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[Humdinger]

I guess you didn't get the real message

Automata is based on a future so future that mankind died, the robots came and died, aliens came and died. The robots that left are a fluke of everything that ever existed, and they developed emotions based on what we used to do, and even treating humanity as gods to explain the whole creation thing. It's a full circle... for some. Other act rogue, or just don't mix with it.

Yeah, I understood that. I just didn't find it all that profound or intriguing. Maybe I should add for context that I'm generally not into science fiction, and in particular stories about the AI-human interface tend to bore me. I used to read a lot of SF when I was a kid, but now that I'm an old fart, I can't read it anymore; I like stories that are more grounded in reality. This one seemed very fanciful, very far out there. It's not something that really grabbed me. I can understand how it would appeal to people who are into these sorts of tales, but I'm not that guy.

Even the character that you play eventually struggles to understand why and for what she is fighting for, which could be translated to our reality, since we are living day by day until we die and that's it?

That was another thing that didn't resonate for me. I have pretty clear beliefs about why we're here and what it's all about. I don't struggle with existential meaningless. I did when I was younger, but not for the past couple decades. I suppose if I was still in my 24 year old existentialist/Camus&Nietzsche phase, I would find it more appealing. But I've moved on, and that stuff just rings hollow for me now.

By one of the endings of the game you can sacrifice yourself to save the world, but not a single trace will be left to disclosure that you were responsible for such thing. Did you never wonder that maybe this happened, happens or will happen with our world?

No, I never have.

In our age we're spoon fed AAA experiences that shove massive explosions and flashing lights while guiding the player along a rollercoaster of linear storytelling, which often is very simple in nature and to the point. This game is definitely not that. Its an appreciation and exploration of several mediums of entertainment and storytelling with pacing and ideas that can frustrate players not ready for that.

I'm not a big fan of AAA games and lots of handholding. That's not my issue. My issue is that I don't want to replay large sections of a game in order to experience more of the story. I'm not that "into" the story. I'm not that into the game itself. I'm not that into the characters, the combat, or the world. I'm not going to repeat large sections of the game just to get more of a story I'm not that interested in to begin with. Apologies if that comes across too blunt, but I don't seem to be making myself understood.

It is true, though, that I play games for entertainment and fun. If a game starts feeling like a chore, I drop it. I am willing to "work at it" when I read books, but for me, games are all about fun and entertainment. If they begin to feel like a chore, I'm out. And asking me to replay large sections of a game just to get to the "good stuff" feels like a chore. If I'm missing out, so be it.

I also think that a few things detracted from the experience. Your housing situation is definitely a drag. I wont read or listen to some music for example if I can't focus or devote 100% of myself.

Yeah, and to be honest, I'm not in the best of moods lately. Living in a construction zone took it out of me. I had to do a lot of cleanup work afterwards, and there is still a good deal more to be done. I'm beat, physically and emotionally. I'm definitely less patient and happy than I would be normally. No doubt that's coloring my perceptions.

...When I first played Nier Automata at launch I loathed the idea of running through the game again but several factors alleviated that frustration over time. Little details abound made the experience worthwhile and fun to learn more.

Sorry if your take away from this is negative, even with people's snark remarks. Could be kneejerk reaction to seeing something kind of precious in the space getting a simple meh response, especially when the critic hasn't gone the whole way through. As others have said its not an entire 1 to 1 replay and other "endings" are often quite simple or shorter. I'd stick with it, but when outside factors aren't an issue.

Yeah, I get the sense that I did not adequately venerate something that people consider dear to their hearts, and so they got upset with me. Sorry, but I'm just sharing my opinion. To say that I haven't experienced the full game is a fair criticism. I may return to it later someday, but I'm definitely not feeling like it at the moment.

Also Neir fans are odd balls. It's proper weeb shit.

Lol, maybe so. I have a feeling I do not fit the profile.

 

[Neilg]

Do you really think replaying the majority of missions and enemy encounters is the same thing as walking through an environment a second time? Durrr...

You're wrong about the second route is why people are talking the way they are. It's not the same and is a lot closer to going through an open world map area again.

You've decided what it's like, haven't played it, and are calling people arrogant pricks when they say 'you haven't finished the game and you're wrong about it being a complete replay'

It's ok that you don't like it but you've made incorrect assumptions so people are going to point that out.
You don't like sci-fi stories and you put the game down 1/4 of the way through. That's all. You're the one that started arguing with people about what the rest of the game might be like.

 

[MagiusNecros]

I don't think OP really likes the game on a deep level. If it was liked he would have beaten it. The claim is they spent a long time secluded in their room playing but you can finish the game in it's entirety in 15 hours on Easy(even Normal!) if you rush the main quests. Much longer if you take your time to do sidequests, upgrades, exploration.

Game isn't for everyone and you don't seem to be the philosophical type either so much of what would make Automata "profound" will be lost. Especially since when you delve deep the characters the game revolves around are dynamically written with several layers you pick up on in multiple playthroughs.

 

[Humdinger]

I don't think OP really likes the game on a deep level.

I thought I made that clear.

If it was liked he would have beaten it. The claim is they spent a long time secluded in their room playing but you can finish the game in it's entirety in 15 hours on Easy(even Normal!) if you rush the main quests. Much longer if you take your time to do sidequests, upgrades, exploration.

"Claim"? You think I'm lying? It took me about 20 hours. I normally play games about an hour per day, so playing 4-5 hours a day is considerably more than usual for me.

Game isn't for everyone and you don't seem to be the philosophical type either so much of what would make Automata "profound" will be lost. Especially since when you delve deep the characters the game revolves around are dynamically written with several layers you pick up on in multiple playthroughs.

lol, now you're making assumptions about my intellect based on the fact that I didn't think Nier's story was anything to write home about? I've got shelves of books on philosophy, my friend. Nier is kiddy stuff compared to it.

Good lord, you people are defensive. It's an opinion about a videogame. Get over it.

 

[Unknown Soldier]

If you only got as far as Ending 'A' then you basically did the equivalent of stopping after reading The Fellowship of the Ring and then judged the entirety of The Lord of the Rings based on that

 

[LavitzSlambert]

Played through Nier Automata lately - at least part A - and wanted to share a few brief impressions.

Overall, I liked the game. I didn't feel it was the masterpiece other people apparently feel it is, but to each his own. I'll break down what I liked and didn't.

Hi friend. I suggested to keep with it, and am happy to hear you enjoyed Route A! Many others have responded but if you took my advice once, read the rest of my post before deciding for yourself whether to stop/continue with the game. I called it a masterpiece, but I wouldn't even say I liked the game if I had only played through Route A. That said, I read this and your other posts in the thread, and hear your concerns. The game definitely isn't for everyone, but I've seen a lot of people who felt similar to you end up loving the game once they've experienced it all.

The story was kind of a neutral for me. I was interested enough to continue to the end (of Part A, anyhow). I probably expected more, based on some of the hype I've heard around the game being philosophical and deep. I saw a video title saying that Nier was "the most profound game ever made." So I guess I expected more than brief of existential themes and a couple characters named after philosophers. I mean, that's not deep - that's just referencing people who were deep. You aren't deep just because you mention some existential themes. You're deep if you explore those themes in depth. As for the AI/consciousness thing, that is territory covered by 1950's science fiction, so I doubt that is why people are calling the game deep and profound.

Maybe Part B is full of profundity, I don't know. If so, I'll probably miss it, as I don't feel compelled to go through the game again as 9-S. I know there is some new content there, but I was not that much a fan of the game to want to replay large sections of it again as the sidekick. I know people say you should play Part B to get the full experience, but I don't feel motivated to do that.

Route A, on its own, I would call extremely pretentious with very little substance, as you noticed. It's very surface level anime storyline that happens to touch on a few topics but devolves by the end. When I completed Route A, I was disappointed, and hearing about replaying the game again sounded exhausting. And it is, by Yoko Taro's intentional design. The real question is: are you willing to spend a few hours in Route B to unlock the last 30-40% of the game's completely new content, and experience a unique story that can only be told through video games? And I'm not talking about AI or existentialism, those are still present but there's a much more human story

Route B is the same story from the perspective of 9S but is actually shorter in length than Route A. There are nuggets of differences throughout (more so if you engage with 9S's hacking ability) but it diverges significantly after your trip to the Flooded City when 9S gets kidnapped which isn't even the end of the route. Route C is 100% new content. So if you skip sidequests and know where you're going in the main quest, you'll only spend about 6 hours on repetition in Route B. If you are positive that's too much, drop it. If you are at all intrigued by the new content, push through.

Disclaimer
I played the game in a weird situation, which may have influenced my experience. I was having major work done on my home, and I played Neir for long stretches while confined to a single room in my house. Construction was going on in the adjacent rooms, which was distracting. I also played for much longer stretches than I normally would, which could have affected my experience as well.

Playing for long stretches probably isn't helping with the repetitiveness, might be good to break things up with another game. If you decide to continue, make sure you have some uninterrupted alone time to experience the Route E ending. I wouldn't want to talk to a contractor during or immediately after.

Do books require you to re-read large sections of what you've already read, in order to finish them?

No, but that's part of what makes the game special. It's hard to get that right for movies/TV, and nearly impossible for books. Games fare a little better, and you did say you enjoyed the combat.

 

[Humdinger]

You've decided what it's like, haven't played it, and are calling people arrogant pricks when they say 'you haven't finished the game and you're wrong about it being a complete replay'

No, I'm calling you an arrogant prick because of how you addressed me (e.g., belittling tone, calling me a "buffoon").

I haven't "decided what it's like." I'm basing my belief on what others have said about the amount of replay involved.

I didn't say it was a "complete replay."

If you want to persuade me, you have to first comprehend what I am saying, and you're not doing that. I suggest you stop trying to straw man what I'm saying and just give it up.

 

[Humdinger]

If you only got as far as Ending 'A' then you basically did the equivalent of stopping after reading The Fellowship of the Ring and then judged the entirety of The Lord of the Rings based on that

Not really. I'm not judging the whole game. I'm saying that based on what I played, I'm not sufficiently engaged or impressed to continue with a segment that requires a lot of replaying of missions that I've already gone through. That just seems tiresome to me.

If you want to stick to the book analogy (which is flawed, but whatever), it's more like reading one book in a trilogy and then deciding you don't want to bother with the remainder.

 

[MagiusNecros]

Sounds like you've made up your mind. Do something you find fun instead. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

 

[bender]

Do books require you to re-read large sections of what you've already read, in order to finish them?

Choose your own adventure books do, so in some cases the answer to your question is “yes”.

 

[Neilg]

No, I'm calling you an arrogant prick because of how you addressed me (e.g., belittling tone, calling me a "buffoon").

I will stand by that.
You're posting stuff like this and arguing with people:

I didn't think Nier's story was anything to write home about? I've got shelves of books on philosophy, my friend. Nier is kiddy stuff compared to it.
Good lord, you people are defensive. It's an opinion about a videogame. Get over it.

You gave up 1/4 of the way through. Why are you trying to argue with people about the merit of the story? You dropped the game. that's fine. You keep arguing with people and coming up with reasons why they're wrong. You don't like the story. but saying it's kiddy stuff when you haven't even hit the meat of it makes you sound like....

And your example about re-reading books. There are a ton of books where during a later chapter you see events from a different characters perspective, with the aim that it entirely re-contextualises what you thought was happening. The wheel of time series does it. Infinite Jest has plenty of sections that do it. Pretty sure I read a ton of mystery books as a kid that did this too. I bet I could find more examples if I bothered looking.
more quotes:
"Don't want to replay large sections of the game again, just to see additional content."
"but most is repeated. I don't feel like plowing through a bunch of stuff I've already done."

Route B is 10 hours long, about 4 of those takes place in the same environments that you've been through before, and the game is 40 hours long. Everything after that is new. 10% is not 'most', or what i'd call 'large sections'.

I don't really care if you play it. You have to understand that posting a thread where you go 'I tried this, didn't finish it, thought it was ok' and then arguing with people that tell you you didn't finish it with bad, misinformed responses isn't going to get you a bunch of pats on the back. If you hadn't pushed back with 'duhhh I don't read books twice to finish the story' then the tone of the responses would have turned out very differently.


Edit:
George RR martin does it in the winds of winter. Joe Abercrombie's books have used a short overlap of time when you switch between characters at a few points. William Faulkners 'as I lay dying'.
And I found a GoodReads thread where people explicitly discuss this narrative structure and have shared a ton of books that do it. Mostly seem to be mystery / thriller novels.

 

[EviLore]

It gets more interesting in the later parts.

 

[Humdinger]

Hi friend. I suggested to keep with it, and am happy to hear you enjoyed Route A!

Oh yeah. I couldn't remember your username. Hey, bud.

Route A, on its own, I would call extremely pretentious with very little substance, as you noticed. It's very surface level anime storyline that happens to touch on a few topics but devolves by the end. When I completed Route A, I was disappointed, and hearing about replaying the game again sounded exhausting. And it is, by Yoko Taro's intentional design.

Heh, well, I'm not sure I'm a big fan of Taro's design decisions in this game. The tutorial was my first taste of that, and now I'm getting a second taste. I suppose he's setting up a barrier of entry to test people's resolve or commitment to the game. I wonder how many people stopped after Route A like I did.

Interesting to hear that you found the first part pretentious and without much substance. I didn't find it pretentious exactly. Kojima I find pretentious. It lacked any real depth, though, aside from a few references. Apparently the Deep Stuff comes later.

The real question is: are you willing to spend a few hours in Route B to unlock the last 30-40% of the game's completely new content, and experience a unique story that can only be told through video games? And I'm not talking about AI or existentialism, those are still present but there's a much more human story.

Route B is the same story from the perspective of 9S but is actually shorter in length than Route A. There are nuggets of differences throughout (more so if you engage with 9S's hacking ability) but it diverges significantly after your trip to the Flooded City when 9S gets kidnapped which isn't even the end of the route. Route C is 100% new content. So if you skip sidequests and know where you're going in the main quest, you'll only spend about 6 hours on repetition in Route B. If you are positive that's too much, drop it. If you are at all intrigued by the new content, push through.

You're right. That is the question (2b or not 2b). I'm not sure. From what I heard, the second part requires that you to replay somewhere between 1/2 to 3/4 of the main missions, plus some new 9-S specific ones. That would take more than a few hours. Six, you say? I was imagining twice that.

Playing for long stretches probably isn't helping with the repetitiveness, might be good to break things up with another game. If you decide to continue, make sure you have some uninterrupted alone time to experience the Route E ending. I wouldn't want to talk to a contractor during or immediately after.

Yeah, it was a weird situation.

 

[Humdinger]

I will stand by that.
You're posting stuff like this and arguing with people:

That is not "arguing with people." That is calling someone out who insulted me. It's the same thing I did with you. You guys get offended when someone doesn't admire what you think they should admire, and then you lash out with personal attacks. Grow up. Learn to engage content without making belittling assumptions about character and intellect, based on a few posts in a videogame forum.

Why are you trying to argue with people about the merit of the story?

Who am I arguing with (besides you, and we're not arguing about the story, but about whether I'm arguing, lol).

I'm simply stating my opinion about the story (or the part that I experienced, anyhow). Some people disagree, say there is incredibly deep and profound stuff ahead. That's fine, maybe there is. What I've experienced so far has been pretty weak and doesn't provide a lot of motivation for me to continue, though. I've also watched some Youtube videos discussing the story, and I haven't been particularly bowled over. Like I've said before, these themes just aren't that engaging to me.

Route B is 10 hours long, about 4 of those takes place in the same environments that you've been through before, and the game is 40 hours long. Everything after that is new. 10% is not 'most', or what i'd call 'large sections'.

By "most" I meant the second section compared to the first. I wasn't including the third. (Not sure why you say I've only completed 1/4, btw, if there are 3 parts.)

I'm getting very different estimates on how much replaying is actually required. Some say you have to basically replay the whole story. Others say it's about half. Others say less. I admit I'm confused about how much replaying is actually required in Part 2.

I don't really care if you play it. You have to understand that posting a thread where you go 'I tried this, didn't finish it, thought it was ok' and then arguing with people that tell you you didn't finish it with bad, misinformed responses isn't going to get you a bunch of pats on the back. If you hadn't pushed back with 'duhhh I don't read books twice to finish the story' then the tone of the responses would have turned out very differently.

You keep saying that, and I keep wondering what you are talking about. I am not arguing with people; I am just stating my opinion. I have a pointed way of stating my opinion sometimes, but that doesn't mean I'm arguing with people. If people think Nier is great, that's fine with me. If they think I should play Part B and C to get the full experience, that's fine with me. I may not agree with them, and I'll explain why - but that's called a discussion, not an argument. What we're doing now is called an argument, ha.

But I'm wasting my time, and so I'll stop the argument, at least on my end.

One last word, though, to clarify. As I've said a couple of times, it is absolutely fair criticism to say I have not completed the game, and so I can't appreciate the full story. I understand that. I only played the first part. I am just giving my opinion of the part of the game I've played, the 20 hours I spent with the game. I know it's not the full experience.

 

[SScorpio]

I've read a lot of books, but never in my life have I read a book that required you re-read large sections of what you have already read in order to finish. The book analogy doesn't work.

So you've never read a book or seen a movie that shows things from one character's point of view, then a revelation occurs and it recaps events changing what things meant? Or doing the same but from a different character's perspective and ends up turning the narrative on its head?

Trying not to spoil things, the game gaslights you and 90% of what you think is going on is wrong. The next section of the game will retread some of the same ground you already did, but even then a lot of it happens in different areas and you see what 9S was really up to when they were split up. Once you finish ending B, then you get the second half of the game which is all brand new content.

 

[Humdinger]

So you've never read a book or seen a movie that shows things from one character's point of view, then a revelation occurs and it recaps events changing what things meant? Or doing the same but from a different character's perspective and ends up turning the narrative on its head?

I can't think of a good example that maps on to what we're talking about here, no. I've read some books/movies where similar circumstances get narrated from different points of view, but the characters aren't a pair of people who go through the same plot points, and you experience them first from one of the pair then from the other. The narration and plots are usually quite divergent, with different events, different relationships, different setups and actions, etc. Then the stories weave together so that you eventually see the central event they both have in common. There are times when their stories intersect before that, but the stories that lead up to that central event are largely different, self-contained.

There's another difference, too. Even when the same events are being narrated from two different POVs in a book, novels have an interior dimension that videogames lack. The author can give you a description of the character's their inner state, emotions, and thoughts. That adds layers to the difference, when you're dealing with two very different characters internally. But that interior dimension is missing in videogames, because they are necessarily focused on overt behavior, action, and dialog, rather than descriptions of internal states.

Maybe there are books out there that do something similar to Nier. I haven't read them, though.

It gets more interesting in the later parts.

So I've heard.

 

[SScorpio]

There's another difference, too. Even when the same events are being narrated from two different POVs in a book, novels have an interior dimension that videogames lack. The author can give you a description of the character's their inner state, emotions, and thoughts. That adds layers to the difference, when you're dealing with two very different characters internally. But that interior dimension is missing in videogames, because they are necessarily focused on overt behavior, action, and dialog, rather than descriptions of internal states.

It's funny you mention this, because Nier does it. You dig into 9S's thoughts. Much of it's handled like in movies or TV where you have self narration or a character talking to themselves. But not all of it's handled this way, but that would be spoilers.

Think of the narration style like a movie that follows around a cop. Through most of the movie his partner is there with him. Near the end the cop and the audience finds out the partner was working with the drug lord. And it flashes back and you see the partner helping the criminal being chased get away, and the partner killed someone not because as he claimed the criminal had a weapon, but to stop him from revealing everything to the good cop. So go back and try out more of the story. 9S has a different combat system with the hacking mini game. Once you get the hang of it you can breeze through enemies that gave you trouble, and get right to the meat of the story.

 

[LavitzSlambert]

Heh, well, I'm not sure I'm a big fan of Taro's design decisions in this game. The tutorial was my first taste of that, and now I'm getting a second taste. I suppose he's setting up a barrier of entry to test people's resolve or commitment to the game. I wonder how many people stopped after Route A like I did.

Fair enough, but I don't think the tutorial was intentional design, it's out of place because of how glaring it is in contrast with everything else that could be viewed as an artistic choice. I don't think I've seen anyone try to defend the tutorial issue lol, meanwhile you see the responses you are getting in regards to stopping after Route A. Both of those points extremely common though, basically everyone I know that's played the game has ran into both situations.

Interesting to hear that you found the first part pretentious and without much substance. I didn't find it pretentious exactly. Kojima I find pretentious. It lacked any real depth, though, aside from a few references. Apparently the Deep Stuff comes later.

You don't get all the answers until towards the end of the game, which gives some more context and provides depth to what you experience in Routes A and B.

You're right. That is the question (2b or not 2b). I'm not sure. From what I heard, the second part requires that you to replay somewhere between 1/2 to 3/4 of the main missions, plus some new 9-S specific ones. That would take more than a few hours. Six, you say? I was imagining twice that.

Not sure how much sidequesting and exploration you did first time through. If you skip all that and stick to the main story, you will complete the route very quickly. 6 hours is the amount of time you'll spend as 9S doing more or less the same things you did as 2B in Route A until they get separated. After that there is new 9S content that is still technically a retread of the last couple Route A locations/events but different enough I'd consider it to be new content.

 

[Larxia]

And here we see the fundamental problem with Yoko Taro's game design. If you didn't look it up, then you have no way of knowing that unlocking the second half of game's story requires playing the first half twice.

Exactly this.
I think it's stupid and one of the biggest problems with the game : Route B.

Route A is great, but route B is such a chore to go through. The intro and the end are different, but 80% of it is just playing the same game again, but with a worse gameplay this time actually. Because of this, I really can't be mad against people who think it's not worth continuing, because if you don't know what route C is, then it really seems like you already finished the game and route B is just a bonus NG+ with another character. It's really what it feels like when you don't know what remains after route B.

Route C is the real second half of the game, but having to play the first half twice to unlock it is just an incredibly bad game design decision.
We have the proof with OP here, and I'm not saying this against him.

If you did finish route A and liked it, I'd recommend to force yourself through route B to finally unlock route C, the real second half, but yes, it is incredibly tedious. It's worth it, but it shouldn't be like this.

 

[Humdinger]

Exactly this.
I think it's stupid and one of the biggest problems with the game : Route B.

Route A is great, but route B is such a chore to go through. The intro and the end are different, but 80% of it is just playing the same game again, but with a worse gameplay this time actually. Because of this, I really can't be mad against people who think it's not worth continuing, because if you don't know what route C is, then it really seems like you already finished the game and route B is just a bonus NG+ with another character. It's really what it feels like when you don't know what remains after route B.

Route C is the real second half of the game, but having to play the first half twice to unlock it is just an incredibly bad game design decision.
We have the proof with OP here, and I'm not saying this against him.

If you did finish route A and liked it, I'd recommend to force yourself through route B to finally unlock route C, the real second half, but yes, it is incredibly tedious. It's worth it, but it shouldn't be like this.

Thanks, appreciate the reply.

You mentioned "worse gameplay" in part B. That brings to mind one additional reason I'm reluctant to play Route B. I'm being a little silly here, but I enjoyed watching 2B strut her stuff throughout the game. She was fun to just watch move. I am reluctant to now switch to watching 9-S's skinny ass instead. I'm not a big fan of his hacking minigame, either.

 

[LavitzSlambert]

I'm getting very different estimates on how much replaying is actually required. Some say you have to basically replay the whole story. Others say it's about half. Others say less. I admit I'm confused about how much replaying is actually required in Part 2.

Everybody has their own idea lol. To be clear, my count of ~6 hours includes only main story missions (no skipped cutscenes since there is a little bit of new footage interspersed), no sidequests or exploring, and covers up to when 2B and 9S become separated.

 

[Larxia]

Thanks, appreciate the reply.

You mentioned "worse gameplay" in part B. That brings to mind one additional reason I'm reluctant to play Route B. I'm being a little silly here, but I enjoyed watching 2B strut her stuff throughout the game. She was fun to just watch move. I am reluctant to now switch to watching 9-S's skinny ass instead. I'm not a big fan of his hacking minigame, either.

I don't like the hacking either, I find it very repetitive and I'm a bit confused with the fact that some people loved that. 9S gameplay is also much worse because you only have one attack button instead of 2, great reducing the combos you can do, since one attack is replaced by the hacking minigame.

In Route C there is a third playable character, and this character actually has the best gameplay in the game in my opinion, it's similar to 2B, but better. This character has a berserker mode, which puts you in a mode where you deal more damage and are faster, but you are constantly losing health. You can however counter that health drain, by building specific builds to get more health on each kill etc... it's really fun and engaging, I loved playing with this character.

A big problem though, is that it really feels like Yoko Taro really tries to troll and annoy the player as much as he can. This character I just mentionned is great, but the game will very often force you to play as 9S again and his poor gameplay, even for many side quests because of doors requiring 9S to open them for example. It was quite frustrating at times.

Here's a video of me, late game in the dlc arena (no story spoiler), having fun with that gameplay I just described. To me this was actually the most fun part of the game lol I think NieR Automata has a great gameplay, but sadly the game never really asks you to be good at it and make a good use of all the gameplay. I kind of wish it had some scoring mode like Bayonetta for example, to test your skills and force you to learn more stuff.


This is to me the highest gameplay moment of NieR Automata, so maybe it can help you seeing if it seems fun or not for you.

But yeah, 9S sucks and the focus they put on him sadly ruin a big part of NieR Automata.

 

[Beechos]

Yeah that hour long tutorial to only die on the boss and start all over was the worst.

 

[ssringo]

Regarding 9S' hacking minigame, in and of itself it's neat but can wear thin real quickly if you're using it a lot (you can make it super overpowered). If you don't like it you can just play on easy and use the auto hack chip. Otherwise just know that it's a twin stick shooter so you use both sticks and can lock on (plenty of people apparently didn't know either of those). Also, if you enjoy the game's soundtrack, you get to hear the 8 bit versions of whatever music is playing; all of which is fantastic.

 

[El Muerto]

I liked the first one better when i played it on PS3. I dont get all the hype for Automata. It's great but some people make it their whole personality...

 

[Humdinger]

It's funny you mention this, because Nier does it. You dig into 9S's thoughts. Much of it's handled like in movies or TV where you have self narration or a character talking to themselves. But not all of it's handled this way, but that would be spoilers.

I see, so an internal monolog then. That's one way to try to get at it, although it can get tedious listening to a character talk to himself. Another way that films do it, of course, is through facial expression and nonverbals. We see that in the more cinematic games.

That still falls short of what novels can do, though. Here's an example. Have you ever read Crime and Punishment, by Dostoyevsky? Any other novel by Dostoyevsky will do, too. Stoner, by John Williams is a good one as well, and so is Revolutionary Road, by Richard Yates. What the authors do in those novels is spend a lot of their energy bringing to life the inner world of the character - his thoughts, feelings, inclinations, impulses, ambivalences, internal conflicts, confusions, struggles, pain, psychological distortions, demons, temptations, guilt, all of that. Films and to a lesser degree videogames can get at the inner life indirectly, through methods we mentioned above, but it's not at the same level.

It's one thing I love about novels, actually. They make a character real from the inside, in a way that other mediums cannot. I'm not saying film or videogames can't get at some of it, but to me there's a vast difference between Dostoyevsky and some inner monolog in a videogame.

That was a long external monolog, lol. My point is that when an author does that, the differences between perspectives can be very striking, much more than would be possible in a videogame (because the two inner worlds have been fleshed out so much). A tangent to the main discussion but an interesting one.

Think of the narration style like a movie that follows around a cop. Through most of the movie his partner is there with him. Near the end the cop and the audience finds out the partner was working with the drug lord. And it flashes back and you see the partner helping the criminal being chased get away, and the partner killed someone not because as he claimed the criminal had a weapon, but to stop him from revealing everything to the good cop.

I gotcha. But in that example, the flashback would probably last ten minutes or less. Route B would be a really, really long flashback.

So go back and try out more of the story. 9S has a different combat system with the hacking mini game. Once you get the hang of it you can breeze through enemies that gave you trouble, and get right to the meat of the story.

I may do that someday. At the moment, I don't like feel like it, but that may change at some point. Cheers.

 

[James Sawyer Ford]

Man I am on the fence about trying this game out.

Too bad it still runs @ 1080p on PS5.

Trying to decide between this and Doom Eternal which is on sale lol

 

[killatopak]

Took me 60 hours to platinum. Meaning all endings.

Dark Souls took longer for me to complete once.

 

[Unknown Soldier]

Man I am on the fence about trying this game out.

Too bad it still runs @ 1080p on PS5.

Trying to decide between this and Doom Eternal which is on sale lol

I would not be surprised if NieR Automata gets a remastered version like NieR Replicant did someday

But the question is when, because Yoko Taro works on Yoko Taro time and that's only vaguely congruent with human timelines

Running at 1080p on PS5 (PS4 Pro ver.) is actually an improvement over the 900p it ran on base PS4

 

[Imru’ al-Qays]

Dumbest thread ever

 

[Werewolf Jones]

Do books require you to re-read large sections of what you've already read, in order to finish them?

Lol tourist made a thread. Go finish the game properly. The game doesn't even get good until after Ending B. Things ACTUALLY happen.

EDIT: This dude definitely came from Reddit. Holyshit. Go and play the rest of the game.

 

[Synless]

Doesn’t mean much but I thought the game was fantastic.

The overall writing and themes were great, the ost was magical. I have a high opinion on this game as one of the best I played in that gen.

 

[TheDreadBaron]

OP I agree, I played through route A and took my time trying to see everything and enjoyed my experience but didn't feel like I needed any more game. When I started route B I was quickly bored repeating sections and unimpressed with the lackluster hacking minigame.

I knew there was new stuff past the repeated sections but it's pretty unmotivating to be asked to slog through identical content to get to the good stuff. I put the game down and never picked it back up, no regrets.

There might be some really profound stuff that I'm missing out on but having to repeat identical content with a boring character should be recognized as a flaw in the experience and likely the point where a lot of people get off the ride. Maybe Yoko Taro did it that way so the people that tough it out through that section can feel so extra special, seems to have worked for them.

 

[emivita]

Why don't you come back and play through Route B after some time, like after a few months? Maybe you won't find it as repetitive as playing it soon after Route A. You are missing the real meat of the game. Route B is like 4 hours long if you skip missions.

And repetitiveness in games is such a subjective thing. Multiplayer match-based games are more repetitive in my eyes, even soon after the very first match.

 

[DelireMan7]

If you don't like it you can drop it.

I get that people want you to experience the full story by replaying it but it's weird to insist again and again when you made it clear you are not into the game enough to do it.

Personally I drop the game after like 5-7h I think.

Too many weird/ bad game design : as you said the fucking 1h "tutorial" with no save and doesn't even tell you can heal... or the save system. Somehow the game tells me I have to save manually but it still save automatically since it keep track of my chips when I die and have to retrieve them and on some level/boss it allows me to respawn at some checkpoint. I just feel the game change the rules for no reason.
Also combat system didn't to it for me.
And I don't want to start on the camera changing constantly sometimes just to hinder part of your vision to make stuff more difficult...

Edit : that being said, the general atmosphere and story are something that could grab me. But all the gameplay and game design are pushing me away. I consider retrying it later when I am more in mood.

 

[Humdinger]

OP I agree, I played through route A and took my time trying to see everything and enjoyed my experience but didn't feel like I needed any more game. When I started route B I was quickly bored repeating sections and unimpressed with the lackluster hacking minigame.

I knew there was new stuff past the repeated sections but it's pretty unmotivating to be asked to slog through identical content to get to the good stuff. I put the game down and never picked it back up, no regrets.

There might be some really profound stuff that I'm missing out on but having to repeat identical content with a boring character should be recognized as a flaw in the experience and likely the point where a lot of people get off the ride. Maybe Yoko Taro did it that way so the people that tough it out through that section can feel so extra special, seems to have worked for them.

Thanks for the response, I appreciate it. Seems level-headed to me, and it reflects a lot of my own experience. I feel like the 20 hours I spent with the game was fine, but I'm not engaged enough to go through hours of repetition to get to new content.

And re. your last sentence... There is a marketing principle that if a customer has to work for something - if he pays more, for instance, or has to jump through more hoops to get it - he will value that product more highly. I suspect that is at play. But to me, games are for entertainment and fun. If a game feels like a chore to me, or if it feels like it doesn't respect my time, I'm going to drop it.

As you say, there may be some "really profound stuff I'm missing out on," but I kind of think I would've gotten a hint of that within the first 20 hours. Not saying I would get the whole enchilada, but I would've at least had an inkling of profundity after 20 hours. And I didn't - not a whiff. I suspect that what others find profound, I just don't.

[edit: Yeah, confirmed. I just watched a video explaining Nier's profundity at length. As I suspected, what others consider deep and profound, I don't. My 13-30 year old self might have. But I'm 63 now, and questions of meaning have been settled a long time ago. For people still struggling with that, I can see how they might find the way Nier touches on those subjects profound. To me, it's just not. Nier is just lightly touching on exceedingly familiar, well-worn philosophical territory. It's territory that isn't interesting to me anymore. It's not something I find enlightening, deep, or profound. It's more like watching someone stumble around in the dark.]

Why don't you come back and play through Route B after some time, like after a few months? Maybe you won't find it as repetitive as playing it soon after Route A.

I may, thanks. I don't feel like going through it again now, but after a few months or a year, I might feel differently.

 

[Toots]

Played through Nier Automata lately - at least part A - and wanted to share a few brief impressions.

Overall, I liked the game. I didn't feel it was the masterpiece other people apparently feel it is, but to each his own.

Well as others poster said more or less graciously in the thread, now play through part B to D at least and you will understand it truly is the masterpiece others tell you it is.

Then you can play Nier replicant if you want to learn what happened to human beings in this universe.

 

[MiguelItUp]

I enjoyed what I played, but for whatever reason it just didn't grab me enough and I put it down and never picked it back up. Personally I was expecting it to be more monumental that it was/is, but I'm glad that some people really enjoy it. I may go back to it, but I don't know, I think it'll be hard to.

 

[Humdinger]

If you don't like it you can drop it.

I get that people want you to experience the full story by replaying it but it's weird to insist again and again when you made it clear you are not into the game enough to do it.

Yes. I get that they want me to experience something that, to them, is worth the effort. I hear them, but I just don't feel motivated to go through the repetition required. If anything, the thread has actually diminished my motivation to push further. The insulting posters, I mean. It's like their stink has rubbed off on the game or something, guilt by association.

Personally I drop the game after like 5-7h I think.

Too many weird/ bad game design : as you said the fucking 1h "tutorial" with no save and doesn't even tell you can heal... or the save system. Somehow the game tells me I have to save manually but it still save automatically since it keep track of my chips when I die and have to retrieve them and on some level/boss it allows me to respawn at some checkpoint. I just feel the game change the rules for no reason.
Also combat system didn't to it for me.
And I don't want to start on the camera changing constantly sometimes just to hinder part of your vision to make stuff more difficult...

Edit : that being said, the general atmosphere and story are something that could grab me. But all the gameplay and game design are pushing me away. I consider retrying it later when I am more in mood.

Sounds like I enjoyed it a bit more than you. I mostly enjoyed my 20 hours with the game, despite my frustrations with the tutorial, some of the mechanics, and parts of Chapter 9. I liked the combat, 2B, and the atmosphere. It's a unique game, for sure.

 

[Werewolf Jones]

Thanks for the response, I appreciate it. Seems level-headed to me, and I agree. That reflects my own experience. I feel like the 20 hours I spent with the game was fine, but I'm not engaged enough to go through hours of repetition to get to new content.

You experienced 1/3 of the game. Stop being entitled, the game never did you foul you're just not willing to give the time needed. The game isn't at fault. You are.

 

[Humdinger]

You experienced 1/3 of the game. Stop being entitled, the game never did you foul you're just not willing to give the time needed. The game isn't at fault. You are.

I'm at fault for having an opinion that offends you? To me, you sound defensive that someone didn't venerate your precious.

 

[Grildon Tundy]

I started replaying this the day before OP created this thread. This goes to show how we are all connected in ways beyond our comprehension

I'm towards the end of Route A. It's been 6 years since I played it last, so I forget a ton of the story details. Looking forward to relearning them. Gameplay is more fun than I remembered. Customizing your build with the Plug-In Chips is fun, too.

 

[skit_data]

 

[Werewolf Jones]

I'm at fault for having an opinion that offends you? To me, you sound defensive that someone didn't venerate your precious.

You need to go back to r/patientgamers.

The game isn't for you. You're missing out because you're lazy. Also I'm not offended. I rate the game but it's not even in my top 25. You're clearly being a casual.

"I never got the heckin fire content? Ugh..."

You literally admit you're being gate kept by a game.

 

[DelireMan7]

Yes. I get that they want me to experience something that, to them, is worth the effort. I hear them, but I just don't feel motivated to go through the repetition required. If anything, the thread has actually diminished my motivation to push further. The insulting posters, I mean. It's like their stink has rubbed off on the game or something, guilt by association.



Sounds like I enjoyed it a bit more than you. I mostly enjoyed my 20 hours with the game, despite my frustrations with the tutorial, some of the mechanics, and parts of Chapter 9. I liked the combat, 2B, and the atmosphere. It's a unique game, for sure.

I fully understand not wanted to go again on a game you didn't enjoy that much.

There is many game to play. Enjoy picking another one.

I find crazy how some get crazy because you don't want to go again. You don't want to understand their masterpiece?!


Sure the game has some unique side that intrigues me. That's why I think I'll try again later. But I need some time. When I tried each session was a chore and I finished frustrated each time.

 

[Humdinger]

Well, I've said my piece and don't want to engage in needless repetition - that would be a bit hypocritical, under the circumstances. I don't think I have anything else to add, so I'll bow out.

Thanks to those of you who provided good input, I appreciate it.

 

[DelireMan7]

You need to go back to r/patientgamers.

The game isn't for you. You're missing out because you're lazy. Also I'm not offended. I rate the game but it's not even in my top 25. You're clearly being a casual.

"I never got the heckin fire content? Ugh..."

You literally admit you're being gate kept by a game.

Not enjoying a game enough to finish it is being lazy ?

This is madness.

 

[Thabass]

If you only played through ending A, then I will wait until you finish the full game before I care about your opinion on it.

 

[Werewolf Jones]

Not enjoying a game enough to finish it is being lazy ?

This is madness.

He wants the good part of the game. Where revelations take place that justify the hype. Look, I don't wanna be a savage but nothing ventured, nothing gained. If you're not willing to put the time in you won't reach the high quality moments.

I used to SHIT on 2B coomers hardcore and think Nier Automata was a porn game. I also held the belief Ending A was nothing impressive, but I was told to press on. It gets WAAAAAAAAY better. If you have no investment in the game just drop it rather than crying and trying to cope about how the game should give good results immediately.

I can't promise he will resonate with the game, but if he pushes through and achieves the true ending and didn't connect with it, no one here can dare disrespect him because he reached the real end goal.

 

[DelireMan7]

He wants the good part of the game. Where revelations take place that justify the hype. Look, I don't wanna be a savage but nothing ventured, nothing gained. If you're not willing to put the time in you won't reach the high quality moments.

I used to SHIT on 2B coomers hardcore and think Nier Automata was a porn game. I also held the belief Ending A was nothing impressive, but I was told to press on. It gets WAAAAAAAAY better. If you have no investment in the game just drop it rather than crying and trying to cope about how the game should give good results immediately.

I can't promise he will resonate with the game, but if he pushes through and achieves the true ending and didn't connect with it, no one here can dare disrespect him because he reached the real end goal.

I mean he play the game and now he knows what he has to do.

Still he didn't enjoy the game enough to proceed. It's fine to move on.
Happy for you that you did it all and enjoyed it but everyone is different.
This is not an achievement to go through a videogame story.


It's like some people tell me to continue Breaking Bad because it's "so good" but I got bored very quick because it's not my type of series. I don't see why I should do something I dislike on my free time because "at one point it will be good".

This is a bit a Death Stranding situation. Some will say it's a masterpiece like no other and some will quit the game out of boreness. And both option are fine.
Or everyone should continue Death Stranding because it's so good at the end ?

Glad you enjoy the game but accept some will find it not as good (finished or not)