Introduction
I’ve always been a giant fan of JRPGs, especially after my father taught me how to play games like Final Fantasy VII back in 2008. And that was because he was anticipating the remake to come out soon due to the PS3’s Tech Demo, and 12 years later and it finally did.
Anyways, I’m not here to talk about myself. I’m here to tell you about Square Enix’s latest remake in a genre they excel at. Nier Replicant Ver.1.22474487139… is a remake of a version that we never received in the West considering that the original was a Japanese exclusive, and Nier: Gestalt being the one we got in America, with the only differences being the familial relationship between the characters.
For some reason, Square Enix thought it’d sell better in the North American market if the characters were father and daughter instead of being brother and sister. I also think it had to do with a lot of people’s dislike of playing pretty boys as shown by the fact that even Metal Gear Solid 2 couldn’t pull it off, with many fans hating the new pretty boy protagonist. They really wanted to play as a gruff and hardened military veteran, and I think that was what probably influenced this decision.
So, if you played it back when you were younger on Xbox and are wondering why there’s a different protagonist, that’s why. Also, the creator of Nier, Yoko Taro, says that Nier Automata was a fluke, so please support the official release if you’re interested after reading this review. We don’t want him selling copies out of the back of his van.
Story
(Spoiler-free, I’ve only finished the First Half of the Game)
The story revolves around you, the nameless protagonist (whom the fanbase commonly calls Nier), and your sibling Yonah. You’re an older brother trying to find a cure for your little sister’s cough. She has something called the black scrawl, and it’s not commonly known how to cure it. Now she’s bedridden due to this disease and you’re the only one who can take care of her.
You’re constantly doing jobs around the town to make sure you can feed yourself and your little sister. You’re always bringing her medicine as a way to fight against the black scrawl while you look for a cure. Sometimes, you get her a book so she isn’t just stuck in bed twiddling her thumbs. She writes journal entries discussing how her day was like and it’s honestly a heartwarming loading screen.
The jobs that you’re doing constantly force you into the great beyond where it’s not safe, and luckily Nier is well-prepared for that. With his trusty sword in hand, he can take on any wild animal or any of the shades. Shades being the enemies you fight that somehow bleed throughout their shadowy amalgamation. Nier constantly gets soaked with blood after doing what needs to be done.
He has no qualms about it, and I don’t necessarily blame him, especially when he knows all they do is kill people without remorse. It just kinda freaks me out that he’s such a nice guy who constantly goes out of his way doing favors for people, and then looks like a blood-soaked murderer during combat.
Eventually, you encounter this floating talking book promising you power, and you take him up on his offer by kneeling before him…until you realize that he’s kinda useless because he can’t remember how to use his magic since he has amnesia, and then he ends up becoming a blood-sucking book that gains power from the shades’ blood. He’s very quippy, very knowledgeable, and not very empathetic, never understanding matters of the heart. He’s very insistent on his name being Grimoire Weiss and he does not like it whenever people abbreviate his name.
You meet more colorful characters as you continue to build the world around you. Whether it be through doing side quests, meeting new companions (with Nier being the only one who can help with their problems), or just by exploring the surrounding areas like your home village or the wolves’ den in the desert.
Combat
This combat system may be a bit plain, but you can definitely switch things up by changing your weapon and the magic you have equipped. It’s up to your preferred playstyle, but I’ve always enjoyed lighter weapons and being able to have long-range attacks with magic.
The combat felt sweeter than Automata, and feels like you’re playing 9S without worrying about hacking. You’re also able to quickly switch to other weapons later in the game. The game has a menu that pauses whenever you want to heal, and that’s honestly something that gives me time to think.
It isn’t challenging at all to play this game, and I’d actually recommend Hard Mode if you’re into games like this and tend to complete side quests like I do. I’ve spent 30 hours on this game to just get to the halfway mark, and there are multiple endings from what I’ve heard.
Visuals
The game is jaw-droppingly gorgeous, with the littlest things being so pretty. Every area in this game, regardless of how ancient and beaten up, is honestly beautiful. It might have to do with the lighting, but my God, the environment is just so nice. Sometimes, I just cinematically point the camera around the environment as Nier walks through the area. This holds true whether you’re in The Port City, the library, your house, or just anywhere you go. The locations are so diverse and nice.
I also forgot to mention that the HUD is almost nonexistent with it being very small, so it’s not bothersome at all. I actually forget it’s there unless it’s during the middle of combat.
The only real thing that has occasionally bothered me is how the characters’ eyes look and how the lip-syncing kinda looks weird at times.
Voice Acting
The performance of most of the characters’ actors were great, with only Young Emil’s lines being delivered kinda weirdly and often feeling kinda empty. Then again, I haven’t really experienced the Second Half of this game.
Cons
I’m not too sure if they fixed this issue already, but I did have problems with the game just sticking to 37 instead of the full amount that I could display. I often had to go to the game over screen to allow the frames to go back to normal. There’s no VSYNC, and I’ve been told that the combat becomes more difficult to deal with the higher your frames are.
You’ve also pretty much explored all of the locations you’ll be going to by the first half of the game, from what I can tell. Side quests tend to become a bit tedious since most of them are fetch quests. Occasionally, characters’ dialogue will get cut short by a couple of seconds at times.
Rating
I’ll be completely honest, I prefer this game’s tone to Nier Automata’s by far. It has a quirky sense of humor; I’ve never seen a book brainwash another book until this game and that could only be done here, then there’s the occasional vulgarity of one of the cast members and it’s just a pretty entertaining ride. There’s nothing quite like it, and I have to say that this is a must-pick for an RPG fan.
The side quests are fun and meaningful, but I just wish there was more to it like the “Old Woman in the Lighthouse Side Quest.” This game also gives off the illusion of choice which is something that’s nice, but it never really comes into play until the end of the game. I love this game more than most things in my life, so thank you Yoko Taro! I give it an 8/10.
Credits
| Program | Founding Writers |
| Author | Apathetic |
| Publisher | MGN |
| Game | Nier Replicant ver. ver122474487139 |