Meran

Let me start things off by saying I LOVED NieR: Automata. It was such a thrilling experience for me, it contained so many things I love about Japanese based stories. It has fun side characters, a solid set of main characters, and an absolutely bonkers story. I’ll try to develop on these things later on, but first, the world! The world of NieR: Automata is set in the year 11945, in a world where humanity has been put onto the edge of extinction from an alien race that brought with them an army of Machines with one motive, Destroy the Enemy. The humans were crushed, and the last remaining humans left earth, and settled on the moon, because why not.Where we play is an undisclosed ruins of a city that’s been long destroyed. We don’t know how long for, but it’s pretty destroyed. We play as Androids, human-like robots created by humans to fight back the Machine forces. The android base of the force YoRHa, a team the humans made to combat the machines, is just in between the moon and earth. It’s refered to the bunker, and has all the Android units, as well as the Operators and the Commander. The map on earth we play on is separated into segments: The City Ruins, which is the centre of the city, where most things take place, The Desert, I huge desert created next to the city as well of on some of the city, The Amusement Park, a big ol’ amusement park run by passive machines, The Forest Zone, a forest run by a kingdom of medieval styled machines, and The Flooded City, and area of the city... that makes the city a coastal one, I guess. The future is wild. Each of these zones have a vast number of side quests and hidden secrets that rewards your exploration. 

Next, the playable characters. You play as 3 androids at different plays through the game. The game has a total of 3 routes (A, B and C) with the 3 androids, as well as 2 extra story endings. Everyone knows who 2B is, she’s used as advertisement of the game, but has no real impact to the true ending of the game. She dies just as the real meat of the game goes on, and she is replaced with an rouge android called A2 (who is a much more well rounded an established character once you unlock some of her backstory elements). 9S is a character who becomes very interesting once the story picks up during route C. Although androids are not suppose to bring emotions to their work, his and 2Bs interactions during the route A and B causes him to fall in love with 2B. I honestly do not think their relationship is forced, as you see what each of them go through together, as a team. The death of 2B makes 9S determined to wipe out every last machine, as well as the person who murdered 2B, A2. What 9S doesn’t know, is that she was infected with a virus that destroys androids, and she asked A2 to kill her, and look after 9S. This creates an interesting dynamic between A2 and 9S, and the last fight of the game, you can chose to be either 9S or A2, and fight to the death. I won’t go into the ending too much as there’s a lot that needs explaining, that I can’t explain. All in all, 2B was there to sell copies, 9S and A2 are the two main characters of this game.

The side characters are interesting as well. Let’s start with the operators assigned to 2B and 9S during their operations on earth. 2B is a serious character who does her job, and does it well. She likes to keep things formal and to the rules. Her operator, 6O, is a lovable goofball. She’s awkward and cute, she talks about her personal life with 2B, how 6O’s crush turned her down and how she was so upset and come to 2B for advise. She hints constantly that she wants to see earth, and see it’s beauty, until 2B decides she’ll be nice and send her over some picture taken by 2B. 6O is too pure and we never learn her fate.. 9S’s operator is the opposite. 21O is much like 2B, and 9S’s is much like 6O. Although 21O is very serious, later in the story we find out her sensitive side, and how she longed for people to call her family. In route C we find out the virus outbreak that caused 2B to turn evil, as well as everyone else, has taken her find, and we’re forced to kill her, as 9S. The fight was very touching and broke my heart a little, as her dying words were “all I wanted was a family...”. NOW LETS TALK ABOUT PASCAL. Pascal is the leader of a village of machines that have broken away from the network that connects the machines, and are now good! Free to think of their own, the village have lived in peace and harmony with androids and the opposing machines. Pascal is a sweet machine who just wants peace in this world of war. When we reach the village for the first time everyone is holding out white flags, offering peace. Pascal puts all his time and effort in educating the villages children, and making sure relations with the androids stay strong. I will not spoil what happens to Pascal and the village as I genuinely think that you need to experience it yourself. It was the first time in a long time that a video game has made me cry. The next and final character is Anemone. She is the leader of the Android resistance that stay on earth permanently. Her back story ties in with A2′s, as they used to be part of a team. Once again, I won’t go too much into it as there’s a lot to cover. She’s cool, but is only really interesting when interacting with A2.

Now, to try and summarise the story that’ll make sense... 2B and 9S are sent on various missions to destroy Goliath-Class machines - major treats to The Android Resistance and YoRHa. Along the way, the encounter a human-like machine, created in front of them named Adam. They defeat Adam, and from the body of Adam, comes Eve! See the reference? These two become the antagonist for route A/B. They reveal later that the alien race that the androids have been trying to find and destroy have been dead for hundreds of years, killed by the machines. When 2B and 9S make their way into the Forest Zone, they storm the castle to fight the king of these machine knights, only to be greeted with a Machine Baby, in a cot. A2, out of nowhere, comes in and kills the baby king, before fighting 2B and 9S. She leaves, 2B and 9S bested. Who was that mysterious android? Fast forward, past another Goliath-Class machine, 9S has been sent rocketing to half way across the map due to the fight and 2B must find him. She finds a mysterious elevator that takes her to a place named the Copied City. Here, we find Adam, with 9S’s body on a make shift crucifix, and 2B must kill Adam to save him. RIP Adam, 9S is save, woohoo. Except Eve is pissed, like super pissed. He loved his brother and only saw revenge as an option. Fast Forward again, and we’re at the fight with Eve. Mustering all the power he has, he beats 2B and 9S to a pulp, but 9S, using his hacking ability (that I never explained he could do, sorry), hacked into Eve, and destroyed him. Bur doing so exposed him to the machine network, and he was infected with the virus. Much to 2B’s misfortune, she kills 9S, there and then. This is where I have a problem with the story. Because he was connected to the machine network, he could project himself into any of the other machine life forms, why? No clue. But he’s find now, and not infected! Wohoo! But oh boy, that was only half the story. Route C is when the madness starts, the entire bunker is infected with this virus, 2B and 9S have to fight their fellow androids to escape the Bunker, and when they land back to earth, the machines are back, and stronger than before. 2B is then infected by the virus, and finds a place to kill herself. She’s greeted by A2, and A2 agrees to kill her. But 9S sees A2 kill 2B, and thinks A2 killed her for no reason....... and that’s where I’ll leave it. I will not be able to do route C’s story justice by trying to explain what was going through Yoko Taro’s head. It get’s mind fucky, and it’s amazing.

Endings. You know how I said there were 3 routes and 2 extra endings (making that 5 story endings). Well there are 26 ‘endings’ to the game. All the other endings are silly and fun way the game could have ended. For example: What would happen if an android ate a fish? They die, horribly. That’s an ending. What happens if instead of helping 9S when he was captured by Adam, you just walked away? That’s an ending. Killed everyone in Pascals Village? Ending. Self destruct in the Bunker? Ending. There are so many fun way to end the game. It’s a nice touch.