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[1upsuper]

Actually I've been meaning to ask since I've Platinumed the game...

Spoiler

is the DLC worth the purchase? aside from the costumes what else does it include?

It is most definitely worth it.

Spoiler

The arenas are fun and all distinct, and the final rank in each arena offers the only legitimate challenge in the entire game (aside from very hard mode) and actually forces you to make the very most out of every mechanic the game offers.
The costumes are great if you've played NieR, there are lots of other little cosmetic things you can get, and the added story stuff is fun and quite different than the rest of the game.

Having played the DLC I can't imagine going through the whole game without getting it. It's pretty much mandatory IMO. And it includes some

Spoiler

pretty crazy, off-the-wall shit if you're into that, which you probably are if you've made it this far.

 

[emiliano]

I still can't believe how much I like this game, I'm really having a great time playing it. I had big expectations, but they have been surpassed by a great measure.

I started the game on normal. It was a little too easy, so from the second route onward I've changed to hard; after that the game became much more satisfying,

Spoiler

in particular near the end, eheh

.
Currently I'm on my second playthrough,

Spoiler

and my level (I'm at 63 currently) has been preserved. Now the challenge in the game, even on hard, it's almost non-existent, I mean the enemies can't even do any damage at all... and this pretty much ruins the ride. Would you suggest to start a new save, or this would limit the access to some route? If so, do you have any suggestion for ways to rise the difficulty (through the chip setup for example)

?

Spoiler

I've currently unlocked the A,B and D main routes.

 

[Kwansu Dudes]

This game's soundtrack is my favorite of the year so far (Persona 5 is 2nd). It just matches everything so god damn well and isn't just, "oooh ahhh wooo" drone music. I usually don't buy albums, but this and P5 are well worth the price (plz put them on Spotify).

Does anyone know what language the singer is singing in during the first area? Doesn't sound like anything I've heard before, but I'm guessing Gaelic or similar?

 

[LotusHD]

I still can't believe how much I like this game, I'm really having a great time playing it. I had big expectations, but they have been surpassed by a great measure.

I started the game on normal. It was a little too easy, so from the second route onward I've changed to hard; after that the game became much more satisfying,

Spoiler

in particular near the end, eheh

.
Currently I'm on my second playthrough,

Spoiler

and my level (I'm at 63 currently) has been preserved. Now the challenge in the game, even on hard, it's almost non-existent, I mean the enemies can't even do any damage at all... and this pretty much ruins the ride. Would you suggest to start a new save, or this would limit the access to some route? If so, do you have any suggestion for ways to rise the difficulty (through the chip setup for example)

?

Spoiler

I've currently unlocked the A,B and D main routes.

Well you're almost done with the game.

Spoiler

Use Chapter Select to get Route C quickly, Route E progresses naturally from that, and doesn't care what level you are.

This game's soundtrack is my favorite of the year so far (Persona 5 is 2nd). It just matches everything so god damn well and isn't just, "oooh ahhh wooo" drone music. I usually don't buy albums, but this and P5 are well worth the price (plz put them on Spotify).

Does anyone know what language the singer is singing in during the first area? Doesn't sound like anything I've heard before, but I'm guessing Gaelic or similar?

Pretty sure people describe it as "Chaos language", it's fake.

 

[Nap1400]

This game's soundtrack is my favorite of the year so far (Persona 5 is 2nd). It just matches everything so god damn well and isn't just, "oooh ahhh wooo" drone music. I usually don't buy albums, but this and P5 are well worth the price (plz put them on Spotify).

Does anyone know what language the singer is singing in during the first area? Doesn't sound like anything I've heard before, but I'm guessing Gaelic or similar?

Most songs in both Nier 1 and Automata barring some of the versions of the credits themes are sung in a made-up language whose roots depend on the song. Emi Evans, one of the vocalists and lyricists, said that Kaine Salvation had a lot of phoenetics that were inspired by Gaelic languages, for instance. It's what really sets it apart from a lot of soundtracks that use vocals, really.

 

[Remembrance]

This game's soundtrack is my favorite of the year so far (Persona 5 is 2nd). It just matches everything so god damn well and isn't just, "oooh ahhh wooo" drone music. I usually don't buy albums, but this and P5 are well worth the price (plz put them on Spotify).

Does anyone know what language the singer is singing in during the first area? Doesn't sound like anything I've heard before, but I'm guessing Gaelic or similar?

It absolutely has elements of Gaelic, but different songs in the Nier soundtracks will be closer to or further away from actual languages: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Music_of_Nier

You'd probably have to know multiple languages to fully appreciate how real or unreal most of the lyrics are.

 

[Kwansu Dudes]

Pretty sure people describe it as "Chaos language", it's fake.

Most songs in both Nier 1 and Automata barring some of the versions of the credits themes are sung in a made-up language whose roots depend on the song. Emi Evans, one of the vocalists and lyricists, said that Kaine Salvation had a lot of phoenetics that were inspired by Gaelic languages, for instance. It's what really sets it apart from a lot of soundtracks that use vocals, really.

It absolutely has elements of Gaelic, but different songs in the Nier soundtracks will be closer to or further away from actual languages: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Music_of_Nier

You'd probably have to know multiple languages to fully appreciate how real or unreal most of the lyrics are.

Thanks for the answers! I had a feeling that it might've been like, "Now We Are Free" from Gladiator (Lisa Gerrard sang in her own made up language). Really makes listening to the songs more interesting now.

Edit: the wiki article is great.

 

[1upsuper]

Well you're almost done with the game.

Spoiler

Use Chapter Select to get Route C quickly, Route E progresses naturally from that, and doesn't care what level you are.

Pretty sure people describe it as "Chaos language", it's fake.

It's disingenuous to say the language is "fake;" rather, it's an amalgamation of various languages. It's decipherable to a degree and Emi puts a lot of thought into her NieR tracks.

 

[LotusHD]

It's disingenuous to say the language is "fake;" rather, it's an amalgamation of various languages. It's decipherable to a degree and Emi puts a lot of thought into her NieR tracks.

Well I wasn't trying to imply she didn't (Because clearly thought is put into the tracks), just that that's the most common way I see it get described. Also the way the post I responded to was phrased made it seem like he did think it was an actual language he happened to be familiar with, so meh.

 

[1upsuper]

Well I wasn't trying to imply she didn't (Because clearly thought is put into the tracks), just that that's the most common way I see it get described. Also the way the post I responded to was phrased made it seem like he did think it was an actual language he happened to be familiar with, so meh.

My message came off a bit abrasive. Sorry about that.

 

[HardRojo]

Ok GAF, I'm ready.
First time playing this so what do I need to know and take into account?

 

[OniBaka]

Ok GAF, I'm ready.
First time playing this so what do I need to know and take into account?

Play on easy or normal until you can save and depending if it's tedious for you, start doing side quest when you get fast travel.

 

[HardRojo]

Play on easy or normal until you can save and depending if it's tedious for you, start doing side quest when you get fast travel.

Normal it is then. I've read about there being several endings in order to get the true ending. Avoiding spoilers, what's the best course of action to get the true ending? Is it fine if my first playthrough is a completely blind one?

 

[LotusHD]

My message came off a bit abrasive. Sorry about that.

No problem dude.

Ok GAF, I'm ready.
First time playing this so what do I need to know and take into account?

- Play on Normal/Easy for the beginning portion (the factory) of this game. (The demo if you've played it before) It does not let you auto-save until after you get past this part, and Hard mode is unusually difficult due to how hard enemies hit, so you don't want to end up having to restart the entire thing. (Takes about 30 minutes or so to get through) After you get past this section, and it'll be clear when you do, feel free to play on Hard if you want.

- Don't bother with sidequests until you unlock fast travel, unless you really enjoy running all over the place.

- You have 3 different chip loadouts, A, B, and C. Feel free to actually use the other two loadouts for w/e you wish. Like for instance, loadout A is my default setup, but loadout B is where I utilize all my speed-based chips, so I can move around as quickly as possible.

- Fuse chips, it's helpful.

- Your first priority once you start getting cash should be to max out your chip capacity. A vendor sells it to you in one of the main hubs in this game.

- I dunno your stance on sidequests, but here's a list of recommended ones to look for if you're the type that only wants to do the "best" ones:

- There are five main routes: Routes A, B, C, D, and E. You're not finished with the game until you've completed them. They are pretty straightforward, so don't worry about possibly not getting the true ending or something along those lines. But of course, if you do later on get confused, we're always here to help.

- 9S is great with spears. Try to remember that.

Normal it is then. I've read about there being several endings in order to get the true ending. Avoiding spoilers, what's the best course of action to get the true ending? Is it fine if my first playthrough is a completely blind one?

Yes, play completely blind.

 

[OniBaka]

It's very straight forward, once you get a main ending just load up your save again then it continues.

 

[HardRojo]

Great, thanks for all the advice. I feel like I'm ready to begin now I enjoyed the demo so I expect to enjoy the full game as well.

 

[emiliano]

Well you're almost done with the game.

Spoiler

Use Chapter Select to get Route C quickly, Route E progresses naturally from that, and doesn't care what level you are.

Good to know, thank you.

Spoiler

I even removed all the chips, it doesn't help, I can still oneshot kill the majority of the fauna
I was looking for a way to enjoy the game while completing the quests, I don't have half of them done yet (
Should have had that archived in the first run I suppose.

 

[Alrus]

Man I think I shouldn't have decided to do all the sidequests, the one where you have to collect 95% of enemy units data was just a massive chore.

Also I'm missing one sidequest and I have no idea where to go for it... It's not listed on the wiki either :/

 

[LotusHD]

Man I think I shouldn't have decided to do all the sidequests, the one where you have to collect 95% of enemy units data was just a massive chore.

Also I'm missing one sidequest and I have no idea where to go for it... It's not listed on the wiki either :/

I didn't bother with that one. Just Youtube'd it to see if it had any relevance to a character's background or something. It did not.

I'm pretty sure the last sidequest

Spoiler

is Emil-related.

 

[Ricker]

Just started this yesterday,after finishing ME A,and just to make sure about the connected stuff...is it okay after a pray and continue to do a retrieve on the body or does that cancel the first...?

 

[emiliano]

I'm enjoying reading this whole thread, and found this

Spoiler

post: http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showpost.php?p=230983484&postcount=2624
Now, I clearly remember choosing to support A2 at the beginning of the third route, but got the D ending. How does this works? Is it true what is being said in the linked post, or the path for route depends from other choices later on?

Just started this yesterday,after finishing ME A,and just to make sure about the connected stuff...is it okay after a pray and continue to do a retrieve on the body or does that cancel the first...?

No it shouldn't cancel it, for what I know, but I've never received a prayer in my whole playthrough now that I think about it. Have you guys received any prayers?

 

[Hektor]

I'm enjoying reading this whole thread, and found this

Spoiler

post: http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showpost.php?p=230983484&postcount=2624
Now, I clearly remember choosing to support A2 at the beginning of the third route, but got the D ending. How does this works? Is it true what is being said in the linked post, or the path for route depends from other choices later on?

No it shouldn't cancel it, for what I know, but I've never received a prayer in my whole playthrough now that I think about it. Have you guys received any prayers?

The linked post is wrong,

Spoiler

it only matters who you choose at the last fight

 

[Renekton]

So erm I just completed the first playthru, not sure if I have the patience to run through the same content the 2nd time, but I hear it opens a heckuva new perspective. Argh.

 

[emiliano]

The linked post is wrong

Thank you, that's relieving.

Spoiler

I was starting to think my memories were doing a trick on me, because I thoroughly pondered that choice lol

So erm I just completed the first playthru, not sure if I have the patience to run through the same content the 2nd time, but I hear it opens a heckuva new perspective. Argh.

I started this game completely blind in fear of spoilers, and for me the second route was really good. And holy shit at what came after. Also, I was going to do it anyway probably, even without those premises, because the game was so great at that point that I was just starving for more.

 

[Hektor]

So erm I just completed the first playthru, not sure if I have the patience to run through the same content the 2nd time, but I hear it opens a heckuva new perspective. Argh.

You literally have not finished the game yet

 

[Alrus]

So I have an issue with upgrading pods. I need one last Powerup part L but I can't find it and I think I may have locked myself out of getting it?

(End game spoiler),

Spoiler

Wiki says it's farmable on the rabbit machine but it only dropped it once and then never again. Is it not a 100% drop?

(secret boss spoiler)

Spoiler

Second way would be to go to emil house after beating him in the desert but I beat him on 2B and didn't talk to him beforehand to open the door to his house and now I can't find him anymore I think?

 

[Caim]

So I have an issue with upgrading pods. I need one last Powerup part L but I can't find it and I think I may have locked myself out of getting it?

(End game spoiler),

Spoiler

Wiki says it's farmable on the rabbit machine but it only dropped it once and then never again. Is it not a 100% drop?

(secret boss spoiler)

Spoiler

Second way would be to go to emil house after beating him in the desert but I beat him on 2B and didn't talk to him beforehand to open the door to his house and now I can't find him anymore I think?

It's not 100% chance to drop, but that is where I got all of mine.

 

[Alrus]

It's not 100% chance to drop, but that is where I got all of mine.

Oh ok will try a few more time then.

 

[pbayne]

Finished the first 2 routes...and its just kind of alright so far.

Some of the little game play touches and surprises are excellent. Actual game play is serviceable enough, nothing special but still 100 times better than the original.

Spoiler

2nd route did drag for me a bit. At least i could power through fairly sharpish.
The preview for the next route has me hyped but lol i was surprised by just how many of the story beats and twists i've guessed right so far. Like it feels like its almost going for the most obvious route possible atm on purpose or something to lull into a false sense of security.

 

[LotusHD]

So erm I just completed the first playthru, not sure if I have the patience to run through the same content the 2nd time, but I hear it opens a heckuva new perspective. Argh.

Finish the game lol

 

[kc44135]

So, I've been playing this game for awhile now. I finished up route A, and now am partway through route B. My impressions so far are incredibly positive, for the most part. My only experience with Yoko Taro games prior to this was the original Drakengard (I did YouTube everything else prior to playing Automata, though). The story and characters were kinda interesting, and the game did have a unique feel and twisted sense of charm to it, but it was held back by horrible gameplay. Nier: Automata is a Yoko Taro game with great gameplay, and that's what makes it so excellent. Like, you can finally have your Taro cake and eat it too, lol.

So yeah, I'm really enjoying it so far, but... Route B kinda seems like more of the same so far. I like the hacking well enough, and I'm enjoying the new bits of gameplay and story context as they pop up, but is there more new stuff later into it (

Spoiler

I'm just past the bit with A2 and the Forest King

)? It seems like it's about 80% retread, 20% new stuff so far. Also, is Route C mostly a retread like B, or is there new stuff? I'm going to keep trucking on, I was just hoping the later playthroughs would feel more different than they currently do, is all.

 

[LotusHD]

So, I've been playing this game for awhile now. I finished up route A, and now am partway through route B. My impressions so far are incredibly positive, for the most part. My only experience with Yoko Taro games prior to this was the original Drakengard (I did YouTube everything else prior to playing Automata, though). The story and characters were kinda interesting, and the game did have a unique feel and twisted sense of charm to it, but it was held back by horrible gameplay. Nier: Automata is a Yoko Taro game with great gameplay, and that's what makes it so excellent. Like, you can finally have your Taro cake and eat it too, lol.

So yeah, I'm really enjoying it so far, but... Route B kinda seems like more of the same so far. I like the hacking well enough, and I'm enjoying the new bits of gameplay and story context as they pop up, but is there more new stuff later into it (

Spoiler

I'm just past the bit with A2 and the Forest King

)? It seems like it's about 80% retread, 20% new stuff so far. Also, is Route C mostly a retread like B, or is there new stuff? I'm going to keep trucking on, I was just hoping the later playthroughs would feel more different than they currently do, is all.

Route B will change it up more once you

Spoiler

get to the parts where 2B and 9S are separated, basically after the Flooded City.

Route C and onwards is completely new.

 

[kc44135]

Route B will change it up more once you

Spoiler

get to the parts where 2B and 9S are separated, basically after the Flooded City.

Route C and onwards is completely new.

Well, alright then! Thx, getting hyped to keep going now!

 

[zewone]

This came in today.

 

[Alrus]

Finally finished route E earlier today, all sidequests done. Gotta read all the archives and weapon stories now, as I kinda stopped reading them at the end because I wanted to see more of the story.

Game was pretty amazing mostly thanks to its story and music (it's always so perfectly in sync with the mood the story wants you to feel). Gameplay was just serviceable for me, mostly because the difficulty is terribly balanced, Normal being too easy and Hard being frustrating at points. The battle system also felt shallow but I think it's mostly due to having enemies that either die way too quick or simply don't allow for anything flashy like juggling.

Overall I'm still very happy that I bought it.

Time to read the spoiler thread now as I have a few questions that still need answering.

 

[Antiwhippy]

This came in today.

Mine is taking forever to get here to Australia.

 

[The Illiterati]

I wish I had read this thread before dying at the first boss after 45 minutes. Why did anyone think not letting you save was an interesting design choice?

 

[Antiwhippy]

For better or worse Nier is pretty devoted to the idea of tying game mechanics to the actual gameworld and how it works in that framework.

 

[duckroll]

I wish I had read this thread before dying at the first boss after 45 minutes. Why did anyone think not letting you save was an interesting design choice?

Well, it makes you feel upset right? Upset enough to remember how bad it is that you died and had to do all that shit again. Frustrating no? That makes it an interesting design choice - that the creator is willing to make bad design choices just to get you to feel something, even if it doesn't create positive impressions on the game itself.

Lol.

 

[LotusHD]

For better or worse Nier is pretty devoted to the idea of tying game mechanics to the actual gameworld and how it works in that framework.

Lol this

 

[Antiwhippy]

Also I actually did that part 4 times because I thought I could play on hard lol.

 

[Remembrance]

I think some things in the game might actually be impossible on hard.

Like, I don't think you can ever hack

Spoiler

A2 in ending D

successfully. Enemy HP in hacking seems to be higher on hard and I don't think there is actually enough time to finish the second hack.

 

[SunhiLegend]

Spoiler

 

[avrophantasm]

Spoiler

That's fucking awesome. So cinematic.

 

[LotusHD]

Spoiler

Man, there's several stuff in Route C that I would love to see your take on lol

 

[petethepanda]

What a weird night I had with the game.

Route A, I assume midway through, started the night at level 28. I reached the first Flooded City terminal before stopping last night, but after loading up tonight I decided to go back to the City Ruins to clear up a couple side quests before moving on. I wound up doing the Lord of the Valley side quest with the lv50 boss and then did the lv50 Robo Dojo, both of which I was clearly underleveled for and required about ten minutes of mindless patience. I figured I'd go and do more story stuff at that point, but on my way back to the Flooded City, I took the wrong route and wound up going through (spoilers? possibly later-game spoilers?)

Spoiler

a series of caves that too me to Emil's House, which has a truly hilarious number of bodies right outside it; I'm guessing I'll find myself back here later on (and I fear happy endings will continue to elude Emil)

.

All of this was relatively easy, but once I got back to the flooded city, I was immediately faced with two lv25 enemies that were somehow harder than all the previous stuff I had just done. Maybe it assumes you'd just run past them? (Regardless, I took them down, and as with everything else, I assume it'll make me feel awful about it later on.)

 

[Remembrance]

Those gifs are going to be amazing shortly onward from here, never mind much later.

What a weird night I had with the game.

Good job finding all that this early (I never would have found

Spoiler

Emil's house

by myself). Still, be careful of overleveling - you can make the game way too easy if you do too much early. And, yes, all of that is basically intended for later.

There are two quests leading to the Flooded City itself that you should finish now if you have them in progress, though.

 

[Antiwhippy]

What a weird night I had with the game.

Route A, I assume midway through, started the night at level 28. I reached the first Flooded City terminal before stopping last night, but after loading up tonight I decided to go back to the City Ruins to clear up a couple side quests before moving on. I wound up doing the Lord of the Valley side quest with the lv50 boss and then did the lv50 Robo Dojo, both of which I was clearly underleveled for and required about ten minutes of mindless patience. I figured I'd go and do more story stuff at that point, but on my way back to the Flooded City, I took the wrong route and wound up going through (spoilers? possibly later-game spoilers?)

Spoiler

a series of caves that too me to Emil's House, which has a truly hilarious number of bodies right outside it; I'm guessing I'll find myself back here later on (and I fear happy endings will continue to elude Emil)

.

All of this was relatively easy, but once I got back to the flooded city, I was immediately faced with two lv25 enemies that were somehow harder than all the previous stuff I had just done. Maybe it assumes you'd just run past them? (Regardless, I took them down, and as with everything else, I assume it'll make me feel awful about it later on.)

Yeah the level scaling is weird in this one. I don't quite understand it myself other than it's pretty easy to breeze through.

 

[duckroll]

Since I played on Steam this never occurred to me before but... on PS4 do you need PS+ to use the Network Mode? Is it even possible to get Ending E without Network Mode? Is the final ending in the game locked behind a paywall on console?!

 

[OniBaka]

Since I played on Steam this never occurred to me before but... on PS4 do you need PS+ to use the Network Mode?

No