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[KO Traveling Hobo]

I wonder if Yoko Taro would consider doing NieR 3 as a single ending game? I've only played the NieR games, so don't know if Drakengard games have single endings, but I'd like to see how Taro would pull it off in NieR.

Drakengard does full branching routes with multiple complete endings, each with their own credit theme.

I feel like Taro would only make a single-ending game if he could find some way to subvert it. Just a clean point A to point B seems like it would be too limiting for him.

 

[Exentryk]

I can't vouch for Drakengard 2, but the others all have multiple endings.

Drakengard does full branching routes with multiple complete endings, each with their own credit theme.

I feel like Taro would only make a single-ending game if he could find some way to subvert it. Just a clean point A to point B seems like it would be too limiting for him.

Thanks. So he has been using this system for a while now, and I know he doesn't like to repeat things. So, I'd really like to see how he'd pull off a single ending NieR or another game. There are more restrictions with single endings, and I want to see what kind of creativity he could bring to that.

But regardless, I'll be there day 1 for whatever he makes next.

 

[Geg]

So... is it even possible to beat ending E without connecting to the internet? Because goddamn.

 

[Antiwhippy]

So... is it even possible to beat ending E without connecting to the internet? Because goddamn.

You can.

It's just super, super hard.

 

[Exentryk]

So... is it even possible to beat ending E without connecting to the internet? Because goddamn.

I was definitely going to give it a good crack, but after trying for about 20 mins on "Square Enix", the game crashed (possibly coz of network connections; one and only crash in the whole 90 hours). Took that as a sign that I needed to give up and embrace the 'power of love and friendship'.

 

[ShinoguTakeruKoeru]

Drakengard does full branching routes with multiple complete endings, each with their own credit theme.

I feel like Taro would only make a single-ending game if he could find some way to subvert it. Just a clean point A to point B seems like it would be too limiting for him.

What if the ending was always the same, but it was a take on the "see something new on repeat viewings" thing that not even super-detail-oriented people would be able to crack on the first go, and there was still new context and material on NG+ runs?

 

[Isaac Otherworld]

Been working on getting 100% in the game and the boss battle with

Spoiler

Emil ]as you try to steal from him

again is painful.

Spoiler

"So power is the only thing that matters in this world... Go ahead. Do whatever you want..."

Spoiler

The real boss fight against him is going to be so much worse

.

 

[Sayad]

So... is it even possible to beat ending E without connecting to the internet? Because goddamn.

Yep, there are videos on youtube.

 

[Momentary]

Would love to see the clone Nier that Kaine and Emil found in some kind of sequel. Or maybe something with Caim surviving all these millenias somehow.

 

[Exentryk]

What if the ending was always the same, but it was a take on the "see something new on repeat viewings" thing that not even super-detail-oriented people would be able to crack on the first go, and there was still new context and material on NG+ runs?

No NG+ runs. No repeated content AT ALL. Just one single run through the game, and making that as good as possible, with all the surprises and shocks packed in that run. I want to see how he'd do that. Changing perspectives on repeated runs is what he has been doing for a few games now.

 

[Antiwhippy]

So reading up on a theory I had, Nier:A's premise seem kinda based on ragnarok? On a surface level at at least. Especially seeing that norse mythology also deals with cycles. Ragnarok signifying the end, the twilight of the gods, a break in the cyclical chain of life, otherworldly battlemaidens who are bodyguards and messangers of the gods, etc. etc. etc.

 

[Geg]

I was definitely going to give it a good crack, but after trying for about 20 mins on "Square Enix", the game crashed (possibly coz of network connections; one and only crash in the whole 90 hours). Took that as a sign that I needed to give up and embrace the 'power of love and friendship'.

I definitely echoed Yoko Taro's "Shit Square Enix!" a few times during that segment lol

 

[Astrael]

So reading up on a theory I had more, Nier:A's premise seem kinda based on ragnarok? On a surface level at at least.

The Ragnarok myth timeline always confused me, can't ever keep track of who is killing who and whatnot lol. So, who is Loki in NieR: Automata in this theory?

 

[KO Traveling Hobo]

What if the ending was always the same, but it was a take on the "see something new on repeat viewings" thing that not even super-detail-oriented people would be able to crack on the first go, and there was still new context and material on NG+ runs?

That'd be pretty neat. And he could avoid repeating content by having you play as a different character each time, providing not only a new perspective but new experiences as well.

It'd be a cute flip of past games: instead of playing through the same content with new endings, you'd be playing through new content with the same ending.

 

[Antiwhippy]

The Ragnarok myth timeline always confused me, can't ever keep track of who is killing who and whatnot lol. So, who is Loki in NieR: Automata in this theory?

Well I'm not saying it's an exact 1 to 1, but there are parallels as I've edited above. Seeing that norse mythology also deals with cycles. Ragnarok signifying the end, the twilight of the gods, a break in the cyclical chain of life, otherworldly battlemaidens who are bodyguards and messengers of the gods, a new rebirth after the cycle is destroyed, etc. etc.

Like I can't super recall the exact events of ragnarok right now so I've been reading things up.

 

[Astrael]

Well I'm not saying it's an exact 1 to 1, but there are parallels as I've edited above. Seeing that norse mythology also deals with cycles. Ragnarok signifying the end, the twilight of the gods, a break in the cyclical chain of life, otherworldly battlemaidens who are bodyguards and messengers of the gods, a new rebirth after the cycle is destroyed, etc. etc.

Oh I get it now, yeah that actually does make a lot of sense when looking at the big picture. I feel like I've seen some other reference of YoRHa as Valkyries now, I wonder where that was...

Well anyways now I have Commander as Freyja in my head lol.

 

[KO Traveling Hobo]

Been working on getting 100% in the game and the boss battle with

Spoiler

Emil ]as you try to steal from him[/SPOILER again is painful.

Spoiler

"So power is the only thing that matters in this world... Go ahead. Do whatever you want..."

Spoiler

The real boss fight against him is going to be so much worse

.

Spoiler

Well I'm not saying it's an exact 1 to 1, but there are parallels as I've edited above. Seeing that norse mythology also deals with cycles. Ragnarok signifying the end, the twilight of the gods, a break in the cyclical chain of life, otherworldly battlemaidens who are bodyguards and messengers of the gods, a new rebirth after the cycle is destroyed, etc. etc.

Like I can't super recall the exact events of ragnarok right now so I've been reading things up.

You haven't mentioned it so I wonder if you're aware that Drakengard's setting is actually called Midgard? If not, I hope I just blew your mind lol

 

[Rickenslacker]

I haven't done ending Y just yet, but I've finished through the core 5 endings. I enjoyed it, but it wasn't something that resonated with me quite as much as I thought it would. I just didn't take to a lot of the music, and it actually got a little tedious listening to it by the time I was in Route B, but I started liking it more due to the changes in motifs with Route C. I just didn't need vocals in everything, be it fighting in random battles or just going from point A to B in town areas.

I didn't mind the side-quests, as they can be pretty rote in any kind of RPG so it was standard fare here -- but I found the conclusions of most of them to be a bit, I dunno, trite I guess. Fight dojobot to the end, and he finds death the fitting conclusion; race racebot and beat him, it then decides to blow up; repair the Engel goliath, it gets bored and decides to die; whimsical philosophical bots all staring off on the edges of heights, they decide to suicide. Like, alright I get it. Not to mention 9S being all "huh?!?? machines with feelings?!??? nah... can't be..." to every occurrence.

Which, I find the characterizations of 9S and A2 amusing in that regard. 2B is generally objective-oriented but 9S and A2 being all "DESTROY ALL MACHINES, NO EXCEPTIONS" only to be all "well some machines are ok i guess" 5 minutes later is a hard one to swallow, especially with A2.

I think some of the harder hitting moments were less impactful for me because of the intro sequence. When the start of the game has your main characters suicide bombing and regenerating into new bodies, it framed the events later on in a way that made them less emotional. I actually found it outright goofy seeing 2B strangling the corrupting 9S, I mean, that's gonna kill an android? Well alright.

Still, game was real enjoyable overall, and the only thing stopping me from diving into ending Y right now is how tedious I feel getting all the remaining weapons then upgrading them will be. The ending E credits were a real treat. Admittedly, I'm not really sure what sense to make out of the post-credits scene.

All that said, playing this has gotten me intrigued to actually play the original NieR, which I've had a copy of for years now but never started playing. Some of the imagery and words dropped made it clear to me things were being called back to, and if the pacing of Automata is any indication of how the original is, then it won't be as difficult to motivate myself to play it as I thought it would.

 

[Antiwhippy]

Like looking through this source there are more parallels. Also made me remember how I used to be super into norse mythology.

http://norse-mythology.org/tales/ragnarok/

They prepared as well as they could. Odin took a great deal of time and care selecting the ablest human warriors to join him in the final battle against the world-devouring giants. But, deep down, they knew that all of their desperate actions were in vain.

http://norse-mythology.org/gods-and-creatures/giants/

The gods don't seek to annihilate the devourers, but rather seek to keep them in check so that the cosmos remains in balance. This mitigation and partial control also seems to have been the goal of the worship or propitiation of the devourers during the Viking Age.[5]

Thus, while attempts were made to keep the devourers at bay, their value was also recognized. Paradoxically, these forces of entropy are also the forces that ultimately guarantee the survival of the universe.

You haven't mentioned it so I wonder if you're aware that Drakengard's setting is actually called Midgard? If not, I hope I just blew your mind lol

It's been awhile, but yeah. Can't remember if drakengard had undertones of norse mythology like this game seems to have though.

 

[Antiwhippy]

as your main characters suicide bombing and regenerating into new bodies, it framed the events later on in a way that made them less emotional. I actually found it outright goofy seeing 2B strangling the corrupting 9S, I mean, that's gonna kill an android? Well alright.

I feel like you've missed a lot of subtlties about their relationships just through this sentence. What's tragic is not the method of the killing, but why it happens at all.

Sure 9S will go to a new body. Like he always does. Countless of times in fact. But is that truly being revived? Going back to a new life as his previous one is wiped clean from his memory, are we really getting 9S back at all?

 

[KO Traveling Hobo]

I haven't done ending Y just yet, but I've finished through the core 5 endings. I enjoyed it, but it wasn't something that resonated with me quite as much as I thought it would. I just didn't take to a lot of the music, and it actually got a little tedious listening to it by the time I was in Route B, but I started liking it more due to the changes in motifs with Route C. I just didn't need vocals in everything, be it fighting in random battles or just going from point A to B in town areas.

I didn't mind the side-quests, as they can be pretty rote in any kind of RPG so it was standard fare here -- but I found the conclusions of most of them to be a bit, I dunno, trite I guess. Fight dojobot to the end, and he finds death the fitting conclusion; race racebot and beat him, it then decides to blow up; repair the Engel goliath, it gets bored and decides to die; whimsical philosophical bots all staring off on the edges of heights, they decide to suicide. Like, alright I get it. Not to mention 9S being all "huh?!?? machines with feelings?!??? nah... can't be..." to every occurrence.

Which, I find the characterizations of 9S and A2 amusing in that regard. 2B is generally objective-oriented but 9S and A2 being all "DESTROY ALL MACHINES, NO EXCEPTIONS" only to be all "well some machines are ok i guess" 5 minutes later is a hard one to swallow, especially with A2.

I think some of the harder hitting moments were less impactful for me because of the intro sequence. When the start of the game has your main characters suicide bombing and regenerating into new bodies, it framed the events later on in a way that made them less emotional. I actually found it outright goofy seeing 2B strangling the corrupting 9S, I mean, that's gonna kill an android? Well alright.

Still, game was real enjoyable overall, and the only thing stopping me from diving into ending Y right now is how tedious I feel getting all the remaining weapons then upgrading them will be. The ending E credits were a real treat. Admittedly, I'm not really sure what sense to make out of the post-credits scene.

All that said, playing this has gotten me intrigued to actually play the original NieR, which I've had a copy of for years now but never started playing. Some of the imagery and words dropped made it clear to me things were being called back to, and if the pacing of Automata is any indication of how the original is, then it won't be as difficult to motivate myself to play it as I thought it would.

Based on what you've said, I think you're more likely to enjoy Nier. The protagonist has a lot more agency in the story, and the party is much more vibrant and thoughtful.

Did you enjoy the interactions between Pod 042 and A2 in route C? Because that kind of back and forth banter is one of Nier's defining traits.

edit: the sidequests are still pretty dour, but they aren't quite as heavyhanded. I think they both fit their respective games, though.

 

[Rickenslacker]

I feel like you've missed a lot of subtlties about their relationships just through this sentence. What's tragic is not the method of the killing, but why it happens at all.

Sure 9S will go to a new body. Like he always does. Countless of times in fact. But is that truly being revived? Going back to a new life as his previous one is wiped clean from his memory, are we really getting 9S back at all?

No, I get that, but when you're in the role of machine destroyers with quips on the side losing the memory of a mission isn't something I'm gonna be shedding tears over.

Based on what you've said, I think you're more likely to enjoy Nier. The protagonist has a lot more agency in the story, and the party is much more vibrant and thoughtful.

Did you enjoy the interactions between Pod 042 and A2 in route C? Because that kind of back and forth banter is one of Nier's defining traits.

edit: the sidequests are still pretty dour, but they aren't quite as heavyhanded. I think they both fit their respective games, though.

Alright, cool. I enjoyed their exchanges, as well as the novels. I don't really mind the sidequests being what they are, so I don't see that being an issue for me in the original.

 

[Kiriku]

Not to mention 9S being all "huh?!?? machines with feelings?!??? nah... can't be..." to every occurrence.

Yeah, I agree this got a little annoying after a while. I was waiting for him to come to some kind of realization during gameplay, but it was just the same kind of surprised pondering for hours.

 

[Antiwhippy]

Eh I kind of feel like that's the point. They are designed to follow their programming of hating and killing the machines, and even if they recognize that machines aren't exactly like what their programming has made them perceive to be, they can't break out of their preprogrammed perception. It's not that outlandish either seeing that humans are basically the same.

 

[ShockingAlberto]

I actually think Automata was Taro's attempt at subverting expectations by minimizing endings.

Route B clearly sets up expectations for Route C and everyone assumes you're going to play as A2 in a parallel story for the final puzzle pieces. Instead, it's a continuation of the story, and it presents it as if the first two routes were merely prologues for the real game.

 

[EdmondD]

Engels befriends 9S and 2B and asked them to talk to him because he is bored. He kills himself because of his sins. He mention all the androids he killed. A machine not only coming to terms and understanding the concept of sin but choosing to take his own life as penance. That is anything but trite. Not many games deal with themes like that.

Father servo and the race sidequests are more light hearted and humorous. Although they have pretty grim ends.

Eh I kind of feel like that's the point. They are designed to follow their programming of hating and killing the machines, and even if they recognize that machines aren't exactly like what their programming has made them perceive to be, they can't break out of their preprogrammed perception. It's not that outlandish either seeing that humans are basically the same.

Agreed. Androids have been fighting machines for thousands of years. Machines who were designed by aliens for only one purpose which is to kill humans and androids and conquer Earth. Still, they are not completely blood thirsty. When they see machines from Pascal's village literally waving white flags they try to hear them out. Getting to know Pascal they see that machines can be different than what they had alway perceived.

 

[Astrael]

Engels befriends 9S and 2B and asked them to talk to him because he is bored. He kills himself because of his sins. He mention all the androids he killed. A machine not only coming to terms and understanding the concept of sin but choosing to take his own life as penance. That is anything but trite. Not many games deal with themes like that.

Father servo and the race sidequests are more light hearted and humorous. All though they have pretty grim ends.

Father Servo feels that he can't win against the androids unless he fights for real with death on the line, so it's not quite the same as the other machines choosing death, either.

Speed Star is a little more about having nothing left to live for because he decides competition is ugly and pointless but that's all he knows. It's grim and abrupt, but I chalked that up in the same line as the other machines still struggling with sentience (as the other wise machine quest showed).

 

[EdmondD]

Father Servo feels that he can't win against the androids unless he fights for real with death on the line, so it's not quite the same as the other machines choosing death, either.

Speed Star is a little more about having nothing left to live for because he decides competition is ugly and pointless but that's all he knows. It's grim and abrupt, but I chalked that up in the same line as the other machines still struggling with sentience (as the other wise machine quest showed).

Absolutely. Those quests have depth too. They had more of a "gamey" feel to them and can be seen as flippant but not to me. Both those deaths made me sad.

 

[Kiriku]

Eh I kind of feel like that's the point. They are designed to follow their programming of hating and killing the machines, and even if they recognize that machines aren't exactly like what their programming has made them perceive to be, they can't break out of their preprogrammed perception. It's not that outlandish either seeing that humans are basically the same.

At the same time they do become friends with an entire village of machines rather quickly in the game though, even helping them out. But I could see those comments being kind of an "instinct", I guess.

 

[LotusHD]

Father Servo...

 

[Antiwhippy]

At the same time they do become friends with an entire village of machines rather quickly in the game though, even helping them out. But I could see those comments being kind of an "instinct", I guess.

Just because you target out an individual doesn't erase your bias as whole. It's his "I have robot friends".

The tragic thing you can see him slowly getting better but then all hell breaks loose.

 

[KO Traveling Hobo]

Father Servo...

Imagine if route A was swapped with route B, and instead the second route was from 2B's perspective and you hear what she's thinking the whole time.

Instead of patting the pod, swiping the PS4 touchpad makes her comment on how cute 9S is.

 

[Rickenslacker]

I actually think Automata was Taro's attempt at subverting expectations by minimizing endings.

Route B clearly sets up expectations for Route C and everyone assumes you're going to play as A2 in a parallel story for the final puzzle pieces. Instead, it's a continuation of the story, and it presents it as if the first two routes were merely prologues for the real game.

I completely forgot to mention this! Yes. I loved the late title card, it really signaled that things were about to get rolling, and boy do they ever.

Engels befriends 9S and 2B and asked them to talk to him because he is bored. He kills himself because of his sins. He mention all the androids he killed. A machine not only coming to terms and understanding the concept of sin but choosing to take his own life as penance. That is anything but trite. Not many games deal with themes like that.

Father servo and the race sidequests are more light hearted and humorous. Although they have pretty grim ends.

I could take it as pretty poignant and significant if it was executed differently, but the few bits of dialogue exchange with a side-quest that ends in another machine committing suicide just didn't do it for me. Especially with all the establishment of the other machines you encounter.

 

[Squire]

I've been listening to the OST. There have been a number of JRPG's that have had these pop power ballads like FF13's My Hands and I've just never really cared for them. But Weight of the World hits all the right notes and I don't really know why it resonates with me so much more than other similar songs.

End of the Unknown (Fight theme with Adam and Eve in the ship) is absolutely hilarious because it stands out so much from everything else in the game.

Fwiw: "My Hands" is a random song licensed off a top 40 pop album. Has nothing to do with FFXIII, it's just another fumbled attempt by SE to appeal to the west.

FFXIII has two vocal themes that are honestly really good even if the stuff in Automata still blows it out of the water.

 

[Fraxin]

Engels befriends 9S and 2B and asked them to talk to him because he is bored. He kills himself because of his sins. He mention all the androids he killed. A machine not only coming to terms and understanding the concept of sin but choosing to take his own life as penance. That is anything but trite. Not many games deal with themes like that.

Father servo and the race sidequests are more light hearted and humorous. Although they have pretty grim ends.

Father servo and speedstar both created their own purpose. Father being the strongest and speedstar being the fastest. When both of them lost the reason to exist they had two options, either they look or create another reason for them to exist, or commit suicide.

Interestingly, of all the philosopher names that were in there, I realized that Jean Paul (Sartre) was the only one who we didn't know what happened to him. I think that Sartre's philosophy was the most one in concise with the game or Taro's. And the journey he took is maybe the game itself or us gamers who are going on a philosophical journey.

 

[L.O.R.D]

Any one know what's behind the 3 locked doors with the apologetic machine?
Can be opened in the PC version?
or it's just a joke thing?

 

[Hektor]

Any one know what's behind the 3 locked doors with the apologetic machine?
Can be opened in the PC version?

Probably DLC.

Devs are gonna tell you someone soon

 

[Aizo]

Someone commented pages ago saying there really isn't much to theorize, because everything is presented in a fairly straightforward manner as long as you're paying attention, or something to that effect. I disagree, though. I think that there has still been a lot to figure out, and the discussion has helped me recognize potential outcomes. There's actually quite a bit not explicitly stated which feels worth recognizing.

Even if someone feels differently, we have no explicit reasoning for things like the Cult of the Watchers mark on Eve or why he turns black when he reaches the end of his rope. Also, I think it's interesting to think about where the original Emil may be, or what role he might play later, since it's likely that he's still alive.

 

[Voliko]

Based on what you've said, I think you're more likely to enjoy Nier. The protagonist has a lot more agency in the story, and the party is much more vibrant and thoughtful.

Did you enjoy the interactions between Pod 042 and A2 in route C? Because that kind of back and forth banter is one of Nier's defining traits.

edit: the sidequests are still pretty dour, but they aren't quite as heavyhanded. I think they both fit their respective games, though.

The part where pod 042 says unknown twice in rapid succession to A2's questions made me think of Weiss. Cheeky mofo

 

[Antiwhippy]

Someone commented pages ago saying there really isn't much to theorize, because everything is presented in a fairly straightforward manner as long as you're paying attention, or something to that effect. I disagree, though. I think that there has still been a lot to figure out, and the discussion has helped me recognize potential outcomes. There's actually quite a bit not explicitly stated which feels worth recognizing.

Even if someone feels differently, we have no explicit reasoning for things like the Cult of the Watchers mark on Eve or why he turns black when he reaches the end of his rope. Also, I think it's interesting to think about where the original Emil may be, or what role he might play later, since it's likely that he's still alive.

I don't think the tattoo really signifies much other than to give something for the drakenier loreist to have fun with. Might play into future installments though.

 

[Philippo]

I completely forgot about two questions:

-why did 21O speak to 9S like a child in her sidequest? Felt so weird. It reminded me of the way N1 talks in the beginning, so i thought it was it hijacking the communications

-i get the whole become as gods thing, but why did the head of the machine cults in the factory die?

 

[Sera O]

About Eve and the Watchers symbol, there's that weapon story that's like a work journal where some scientist guy is trying to imbue metal alloy with 'magic.' He dies, of course, and the last entry is some other guy picking up his work. It made me wonder if this could have become some vector for the corrupting influence of Caim's world if there is somehow maso-inbued metal out there thousands of years later.

And of course there are lunar tears.

Thinking about this made me recall the storybook about the god from the mountain coming to the machines. I had read this initially as an allegory about consciousness and desire arising in the machines over time, but it could also read as some kind of external influence.

"Free me from this yoke of iron."

 

[Ferrio]

I completely forgot about two questions:

-why did 21O speak to 9S like a child in her sidequest? Felt so weird. It reminded me of the way N1 talks in the beginning, so i thought it was it hijacking the communications

I think it's to imply that 9S has matured past where he normally does since he wasn't reset. But I'm not sure actually. Maybe she had motherly affection toward him?

 

[ShinoguTakeruKoeru]

-i get the whole become as gods thing, but why did the head of the machine cults in the factory die?

I feel like you answered your own question before the ask.

I think the real question is why didn't HE explode? >_>

 

[KO Traveling Hobo]

I completely forgot about two questions:

-why did 21O speak to 9S like a child in her sidequest? Felt so weird. It reminded me of the way N1 talks in the beginning, so i thought it was it hijacking the communications

-i get the whole become as gods thing, but why did the head of the machine cults in the factory die?

She spoke to him like a child at the start of route C because she learns about the concept of "family" in her route B sidequest. It's a combination of wanting to have a family, and also seeing "mother/son" as the relationship most accurate to her feelings for him.

 

[Philippo]

I feel like you answered your own question before the ask.

I think the real question is why didn't HE explode? >_>

I mean, did he suicide? Or was he uploaded somewhere? That's what i don't get.

She spoke to him like a child at the start of route C because she learns about the concept of "family" in her route B sidequest. It's a combination of wanting to have a family, and also seeing "mother/son" as the relationship most accurate to her feelings for him.

Oh yeah, it wasnt in the quest but in Route C, my bad.
Is the dialogue the same if you skip that quest about family?

 

[ShinoguTakeruKoeru]

I mean, did he suicide? Or was he uploaded somewhere? That's what i don't get.

Ahhh.

Definitely seemed like a low-key cessation of existence suicide to me.

I wonder if they were actually connected to a network to "ascend" to after their deaths. That's a funny philosophical question, but also I can't help but feel like the factory was the chosen setting precisely because of the isolation.

 

[KO Traveling Hobo]

Oh yeah, it wasnt in the quest but in Route C, my bad.
Is the dialogue the same if you skip that quest about family?

It happens regardless. I suppose it was a topic that she was researching on her own, and the sidequest is just you helping her out.

 

[Mr. Smiley]

I mean, did he suicide? Or was he uploaded somewhere? That's what i don't get.



Oh yeah, it wasnt in the quest but in Route C, my bad.
Is the dialogue the same if you skip that quest about family?

It is. Which threw me for a loop the first time.

 

[AHA-Lambda]

Ok, I've just finished E now (mopping up extra endings still) and have some questions and thoughts:

-First off, more of an observation, but the story wasn't quite what I expected it to be going in (beyond the obvious that comes with Yoko Taro of course), it was much more centered on theme and character than plot really. I say this as much of the central arc running through the game really doesn't evolve much beyond the inital premise of machines vs androids.
Like Route A and B, don't have much of a deep plot to their central routes I'd say.

-Second, I need time to process it still, but I don't feel like much was resolved from the main story?
Until the end where basically everyone dies, the story felt strangely aimless beyond 9S and A2 wanting to kill everything and here is a big tower.

Anyway, questions:

-Logic virus. How the hell does this work? It seems to come and go as pleased? Why was 9S infected at the end? Why did it infect the bunker? Why did it infect the YoRHa squad at the start of Route C? Why did it infect the other machines at random (like the cultists or Pascal's village)?
It just seemed to come and go, and yet it was introduced more logically (pardon the pun) when 9S was infected in Route A as he was hacking the machines in that case.

-What exactly are the mechanics of how the deeper revelations of Project YoRHa are supposed to work?
If the base is meant to be attacked after so long, is this on a repeating cycle, and if so, how is the YoRHa base repopulated then? Or does this imply that the cycle hinted at in Ending E did indeed keep continuing?
Or has it not actually happened before, and this the first time that the bunker was attacked?

-How many times did 2B kill 9S? Was she aware of this element of her programming?

-How did humanity come to be wiped out?

-How did the machines come to learn of Project YoRHa's deeper meanings? Was this part of it's learnings giving birth to N2?

-Why was Emil hiding inside a machine when he was introduced?

Keep in mind with these questions that I haven't played the first Nier, and understand some passing references to Gestalt etc.