• Hey, guest user. Hope you're enjoying NeoGAF! Have you considered registering for an account? Come join us and add your take to the daily discourse.

NieR: Automata |OT| "I wouldn't expect too much from this game if I were you."

Philtastic

Member
As excited as I am for the DLC, I'm going to wait on it because a) it seems rather expensive for the amount of content and b) I'm still waiting for them to patch the very obvious issues with the game that have mostly been already mitigated by 3rd party mods. It's been over a month since the game released on PC with no signs of a patch coming any time soon. I won't reward them by buying any DLC until the base game has been fixed.
 

MMarston

Was getting caught part of your plan?
Been playing this game for several hours.

Some impressions:
1.) Yoooooo this soundtrack tho -- haven't heard anything this fresh in a long time.
2.) These objective markers are going to be the death of me, but I guess that's my fault for agreeing to every sidequest under the sun.
3.) I totally need tips on how to wisely upgrade my shit.
4.) I'm digging the world, especially after getting that Clemps retrospective down my throat.
 

Antiwhippy

the holder of the trombone
Been playing this game for several hours.

Some impressions:
1.) Yoooooo this soundtrack tho -- haven't heard anything this fresh in a long time.
2.) These objective markers are going to be the death of me, but I guess that's my fault for agreeing to every sidequest under the sun.
3.) I totally need tips on how to wisely upgrade my shit.
4.) I'm digging the world, especially after getting that Clemps retrospective down my throat.

3) Overlclock, heal chips, that chip that slows down time when you dodge projectile but I can't remember the name, auto-pick up items for QoL improvements.
 

LotusHD

Banned
Been playing this game for several hours.

Some impressions:
1.) Yoooooo this soundtrack tho -- haven't heard anything this fresh in a long time.
2.) These objective markers are going to be the death of me, but I guess that's my fault for agreeing to every sidequest under the sun.
3.) I totally need tips on how to wisely upgrade my shit.
4.) I'm digging the world, especially after getting that Clemps retrospective down my throat.

Regarding 3, well if it's your weapons, just upgrade what you actually intend on using, make note of which weapons has more damage of course, as well as which ones have a higher combo string count.

If it's plug-in chips, good shit includes Offensive/Deadly Heal, Weapon Attack chips (Good ones, otherwise kind of unnecessary tbh), Auto-Heal, Overclock, Shockwave, Auto Pick-up, etc. are great chips. But generally speaking, you of course want to go for chips that use up the least amount of space. Fusing chips can also help with that.
 
Don't worry about it. Flare is making a figure of her that's going to be bigger and much better quality.
I prefer the Black Box one with sword in a hand or is that Flare motive not final?

I'm the kinda guy who tends to go for the original VA if possible, just out of sheer principle, but this is one of those games were I changed back to english pretty fast. People who are on the fence about this decision should know, this game has tons of important dialogue during gameplay, both combat and exploration, so unless you're completly fluent in japanese it gets a bit difficult. Even more so considering the english subs are a bit out of sync with the japanes audio at times.
The out of sync subs are weird since they're fine in CG cutscenes. Doesn't that mean that they're also out of sync when using the english voices? It's not like there is different lip syncing.
 
The out of sync subs are weird since they're fine in CG cutscenes. Doesn't that mean that they're also out of sync when using the english voices? It's not like there is different lip syncing.

Maybe? I didn't really pay much attention to the subs after switching to english.

Though I guess when you get dialogue during gameplay the timing as well as the length of individual lines in comparison to the original VO isn't that important, so maybe that's why.
 

IbukiLordSA

Member
Sorry if it's obvious, but the DLC description says I need to complete new subquests to access the outfits. So, do I need to complete the enemy coliseums? Are they tough if I'm only level 42 (I'm just about to wrap up
Ending B
)?

Late reply, you probably figured it out already but you access the coliseums at those 3 elevators that had a suicidal robot by them which is now replaced by an Android. They are in the Flooded City, Desert and behind the waterfall in the forest, this one can only be accessed by 9S.

At level 42 you will have a hard time. There are multiple challenges think it was E to S rank, E to A is easy but S rank is level 80 and one of the enemies is 85, at level 60 I was 1 shot by them and they take very little damage so level 42 will be tough, long and boring :)
 
So I just finished route C, quick route D question:

Without getting too spoilery...to get route D, I'm guessing I select chapter 17 and choose 9S instead of A2...? (yes/no?)
 

tjlee2

Neo Member
Finished C/D, will do E today.
Should have cleared E yesterday but I was stubborn and tried to clear bullet hell credit and failed the part after square enix god knows how many times. I will just get the assist today to finish it.

For quests, while the game's quests were mostly fetch related, I found them to be quite enjoyable because of the background details and narrative that they added. Xenoblade was the same, in that it had (even more ridiculous number of) fetch quests, but it was generally not tedious as it adds to the setting, story, as well as the characters (not counting the standard fetch per hub). I was, however, let down by the information provided by most old world records, which I'm sure was on purpose, but still.

For combat, I think the game was well designed around chaotic large battles, but it was much weaker in the 1v1 showdown department. This is mostly due to each unit having a very limited moveset, and that extends to even bosses. (Route A)
The only boss that has a more varied moveset was Amusement Park boss, but even that is on a particular pattern.
. The game, however, when treated not as strictly an action game, does shine with it's genre-shifting gameplay. Other than some clunkiness with perspective shifting when moving between certain areas, the way the different types of gameplay was used together made for a very unique and fun experience.

For story, (Ending C/D)
the parts that I enjoyed the most were the final segments of B, the beginning of C, and the latter half of C. I felt the pacing in these areas were much better than others. Above, I commented that side quests didn't suffer from fetch questing due to narrative and information that they provided. However, I feel that parts of the main story that was being moved forward by fetch objectives did make the pace suffer. It created a stagnant feeling for me for middle parts of route A/B.

Music was great. I thought there were a few instances where it didn't fit early in the game, but middle to end game it was almost always on point.

(Ending C/D)
I don't know how much additional revelation there would be with E, but I doubt there will be very much. Some important pieces of information seems to still be missing (Thankfully, having played souls series, I learned that some ambiguity presents its own benefits) but overall the narrative is a very interesting one, and the scale down of stakes is refreshing. It added a more personal attachment (for both player and characters) to the end game, instead of the usual "save the world" or some other equivalent.

The final stage sequences were extremely well done. The presentation with switching between two characters fighting the final machine bosses, as well as the interaction and final choice between two playable characters for the final battle, were amazingly executed to create a very memorable final segment (The only thing that didn't resonate with me was the revelation that 2B was a type E. I felt that it was kind of a stretch given the situation in which 9S had to die in the two instances that were presented in the game). I personally favor strong finishes, as it often will weigh more in determining if the journey was worth it, and in this case I think it did that and then some.

I'm hoping that I may have missed some details that would fill some questions that I still have regarding the background of the story. Maybe that information will be available in Spoiler thread. Mostly, if I can get some clarifications for certain motivations and triggers for certain events, I will be satisfied. (Ending C/D)
Again, I'm extremely happy that the story took a turn for a resolution on a more personal level. It's something that's not too common in the gaming medium, and this one did it better than most because, in part, it was willing to off the main character well before the end game, among other things (In most other games, 2B would have definitely returned for the finale).
 

Hektor

Member
Those things look hideous, how are they going for $500+?

They are extremely detailed and come with a lot of customization options, like high end nendoroids.

For a lot of them you literally have to win in a drawing in order to buy them, which makes some stupidly expansive due to collectors.

So without spoilers, how long is the game once you've started Route C?

Less than A more than B, i'd say around 10 hours
 

Dartastic

Member
They are extremely detailed and come with a lot of customization options, like high end nendoroids.

For a lot of them you literally have to win in a drawing in order to buy them, which makes some stupidly expansive due to collectors.

Less than A more than B, i'd say around 10 hours
Thanks! Also, a couple other questions because it's just stuff I haven't figured out. Where do I go to get my weapons higher than level 3, and I saw something about synthesizing chips to make them take up less space or something? What's the deal with that?

I feel like I'm missing out on a ton of upgrade stuff... I only have one pod currently, and he only has one thing equipped, which is usually the laser or the AOE slash thing.
 

Hektor

Member
Thanks! Also, a couple other questions because it's just stuff I haven't figured out. Where do I go to get my weapons higher than level 3, and I saw something about synthesizing chips to make them take up less space or something? What's the deal with that?

Regarding your first question:

Go to the castle in the forest. Right before the throne room (Where you fought A2 in [A]) there's a bridge you had to jump over. Jump down through the hole and land on the left eldge underneath and pull a hard to see box out of the shadows

Second:

You can fuse chips at the resistance camp at one of the shops near to the "hospital" in the camp.

Combining two chips of the same level gives you a chip of the next higher level. In order to get the best chips possible that consume the least amount of space, you need to fuse two chips of the same level that have a star next to their name. That'll give you a chip of the next higher level which too will have a star to its name, those are the best.


I feel like I'm missing out on a ton of upgrade stuff... I only have one pod currently, and he only has one thing equipped, which is usually the laser or the AOE slash thing.

Upgrading the pods is badly done, even when you finish the game with all sidequests and the DLC you'll probably still have them all at level 1.

If you want to know where to find the other two

One you get by fishing in the flooded city (Anyhwere, just gotta do it often enough), the other one is in the desert, you gotta enter the big, empty desert and then go northwest from the entrance until you can hear a noisy beeping. Then you only gotta follow that sounds
 

Ruff

Member
noisy beeping


About that, That noise must be high pitched as hell because I was literally deaf to it until the gf asked me what that terrible racket was. The one in the amusement park is out of my range of hearing too. I had no idea there were sounds like that I couldn't hear.
 
Combining two chips of the same level gives you a chip of the next higher level. In order to get the best chips possible that consume the least amount of space, you need to fuse two chips of the same level that have a star next to their name. That'll give you a chip of the next higher level which too will have a star to its name, those are the best.

If you really want to optimize:

To make a +1, +2, or +4 diamond chip you only need one diamond chip and a non-diamond chip with the lowest possible equip cost. For example, +0 diamond chip (equip cost 4) fused with +0 non-diamond chip (equip cost 5) = +1 diamond chip (equip cost 5).

To make a +3, +5, or +6 diamond chip you must have two diamond chips. Just a quirk of math and averages.
 

MMarston

Was getting caught part of your plan?
Okay so I just finished Ending A after about 10-12 hours.

Out of curiosity, how long does it take to approximately get to E.
 
I prefer the Black Box one with sword in a hand or is that Flare motive not final?

Can't say for sure. But the Black Box figure is about 6" tall, whereas this one will be significantly taller. Also, 9S and A2 are on the way as well.

BadWolfVindici1492942705.jpeg
 

Zephyx

Member
I recently got a copy of the game for PS4 and I'm planning to start it once I finish Persona 5. This is my first time playing the franchise and I have some questions:

1) Does R1 DLC work on a R3 copy of the game? Do I need any DLC to get the complete experience (i.e., a season pass)?
2) How long would it take to finish all routes?
3) Do I need to know the backstory of the previous games to fully understand the story?

Thanks.
 
I recently got a copy of the game for PS4 and I'm planning to start it once I finish Persona 5. This is my first time playing the franchise and I have some questions:

1) Does R1 DLC work on a R3 copy of the game? Do I need any DLC to get the complete experience (i.e., a season pass)?

DLC is always region locked, but no, you don't really need the DLC to get a complete experience.

2) How long would it take to finish all routes?

30 - 50 hours

3) Do I need to know the backstory of the previous games to fully understand the story?

Well, for a majority of the game it seems like you don't, but later on the game is throwing more and more references to the first Nier at you as well as direct story connections and
reappearing characters from the first game (Even though they're kinda different.)
so I dunno. I'll say in it's broad strokes the main plot of Automata is more of it's own thing, at least.
 
I switched to hard mode right before the endgame of ending B, because I was too overleveled. It actually wasn't bad!

...Now I need to switch back immediately in route C because I just died five times in the opening.

Also, times like this owning the soundtrack really pays off... because I accidentally ended the credits at the good part of the song.

Also, the pile of corpses in front of the first crusher in the factory has only grown bigger since I did route A.
 

Caelestis

Member
Kinda annoyed by the DLC. After spending forever to finish first arena I get killed on last 10% of last mob. Sure I can go level up, but why would I want to do that to get costumes that I won't use anymore since everything else is done and leveling would be done too now. Should have made them more accessible for that price.
 
Get that damage up (equip your best chips) and hit the rabbit enough to trigger it I guess.

Thanks for the tip. I set myself up with one pure Melee and Ranged Damage build for waking the rabbit up, then switched to another one that was all EXP buffs to actually fight him, and I went from Lv 63 to 99 in like twenty minutes.

(By the way, I want to mention how much I love this game's RPG mechanics. The original Nier was more of a 3D Zelda-like with a few RPG mechanics here and there, but this game really lets you customise your character in meaningful ways. Fitting the Plug-In Chips into the limited space you have, fusing good ones together to try and get the most efficient build you can, and then being able to walk around with three hot-swappable builds on you at any time; I really liked it a lot. And being given the option to remove the game's HUD to give yourself more space for upgrades? Master stroke. Brilliant. Beautiful.)

And, after like three hours of farming upgrade materials and fast-travelling/reloading saves to try and get the right version of Emil's store (bruh), I've got my Automata Platinum. Absolutely wonderful game overall, even if I'm not quite on board with everything about the story just yet. I fully intend to do another full playthrough at some point, and I'll probably buy the DLC for funsies, and I'll be listening to the soundtrack for years to come, but right now there's a big Persona-5-shaped shadow looming over me. Hopefully the game's success will lead to another Square/Yoko/Platinum collaboration.
 
Is there really no way to turn off subtitles? I just started playing the game a few minutes ago and they are super annoying in cutscenes. They seem to be slightly delayed so they don't start until a couple of words have already been said by the character and it is distracting. I heard there was something about a chip I could remove? Is that true?
 
Is there really no way to turn off subtitles? I just started playing the game a few minutes ago and they are super annoying in cutscenes. They seem to be slightly delayed so they don't start until a couple of words have already been said by the character and it is distracting. I heard there was something about a chip I could remove? Is that true?
Are you using english or japanese voices?
 

Menome

Member
I finished it all in 33 hours, but I spent quite a bit of time in B exploring sidequests.

Took me 30 hours overall with a fair amount of side quests.

I'm nearing the end of Route C with nearly 60hrs on the clock.

Just want to say: Fuck the
hacking in the Soul Box
. Being rather rubbish at those sections, I was damn near ready to throw my controller at the screen after an hour of failing repeatedly on one of them.
 

Dartastic

Member
I'm nearing the end of Route C with nearly 60hrs on the clock.

Just want to say: Fuck the
hacking in the Soul Box
. Being rather rubbish at those sections, I was damn near ready to throw my controller at the screen after an hour of failing repeatedly on one of them.
I JUST DID THAT ONE. HOLY SHIT SOME OF THAT WAS SO FUCKING HARD. I died at the boss at the end too, making me have to DO IT ALL OVER AGAIN. DFLALJDFASKDFASA
 

LotusHD

Banned
(By the way, I want to mention how much I love this game's RPG mechanics. The original Nier was more of a 3D Zelda-like with a few RPG mechanics here and there, but this game really lets you customise your character in meaningful ways. Fitting the Plug-In Chips into the limited space you have, fusing good ones together to try and get the most efficient build you can, and then being able to walk around with three hot-swappable builds on you at any time; I really liked it a lot. And being given the option to remove the game's HUD to give yourself more space for upgrades? Master stroke. Brilliant. Beautiful.)

Bruh, I played like a fool in my first playthrough. Barely made use of stuff like the various pod programs and fusing chips together. Not that it really mattered since the game eventually gets easy after awhile, but damn, I just was not playing to my full potential lol

Same for the different loadouts, never really bothered with it much. Now Type A is my all-purpose one, Type B is my one for maximum movement speed, and Type C is for miscellaneous stuff like "All attack chips"

I'm nearing the end of Route C with nearly 60hrs on the clock.

Just want to say: Fuck the
hacking in the Soul Box
. Being rather rubbish at those sections, I was damn near ready to throw my controller at the screen after an hour of failing repeatedly on one of them.

Jesus, I have never heard of someone taking an hour to get through
a hacking section lol
 

Qurupeke

Member
I have to say, I expected more out of the DLC for its price and I'm quite disappointed. I don't want to sound hyperbolic, but I'd really prefer if they had just released the NieR costumes and the other cosmetics as standalones.

The Colosseums had some cool ideas on them, each one with its own theme, but you can't exactly enjoy them as it's supposed to be when you're over-leveled for the majority of the fights and when there's actually a challenge it's because the enemies can one shot you and you just deal damage while evading. The special levels seem to be more of a real challenge, but I don't think I'm up for that, not to mention that their rewards are kind of bad.

The dream was really cool and a nice surprise.
Until I realized its essentially part of the cross promotion and a big ad. I felt somewhat deceived. Seems like the amazarashi promotion is essentially why the DLC is expensive too...
The CEO fight was also cool, but they had spoiled pretty much the entirety of it, not to mention that on Lvl. 99 it was a cakewalk.

At least I can now use Kaine 2B with pink hair, I guess???
 

MMarston

Was getting caught part of your plan?
Just finished Route B. Gonna take a breather for the day before starting C.

Further impressions
- Y'know, call me crazy, but this definitely the best modern JRPG I've played since 2010. Kinda feel like an ass for skipping out on the previous game considering how much crazy went on with that game based on the Clemps analysis.

- Speaking of which
oooh, Nier 1 lore looks like it's about to make a comeback in the later sections.

- I thought I would hate the shit out of the hacking segments (and at first, I was) but turns out I enjoyed them.

- Can't get enough of these Ikaruga bullet hell sections though.

- Question: I'm guessing I'm gonna be playing as
...A2...
next. Any pointers?
 
This game has been on my radar or a while now. Finally picked it up today on sale.

Any tips for a newcomer to this series?

The style and look of this game along with all the music praise finally made me pull the trigger
 

Gator86

Member
When does the game get good? I loved the demo, but I've found the full game to be kind of a drag. Just lots of open, empty areas. Nothing on the story so far either. I'm about 4 hours in
going through the quests related to Pascal Village.
Is it just not going to click or does it ramp up soon?
 
Top Bottom