and also several popular WRPGs.
They debated over it and finally Yoko Taro and Saito compromised and said okay they'll make a father Nier version for Western PS3 and Western/Japan XBox 360 and even then, Square-Enix Western division was like no dont do that just make one version globally for all but in the end they yielded to Taro's compromise.
I feel like S-E Western division is similar to how Sony is acting now with Japanese companies. Also its not uncommon in that 7th gen era since a lot of Japanese companies were aiming to appease the West by either changing the style of their games or outsourcing them to Western studios, many with poor uninspired results.
@@budgiecat2885
I'm already well aware of the how and why, but thanks.
Honestly, the dad's design alone makes it obvious. It's very obviously overly simple and just clashed with the game's art style (nier in the game and on the cover look different too, it's like American super Nintendo covers). The brother, by contrast, dresses exactly like everyone else in the village pre time skip. Then there's the fact brother nier's backstory is far more complex.
And yeah, that awkward attempt to appease lingered until fairly recently too, birthing awkward and uninspired RPGs like the last star oceans uninspired plot and tacked on 'real time cutscenes that allow you to move the camera,' not to mention the many failings of 15 and it being just another 10 hour main story filled with side quests and a empty lifeless world map with 'settlements' instead of genuine towns.
@@OsnosisBones If you go look up Rygar for the Wii then you will see where they pulled that design from lol
@@budgiecat2885
Holy shit, just looked it up. I'm getting flashbacks to how Pandoras Tower has a protagonist and love interest ripped straight from final fantasy vs 13's original design concepts before becoming 15.
The Rygar character is like if papa nier was in last story.
16:20 "Interact with the last Earth humans" ?!??! They are explicitly called "RESISTANCE ANDROIDS" though, just not Yohra androids. They even rub it in with the one quest where one of the shop's owner brings up the fact that he has already exchanged every mechanical part he originally had (Ship of Theseus paradox). Theres a sidequest where you unknowlingly help a woman rewrite her boyfriend's memory and personality. It says straight up how Anemone fought alongside A2 HUNDREDS OF YEARS AGO, how could she be human?! I understand this slipping by a new player, but I don't understand how you beat the game thinking there were still humans on Earth, when the entire conflict past ending B is sparked by the fact that humanity no longer exists at all. This is not even considering the side notes of the game about Project Gestalt and its failure, on top of any Nier ending you want to pick, because all of them spell doom for the Gestalts, and therefore, humanity's last hope, enforced by Automata's Devola and Popola to have failed miserably too.
Even so at the end of the section he still said that you should experience it yourself even if he did spoliers he couldn't do it all in a video because there is so much.
Don't need to scream at him. It was likely a slip up in writing the script, he's probably aware they're androids. Ultimately it changes very little about this video.
I mean, it's still good to point out the mistake, but that's all it is. A mistake. No need to be aggressive.
get a grip, dude. way to behave exactly like what people think of when they think of a "gamer".
SMALL STORY CORRECTION: 16:20 The people in the Resistance camp are not humans, they are androids. Humanity is completely and utterly extinct in Automata. The Resistance members are different from Yorha though, they weren't created for the specific purpose of waging a holy war against the machines, don't have black boxes made out of machine cores, and are more interested in just living their lives than Yorha.
They fixed a lot of Gestalt's issues in the remake, in my opinion
16:21
Humans?
Oh no no no mister. These are androids
"Is that-" *sniff sniff* "MECHANICAL NARRATIVE COHENSION!?"
_"OH I'M GONNA CU-"_ - Kbash 2021
Never change never change
That was my favorite bit lol
He GETS IT
Pleeeeease play Replicant and do a video on it at some point! It's so worth it, I swear. The combat is refined, the dialogue is mostly rewritten, and the new content is just fantastic, especially the new ending!
Spoilers
So I just got done playing Nier Replicant as my first "Nier Gestalt" experience.
I wanted to add how that moral dilemma boosted the stories. This overarching idea that in war, one's victory or survival only comes at the hands of someone's else's wellbeing. The ending by itself seems dull but when you pair it with all the time that had passed in the shadowlord's quest I felt horrible when Yonah decided this wasn't the life she wanted to live if it restricted the Yonah in the present time. It showed her compassion for others but I saw the shadowlord devastated, to then hear Nier say "you think I'll sympathize with you?" It does a great job highlighting the tragedy of what's happening. Two livelyhoods are at odds and someone here is leaving defeated.
I like when K-bash gets passionate about stuff. Wouldn't mind seeing what else gets him to cry and such.
That white button up REALLY makes K Bash look like a pharmacist XD
....sooo are you playing Replicant?!😁😅
"She's intersex, is that a gaming first?"
Nope, I at the very least know of two examples from Digital Devil Saga. Though I'd argue they're hermaphrodites from the perspective of Reproductive Biology, as the other is capable of reproduction with their own stuff and Seraph's a reference to Ardhanarishvara.
more ppl need to play DDS
Bruh.. love you, but..
when writers create in-universe justifications for the hyper-sexualization of their female-coded characters, _they're still hyper-sexualizing female-coded characters._ Being intersex doesn't make Kiane's character design *less* sexually objectified!
She shouldn't be intersex at all, this game is woke garbage and I cant wait until yoko taro game ends himself. Disgusting
The sheer contrast of enjoyment between your drakengard review and here is SOOOO delightful, I knew you were going to enjoy Nier ;u;
Really cool detail with what u mentioned about the blame being shifted onto the player with the shade reveal- the small shades dont attack you at all until u grab Weiss, usually u wont notice this in Gestalt since there no route E tho
Love these people bashing your for not playing Replicant as if just because Replicant came out Gestalt automatically should disappear and not be played. I personally relate to papa Nier a lot more so I kinda like Gestalt more for that reason, also love the mystical oversaturated bloom look of the original.
Gestalt is now irrelevant much like people disregard Drakengard 2. It always was irrelevant actually. The only reason it was made was because some non Japanese employees of S-E over in Canada divisoon debated with Taro and Saito that the game wouldnt sell unless they made the main character a gruff older muscular man that could realistically 'wield a giant sword' (as if gamers in the West werent already familiar with Cloud of FF VII)
The concept of a father protecting his daughter is sound (we saw that in other games like GoW, Splinter Cell Conviction, Asura's Wrath etc) but this game was always clearly written for brother Nier perspective wise
@@budgiecat2885 I'm sorry but seeing them side by side? No, Gestalt HAS some definite strengths over Replicant. The fact it was inspired by corporate meddling does NOT automatically disparage the great the game does with Father. I struggled SO MUCH to get into the story with Brother and Father just instantly clicked with me as soon as I played as him. Gestalt is an amazing game just as Replicant is, and it shouldn't be made lesser. Even then, iirc, Taro himself said he had fondness for BOTH versions, and I wouldn't be surprised if he said that the version you prefer is the one that's canon.
@@budgiecat2885 Okay, but what does that have to do with I like papa Nier more than brother Nier? I also like the look of the old game a little bit more.
@@andr0zzsenpai eww well whatever guess thats your niche opinion. have fun with that
@@MaximumAddition yer just saying that because you played Gestalt first so it feeds into your confirmation bias nostalgia.
If Taro had fondness for both versions than this new version would have also been released as both versions but Taro realized that was a mistake. He was pushing for Replicant only back then btw so if it was up to him thered be no Gestalt.
One thing I REALLY wish the devs highlighted with 9S, you can do heavy attacks with him by either delaying your second hit, or by pushing the dodge button right before attacking. WHY they don't tell you this is beyond me, but there's more depth to his combat than meets the eye.
I’m not sure if it’s intended, but the idea that you have to go out of your way to find depth in a non-combat android’s fighting style is super cool to me. The fact that 9S can replicate aspects of 2B or A2’s techniques by thinking outside of his normal gameplay loop seems almost like a feature.
Can't wait for all the comments bashing you for not play Nier Replicant 1.22
I kinda relate to Papa Nier more, I wish there was an option to play the story as him in the remake :c
@@andr0zzsenpai
They're considering starting work on an update with him once the game sells enough.
I mean its a far better game and story than the original. Gestalt is kinda obsolete and the father doesnt work as well as the brother.
The only advantage is westerners like old man papa over shounen nier despite brother nier and the sibling relationship fitting the story far better
Finally some love Gestalt. 😳
"Just don't play boring"
Idk even when i mixed weapons and combos up, played different builds, automata was still boring. Especially doing 1,000 hacking minigames as 9S.
I loved playing nier automata, when I had the game. I should play the previous nier one day.
Get the remake. I'm playing through it now and it's fantastic
As someone that was soul crushed by the original Nier, Automata kinda felt flat for me, not saying is bad but I just didn't care for most of the characters for some reason unlike in Nier.
Gestalt's not canon. Yup. Replicant is. Also, the relationship and the whole story just feels better as brother Nier and not father Nier.
Both are canon.
@@corvus9829 Og is brother , that's primary
He gave me clemps and SuperButterBuns feels with this video it felt like recycled jokes 🤷♂️
I just finished replicant and your NieR analysis made me cry even more... "They found meaning in each other, not in the morality of their actions, they found purpose in those they cared about, and nothing else mattered..." damn
Both great games, tho I prefer personally REplicant version. Dynamics between Kaine and Nier seem to be more on par, and time passing with Nier growing up really adds up.
About the last humans on Earth - well it is pretty clear from the very beginning that Resistance are not humans, they are Androids. Just not YorHa ones.
Hi KBash. Thanks for great content. Big love.
Not watching it beyond the first minute.
And I'm pretty sure this is a banger video I'll watch in an year or so.
Same here, nearly done with Automata, can't wait to jump into Replicant right after, and I'll be back right after
You can watch almost the first 9 minutes with basically no spoilers. He has a very obvious spoiler warning in regards to story at that point. Up until then it's just him talking about gameplay, combat, visuals, etc and why he thinks the game isn't nearly as it's reputation in regards to those things.
Dude those aren't earth humans. They are androids, just not Yorha.
Seriously lol if he played through Nier he should know that. Humans have long been extinct. Hell even back then they were shades
Replicant 1.22 is infinitely better than Gestalt in my opinion. Just controls and combat alone is so much better
Its irrelevant if kaines intersex and she doesnt 'present' shit she dont give a fuck about presenting to anyone her clothes are remnants of her childhood shes literally grown out of but simply has nothing else because shes been on her own for so long