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English voice acting is incredible across the board (I did download the Japanese version but chose to go with the dub over sub), with major props going to Kira Buckland and Kyle McCarley as 2B and 9S, who deliver many heavy lines well and believably. The entire cast even down to side characters, do an excellent job at sucking you into and believing in the world around you. Nier was also known for its exceptional cast and the same is definitely true here. Sound effects are all top quality too, with sword swings and blast fire sounding exactly how it should. Sound is expectly a complete high point here, with a beautiful, memorable score, excellent voice acting and great sound design.
Production values and design this time around are of course high above previous entries. Menu’s are clean and simple to navigate and the game controls perfectly. Platinum gives the player numerous control options to pick from, and the game thankfully makes keeping track of side quests far easier than in the original. Cut scenes look incredible throughout, navigation is made easier than before and everything just comes together to make Nier Automata a completely engrossing and enjoyable experience all around. There’s very little to criticize here because it works so well, while enemy variety and a few frame rate drops in some of the games crazier moments are present, mentioning them feels like nitpicking.
Automata had me glued to my console over the 40 hours it took for me to see it through its 5 endings and I’ve been thinking about the experience ever since. Even as I write this review I’m eager to go back and finish all the side quests and secret joke endings (one for each letter of the alphabet). As someone who considers Nier and to a letter degree the Drakengard games, misjudged pieces of art (at least in story telling) It feels incredible to have a game be just as beautiful and twisted as the previous entries while also being a truly incredible game. Yoko Taro’s games are ones I love in spite of their flaws, with Automata there is no compromise, it’s just a phenomenal piece of work.
Nier Automata is something truly special. A testament to what can happen when a director with truly unique and important vision is finally given the team and budget to make something new. As with previous entries, Automata deconstructs and questions the very actions we take in video games but its sights go even further than that. Diving into the ideas of consciousness and what it means to be alive. Yoko Taro understands the immense potential video games have as an art form and as with previous entries is a story that can only exist as video game. We’re only three months into 2017 but you can be assured that Automata will be one of the most unique experiences you have this year.
If you have any love for games that dare to be different and story’s that demand your attention, I cannot recommend Nier Automata enough and thanks to Platinum games I can say the game is a blast to play throughout. Automata is a look into what games can be when they harness the power of their medium and will likely be one of the most important games you play this year.
Amazing article, congrats God bless you!
I knew it when I first saw it. This game is goona be special.
Great review!