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@@9Wogal3 you really have done yourself a massive disservice by spoiling the entire experience, but I would still strongly recommend you play the game anyway. It will still hit different
An additional thing I like about this game is that as you go it's stripping away "immersion". At the start, even the minimap and death and reloading are diegetic; the whole game is built around making the player able to imagine themselves "as" 2B. She's even conveniently stoic and relatively unemotional, like a semi-blank-slate player character. Then 9S's route starts, and you're getting little diorama scenes with backstory and it's ambiguous if 9S is aware of these or how he's receiving them if he is. Almost as if they're more for the player's benefit. Then in route C, dying isn't diegetic any more, you load if you die like most games. Your original player character is gone, now you switch frequently between playable characters- one of whom as this video notes isn't really introduced until two thirds of the way through the story- and there are cutaways to the two pods talking. In the end, you find out even 2B's stoic act was a lie; after the ending you get Chapter Select and can now zip back and forth in time, and you get at least one document sent from AFTER the ending- Jackass talking about the true nature of the machines. You're about as un-immersed as you can possibly get now. And it's at this point that the game asks you: do you feel for these characters? Despite no longer being able to imagine yourself "as" 2B or 9S, do you want a happy ending for them? Stripping away immersion and asking you to feel empathy instead is a technique I found very interesting, and of course it's bolstered by you receiving messages of support and material help from other players. When it finally reveals that the help which allowed you to prevail came from someone else sacrificing their save file, how could I not do the same? One final thing I like: there are five main characters. A2, 2B, 9S, Pod 042, and Pod 153. At the end, Pod 042 mentions something being born "when the six of us were connected". Who is the sixth person?
@@narashite i have never before had a point so clearly spelled out for me of which i was already subconsciously aware. thank you for connecting the missing pieces and making the game click for me in an entirely different way, bravo.
Holy shit man. I've never played this game, but that part with the little robot trying to carry oil to his brother to help him was some of the most heartbreaking stuff I've ever seen
Every time... every time I revisit Ending E, my mind returns to that first time I experienced it, and I am moved once again to tears. How can I not be? This game is and probably always will be my favorite game of all time because nothing like it - no game, book, movie, or other fictional property - has ever come even close to giving me the emotionally powerful experience that this game did. And I am glad to see one more soul who feels the same way. Though I doubt it, I hope my data was one of the ones that helped one of you reading this. I hope that, even though I don't know you, that my small sacrifice gave you the chance to have that hope. Even though the battle is hard, if you don't fight it, who will? So fight on.
I've read almost every existentialist philosophy book under the sun. All of Nietzsche, a ton of Kierkegaard, Sartre, Camus, and much of Heidegger and Dostoyevsky. Nothing hit me quite so raw as this game in terms of a real treatise about the human condition and our place in this world.
@@meguca201 You're so right, and I think it's exactly because of what Never said in this video: NieR doesn't leave the ideas on the page, it makes you LIVE them, vicariously through the characters, and then in your own real life with Ending E. That... that is what makes this game special.
I love watching these videos and reading comments because it’s so great to see people who feel the same way about this game as I do. I played it for the first time a few months ago and I haven’t been able to stop thinking about it since. It’s the only game to have ever made me tear up at the end, and I don’t tear up easily. I don’t think it’s a stretch to say it’s changed the way I see the world. It definitely isn’t a game for everyone but for those of us that it resonates with, it a truly indescribable experience. Best $20 I’ve ever spent
I don’t think any game will ever top this one for me. I played NieR automata late last year, and it was the perfect time for me. I was in a very depressive episode, felt hopeless, didn’t feel motivated to do anything, and so on. I decided to pick up this game after owning it for so long, and it was the best gaming experience I’ve ever had. The game has flaws, every game does, but my love for this game is strong. The characters, the chemistry between 2B and 9S, the vast arsenal of weaponry you have, the beautiful locations, the fast and satisfying combat, and the damn music. This game is my favorite of all time, and I feel it always will be. I even went through the effort of getting the platinum trophy for it, which I hardly ever do for a game. 80 hours well spent, and I would happily add 80 more when I get this game for my pc :) I suggest this game to anyone, it is a beautiful masterpiece from the brilliant mind of Yoko Taro. You won’t regret it, I assure you
I agree with you as someone who played nier in a similar position as you did this game just means so much to me I don’t think any other game that can make me feel so emotionally invested
Well said. It's an incredible experience only a videogame could provide. Hope your mental health is recovering. Remember tough times don't last, tough people do!
I haven't played this one yet, however, I had a very similar experience with Gears 5, which I never would have expected. It just goes to show that state of mind is a big deal when playing a game.
I love this game! It's my favorite right now. I cry every single time "Weight of the World" starts during that end credit scene. Shit, I started tearing up watching your video of that section starring!
me too I cried during the credit scene during this video even. Weight of the world (kowaretasekainouta) is a hell of a song and that moment is so emotional I loved this game.
Never, this was brilliantly written and edited. You can tell the games themes really resonated with you and you did an incredible job at digging into a number little details that I totally missed. Your passion and dedication to these videos is admirable and I just want to say how much your work is appreciated.
It really hit me how empty 2021 is when Steam released its "Game of the Year" Vote and I only had three games that came out this year (There were 2 more that I was interested in but didn't get but one of the ones I did get was a massive disappointment).
May I ask what those 3 games were (and the one that was a massive disappointment)? I, too, am perplexed by what games to vote for this year lol. This pandemic indeed shook up the games industry for the worse lately.
@@Outplayedqt Pathfinder Wrath of the Righteous loved it. Cyberpunk 2077 which should answer one of your questions and the Cynide and Happiness game. The two games I missed out on (but might get later) are Psychonauts 2 and Encased. I ended up getting Underrail instead of Encased but I might get it later
Yeah, my Steam Awards list was similarly empty; i only had 8. One a friend gave me to play with them on, one a massive rerelease (ME Legendary Edition), one because i love the series (RE Village), and Replicant because i'm a Yoko Taro fan. i find myself going more and more into the indie scene or smaller games to introduce to my friends (i'm doing a playthrough of 9 Hours 9 Persons 9 Doors for my friends on discord). There's just a lack of emotional resonance and depth to games mostly, it feels.
Thank you! Nier: Automata is in my opinion THE game of the decade. Also for the reasons you mentioned but more importantly because N:A cannot be done in any other medium as effectively as in a game. There are VERY few examples of games that NEED to be games. Many would be fine as book, movie or TV series. One other example of a game that could never have been done in any other medium is "Brothers: A Tale of Two Sons". It is a quite short indie game which you NEED a controller to play to experience the full weight and meaning of "the twist". Do yourself a favor and don't spoil it for yourself, because once you know, you rob yourself of its emotional impact. I love N:A not for its graphics, its lovely anime ladies, or its thought provoking story. I think N:A shows how much potential games CAN have if the right people just want to. PS: I sacrificed my gameplay data... just to replay it anyway once again to 100% it... playing it again with the whole story uncovered is fascinating. Not for everyone but it was so worth it for me. PPS: The song during the ending credits stage "Weight of the World" was recorded in many different versions, and when you finally accept help from others the chorus swells with the voices of many different singers and languages; it's beautiful and during that moment brought a very rare tear to my eye.
This! N:A and Brothers are always the games I bring up when discussing the unique value of the medium - at least when talking about story driven singleplayer games and how they actually tell their stories through gameplay. And I think the chorus at the end is sung by the developers. Yoko Taro has always made games with not exactly happy endings and now they are encouraging you to fight them to gain at least a hopeful ending.
@Wall Paint of course they are best engaged with as games but that was not the point. You play Deus Ex for the variety of choices in gameplay, you play Destiny for the looting and shooting and of course these things are bound to the medium. But do these games actually use their gameplay to tell and enhance their stories and characters? I haven't mentioned ME because roleplaying games have their unique storytelling mechanics (like complex dialogue systems, morality and whatever) which are cool but mostly separated from the rest of the gameplay. Immersive sims have their systems to dynamically change tiny parts of the story but they are also restricted. Now think of Spec Ops: The Line. The game makes you DO something and you later realize the horrible consequences of your action. It wasn't a dialogue option you picked or something in a cutscene. You DID it without thinking much about it because it is setup as a typical gameplay section like you have played many times before. And while this is a rather obvious and easy use of gameplay as a storydevice (at least compared with Brothers) it is a plot point that wouldn't hit as hard as it does in a different medium.
Text-based stuff is something Yoko Taro does frequently too. He likes to combine lots of genres together. i mean, hell, he condenses a play to VN-style text in the game. EDIT: Also, Pascal's choice? there's a third option. You can walk away, leaving him with his memories. This could be the chance to grow and learn from them, rather than reset and try to do the same thing over and over, or admit it was a failure and end it.
I was checking your channel daily for weeks to make sure I missed an upload and thought well he probably got burnt out due to the last couple of videos being so dense and coming out on a monthly basis, words cannot describe how happy I am now to see that not only you uploaded but it's about one of my favorite games of all time
If anyone needs a mirror due to the age restriction try here: odysee.com/@NeverKnowsBest:8/nier-automata-a-review-and-analysis:d?r=J2ib53JBXPohGCZpbRcESqcxJgBBFYBX If anyone sees this comment can you like it so it gets towards the top, as I can't change the pinned comment and I don't want to reply to people individually. If anyone wants to know why the video is age restricted, welcome to the club. CZcams do not provide reasons for age restriction and will not give me a reason when I ask. I'm doing all I can to try to get it removed, but it takes time and is probably hopeless anyway.
When the "Weight of the world" play in your video, there is this gush of emotion that i felt when i first completed. Awesome commentary about the game. The game really make me ponder about life purpose and its reason after completing it . I don't think i ever had another game that make me feel this way . The closest i got was from FF9 Vivi story , the existential question that it presented. Life might not have a purpose, its up to us as individual to struggle and create/shape it the way we want. As long as we do not give and not afraid to ask for help , maybe someday we can all reach our happy ending.
Honestly idk why this video was recommended to me. I've finished nier automata 3 years ago and yet I'm glad i was recommended this. This game had such an impact on me especially for ending E when the questions kept popping up every time i failed. And then seeing the message of other people cheering me on and or just lending a hand to a complete stranger just hit me hard. Because... Well during that time i had tried committing suicide 3 times i had depression and it felt like my world had no meaning no purpose no real end. And yet here are other people around the world sending positive messages encouraging me to keep going. To let me know i wasn't alone and that no matter what happens you have to keep going and then the music just.... It truly felt as if the entire world was helping me. That day i cried so hard during the credits my eyes looked like i hadn't blink for hours😅. To this day i hold nier automata near and dear to my heart and I'm planning to get two tattoos one that says glory to mankind and the other it's between two quotes. one is from A2 it goes: I never quite realized... how beautiful this world is. And the other is from pod 042 from ending E which goes: a future is not given to you. It's something you must take for yourself. Thank you for making such an amazing video^^ and yes i am doing much better now although life is a struggle and a challenge. That isn't going to stop from giving it my all.
It is been years since I finished this game (after months of playing this game on and off) and ending E still tear me up like it did the first time. I experienced this masterpiece on a dark time of my life and I will probably won't be who I am today if not because of it, I mean as in, I won't be as calm as I am today when facing difficult stuff. Not saying I am perfect now or anything but man, I had been through some rough time in my life and this game gave me some meaning in life through its messages. I now want to be somebody who bring meaning to other people's life, I now want to be someone who inspire and help others no matter how small it is and this probably won't happened if I didn't randomly picked up this game on a local Gamestop back in late 2017. One more thing, thank you for making this video. After 2020 I kind of forget about everything I promised myself back then (hmm wonder why, not like something depressing or anything happened that year?). Not only this video remind me of myself and what I have been through, it also confirm that I am not the only one who interpret the meaning of "****" as an action of certain... desire... But seriously, good video, thank you.
I spent over 10 hours trying to beat the first mission on the hardest difficulty before I lowered it. I was able to speak the opening cutscene from memory. I used to make jokes like (at least we’re still here 4B!). I got to right before the end and I died again and I said fuck it and lowered the difficulty. The game has amazing depth but the attitude towards the difficulties was super depressing. Great video as always, and I’m glad I’ve waited to buy plates so long!
Nier Automata is probably my favorite game ever made. It never left my memory, I still find myself relaxing to the mysterious yet calming soundtrack, as well as the feelings they make me feel. No experience like this will come again, at least not for a very long time. I think we really need games and stories like this that deals with the existential dread that has morphed into pretty much our modern society's curse. This game makes the player think about maybe topics that have never been presented to them before, yet these are universal feelings that we all feel and needs to be addressed --questioning God and life and its meaning, questioning our purpose here, freedom and what the horrible things we choose to do with our freedom, in example wars. It's for me the ultimate critique of humanity. Love, compassion, hate, anger, sadness. Meaningless wars, dead gods. One of the most tragic story in existence. However, what gets me the most is the ending credits. Among all the despair, this one hopeful note, choosing others over you. This is the core of humanity, or at least I want to believe that it is. It's more close to *I need to believe that it is.* Our current society as we all live in, is very alarming in quite a bit overwhelming aspects. Wherever you go, there are problems in it with rotten broken systems we all feel trapped in that only gets more and more suffocating with time yet you usually have not much other choice but to try your best to survive in it, all the meanwhile asking, is there any reason for this suffering? Is there any answer to all this? If so, what is it? If not, why? And this brings me to another major aspect for my love for this game: Existentialism and the philosophy. There is not many examples I can think of that tackles Existentialism, and definitely not at the level of Nier Automata. We are trapped in a world that makes no sense. "We are left alone, with no purpose. Condemned to be free." Yet there is a thinly veiled beauty in this. We are free to be and to do practically anything. Yet we choose love, compassion, kindness. Some of us of course, do unspeakable acts and terrible, terrible things to each other. Yet I'd like to believe that we have this capability to choose love and compassion over fear and hatred. If I'm free, this is the humanity I freely choose to believe in. The kind spark in your eyes that shines ever more brightly when you do a selfless act. The smile you give to a stranger. I choose to believe you. Thank you for reminding me of this game with this much needed video. I cannot appreciate this game enough, even writing this long paragraph brought tears to my eyes. I hope you have a lovely day.
Thinking about philosophy in other games in ways that they fully embrace those concepts, I can only think of Enderal. Enderal tackles Determinism which I find even more interesting, as gives Existentialism a twist even more desperate. If everything you do is already predetermined, and you don't have free will at all... If even questioning your existence is something you are bounded to do... If killing yourself to declare your freedom is an illusion in itself, and you were going to do that no matter what... If you don't actually really exist (or only exist as a puppet of something else) no matter what you do and think... The despair of being is even better portrayed there. With Existentialism, there is comfort in that we *are* and can make choices, no matter how meaningless those choices can be in the big scale of things. But Determinism just erases your existence, you no longer *are,* and I find it more fascinating because of it. For that reason, even if I think Enderal is an amazing game (calling it just a mod is an insult) I can't really recommend it to everyone. You need to have the right mindset to enjoy a game with that theme, as Determinism is so well embraced that you can say anything you do in the game is a waste of time, on purpose.
Maybe a late reply, but you should also give Disco Elysium a try. No other game discusess and presents political philosphy and human condition in such a way as it does.
I started replaying the game a while ago after my last E ending. There is some late game content I have missed. I just came from ending C and saw that you just released a video on it - perfect timing! :) I think NieR:Automata is outstanding not only as a game but as a piece of art in general. It explores the narrative potential of video games and while doing so delivers a touching story and an amazing take on Existentialist topics. Also, having a machine quote Sartre "Existence precedes essence" made me laugh so hard. Also also, LIttle Sister Machine is the best character ever. Maaan, do I love this game!
My favorite game of all time. Your comment at the end I think is pretty true - the references to philosophy are mostly just that, references (though realizing that you are literally seizing the means of production (Engels' arm) and beating Engels over the head with them is very cute). The true value of the game is in the vast amount of emotional resonance the story generates rather than any particular form of analysis.
@@SigmaWhy for a narrative experience, I recommend you take a look at Pathologic 1 and 2. For exceptional novelty, look at Baba is you and Outer Wilds:)
I was crying when the help emerges for the title battle. Such a strong feeling from a video game. Truly a one of a kind game. Thank you for the video and the memories :)
Wasn't expecting a review on this game...really appreciate it! This game is in my top 5 of all time and for me it was an unique and unforgettable experience...that Ending E was something else entirely that I've never seen before in a game that affected me a lot on an emotional level.
I'm one of those weird people, who unironically enjoyed the original Nier a lot more than Nier automata. The combat was janky and repetitive, but I found the characters, story and atmosphere to be so much more intriguing and interesting. Haven't played the remake yet, been busy with other games (the backlog keeps growing), but will eventually give it a shot.
I can't speak for the original NieR, since I never played it but having played the Remake, I'd say the same. I love Automata but for me a lot of it falls flat emotionally, since I found 9S really annoying. Incidentally I loved A2 from the very beginning, she's still my favorite character in Automata and having found out she most likely inherited Kainé's memories and to a degree personality, I loved her even more after having played the Remake.
The version up is the definitive experience for me. I've played the original aswell, hopefully you haven't been spoiled as to what it adds...though you may have an idea from the translated book. I cried my ass off during the added sections. I couldn't believe it now exists, as it was meant to be. I love this series so much. Drakengard and Nier is incredibly special to me. On a very personal level to.
I like the thematic elements of Automata more but I think Gestalt/Replicant has a better cast of characters and overall narrative. It's hard to pick a favorite over the other, though I'll admit the new ending on the newest Replicant remaster might've just nudged it over on top.
never played the original but replicant was a much better narrative experience. automata's plot did at times just feel like a series of events made to provoke first year philosophical discussions, there wasn't really a central theme tying everything together whereas replicant had yonah, kaine and emil propelling the plot forward
This is why I love video games. I had only played through a portion of NieR and I wish I had kept going. Even through a video, I started to tear up at the end when people started joining you to help. It’s so easy to get wrapped up in life’s meaningless aspects. This video has started out my week with a good perspective on what really matters. Thank you NeiR and thank you NeverKnowsBest.
I know what I'm watching tonight! edit: Great video. I do want to add that 2B's professionalism (highlighted by your clips of her telling 9S to not feel emotions and pledges loyalty to the cause) I think is also her trying to temper 9S's curiosity, as a way to possibly make THIS the time she doesn't have to kill him for overstepping his boundaries. Closely related to the other reasons you mention, but w/ an extra layer of intent behind it.
Like so many other CZcamsrs, when you release content, I know it will take a long time till the next art work, but I am always overly hopeful that next week there will be another. Well done!
Thanks for this video, I recently played through both Replicant and Automata and it helped me through my first semester of college. nice to see a recent video about one of my favorite games!
I literally just looked at your channel yesterday to make sure I hadn't missed a video, and was a bit disappointed to see that I hadn't. I should have waited a day; Nier: Automata is one of my favorite games, and one I constantly recommend whenever I get a chance. I haven't finished watching, but had to stop and comment to say thank you for covering this gem in your inimitable style. This video is great (so far), so now I'm off to finish it.
Wow, this game's story is insane. This is also the best video on the game, as well as a channel with the best video essays. Really great work. BTW this video needs at least a million more views, it's that good.
I have no idea how you managed to pull this off, but your video made me relive the emotional intensity of first (truly) beating the game. Which is something I never though was even possible.
Recently found your channel and I love your reviews. especially this one. This one pulled at the heart strings when going over the whole meaning and take away from the game. excellent!
1:08:10 subtle point here that probably didn't warrant mention, but the machines seem to have also copied their form (at least for the head) from Emil, from the first NieR, who basically was the only being on Earth who fought back against the machines, as innumerable copies of himself, all the same dead-eyed smiling skull sphere. Knowing that actually makes the bit at 1:08:00 where the little ball heads show up on the YoRHa diagram ambiguous as to whether that depicts the machines coming to Earth off the alien ships, or Emil's clones coming from Earth to try to drive them off.
Automata and Umineko are the only pieces of media ever that made me reexamine how I live life and truly touched me on a level that I thought was impossible for anything to resonate with me. It is so crazy that while watching this 90 minute video one could add 90 more minutes of meaningful commentary about certain events, plot threads and themes and still probably end up with am incomplete interpretation of this masterpiece. I hope whatever Yoko Taro is working on next is as good as Automata, but I wouldn't be surprised if it's his magnum opus.
Could you sell Umineko to me? I would look it up, but I'd rather hear from someone who cares for it. I'm always looking for new experiences in the games I play.
@@l-boi8173 it's a bit hard to talk about Umineko without spoiling anything, but I'll do my best. Besides the absolutely amazing and life like characters that you get to meet deeply, the thing that I appreciate about Umineko the most is that you can feel that the author respects the readers. You think you're getting yourself into a mystery VN and you end up experiencing a philosophical thesis on truth and some other themes that I don't want to spoil. It's a really hard sell, but it's meaningful in the same way that ending E of Automata is meaningful, it's a master class in mistery writing and making human characters. Also you get to debate a sexy witch.
I was going to type out a long comment about the video but I just want to say that the intro is pure fire. Its really atmospheric and gets me in the perfect mood.
Every time I see someone talk about "ending E" it feels like I want to experience it but I feel like if I were to actually play the game and see it again I would feel nothing and miss out on this incredible moment (as they say)
Joseph Anderson promised us a Nier: Automata video years ago and still hasn't delivered (as far as I'm aware), and it's the one thing I've been waiting for from him. Turns out I was trusting the wrong person.
@@geoffdb8118 He's still semi-active on Twitter, and I think he's finishing up on that really long Witcher 3 conclusion to his Witcher series. He has like 4 kids with one born last year and I think he spent much of 2021 on a paternity leave of sorts
Great analysis. Thank you for mention the B story was the most difficult one to get through. I will try it again to get all the way to the true ending.
Mr Never, after a careful binge of your elder scrolls series among others i am amazed at how you are able to put out such high quality videos, in rapid fashion and with great insightful commentary. I would love there to be a video (even a short one) detailing how you go through the production of an episode on your channel. P.s. prey 1 video when?
48:41 - 9S most likely didn't get corrupted because he didn't synce his data to the server. This also meant none of the other scanners could run updates, which probably spared the life of that one scanner in the forest kingdom too. I have to admit though, 9S having resistance from being in the machine network is a much more interesting idea though.
I think the philosophers the machines are named after being ironic is very purposeful. It shows how the machines reference and imitate without understanding the original.
Great, a gaming review made me cry. You're a monster. An amazing, poetically beautiful monster. That ending is just ... so moving. I'm hooked, subscribed and now a good chunk of my time will be spent watching your videos. Thanks, I guess. :D (in all seriousness, so good!)
Not including checkpoints in the prolouge is actually pretty cool from a dev stand point.... it makes it so that you understand as soon as you start playing exactly how hard it can be and makes you really think about whether or not you can handle hard mode
I have played automata since release, it is one of if not my favorite game of all time, naturally i have watched many reviews, anaylises and so on, but this might just be the best one. I actually teared up hearing you describe ending E and remembered why i love this game so damn much. Thank you man, really, fantastic video
This game is so good. It's such an experience, as each playthrough peels back the layers, descends into madness and nihilism, and then lifts you up in ending E in a way I have never experienced in any other game. I cannot play or see this ending without crying. It's just so well made and beautiful. Thank you for reviewing this gem.
I never thought a game review could move me so much. I hope you can get the issue with youtube resolved because your work deserves to be promoted by the algorithm.
This is by far your best video. I know I may be biased because this game is awesome. But you truly connected all my thoughts about it in a way not even myself could do it. Keep on and honestly, thanks for video.
This game was the best story I’ve ever consumed in a video game. Great music, fun mechanics, brilliant story twist. Loved this game! Loved this review video. Was very fair and engaging.
the game has its flaws but overall experience is still amazing. when memories of dust, wretched weaponry, alien manifestation or one of the songs of the ancients plays in my player i teleport to a wondrous dreamworld. and even at the begining of this video goosebumps are strong with this one.
Thanks to Displate for sponsoring today’s video! Be sure to check out my profile of top picks on Displate’s website! 1-2 is 26% off and 3+ is 36% off when using my link here: displate.com/Never_Knows_Best/?art=617a93041c8e8
Awesome to see this game getting some attention! May I ask: why deadset on No Nier Replicant review?
This game looks pretty fun, might play it
Rip NeverKnowsBest, befell the same fate as Mr Caption by pissing off Nier Fans
will you do replicant?
"Want to get 50 different posters of 2B? People might judge you for it."
*Looks at collection of Nier art over the years*
I feel called out.
I've seen probably every Automata video under the sun at this point and that's not gonna stop me from watching more of them
Especially this boy's take on it
@@sidrolf same to both of you
So true
Yep, feel this
Facts
Jesus christ man, just watching ending E again in this review made me actually cry. Thank you for doing this.
Never played the game and I nearly cried. Also I regret not playing it now.
Same, man. I was washing the floor, only listening to the video, and I immediately teared up upon hearing it.
@@9Wogal3 you really have done yourself a massive disservice by spoiling the entire experience, but I would still strongly recommend you play the game anyway. It will still hit different
emotionally demolished by ending E, reporting in.
Same here with you. Simply seeing the credit screen and that little ship at the bottom made me cry.
One of the greatest games I've ever played. I was uncontrollably sobbing during the true end credit sequence, very moving experience
An additional thing I like about this game is that as you go it's stripping away "immersion". At the start, even the minimap and death and reloading are diegetic; the whole game is built around making the player able to imagine themselves "as" 2B. She's even conveniently stoic and relatively unemotional, like a semi-blank-slate player character. Then 9S's route starts, and you're getting little diorama scenes with backstory and it's ambiguous if 9S is aware of these or how he's receiving them if he is. Almost as if they're more for the player's benefit. Then in route C, dying isn't diegetic any more, you load if you die like most games. Your original player character is gone, now you switch frequently between playable characters- one of whom as this video notes isn't really introduced until two thirds of the way through the story- and there are cutaways to the two pods talking. In the end, you find out even 2B's stoic act was a lie; after the ending you get Chapter Select and can now zip back and forth in time, and you get at least one document sent from AFTER the ending- Jackass talking about the true nature of the machines. You're about as un-immersed as you can possibly get now. And it's at this point that the game asks you: do you feel for these characters? Despite no longer being able to imagine yourself "as" 2B or 9S, do you want a happy ending for them?
Stripping away immersion and asking you to feel empathy instead is a technique I found very interesting, and of course it's bolstered by you receiving messages of support and material help from other players. When it finally reveals that the help which allowed you to prevail came from someone else sacrificing their save file, how could I not do the same?
One final thing I like: there are five main characters. A2, 2B, 9S, Pod 042, and Pod 153. At the end, Pod 042 mentions something being born "when the six of us were connected". Who is the sixth person?
The sixth person is the player
@@narashite i have never before had a point so clearly spelled out for me of which i was already subconsciously aware. thank you for connecting the missing pieces and making the game click for me in an entirely different way, bravo.
I thought the "six of us" referred to just the Pod variants (A, B, C) for the two playable characters (A2 & 9S).
3 × 2 = 6
I never thought about this! Even after beating the game like 3 times lol. Thank you!
Holy shit man. I've never played this game, but that part with the little robot trying to carry oil to his brother to help him was some of the most heartbreaking stuff I've ever seen
Every time... every time I revisit Ending E, my mind returns to that first time I experienced it, and I am moved once again to tears. How can I not be? This game is and probably always will be my favorite game of all time because nothing like it - no game, book, movie, or other fictional property - has ever come even close to giving me the emotionally powerful experience that this game did. And I am glad to see one more soul who feels the same way. Though I doubt it, I hope my data was one of the ones that helped one of you reading this. I hope that, even though I don't know you, that my small sacrifice gave you the chance to have that hope. Even though the battle is hard, if you don't fight it, who will? So fight on.
I've read almost every existentialist philosophy book under the sun. All of Nietzsche, a ton of Kierkegaard, Sartre, Camus, and much of Heidegger and Dostoyevsky. Nothing hit me quite so raw as this game in terms of a real treatise about the human condition and our place in this world.
@@meguca201 You're so right, and I think it's exactly because of what Never said in this video: NieR doesn't leave the ideas on the page, it makes you LIVE them, vicariously through the characters, and then in your own real life with Ending E. That... that is what makes this game special.
I love watching these videos and reading comments because it’s so great to see people who feel the same way about this game as I do. I played it for the first time a few months ago and I haven’t been able to stop thinking about it since. It’s the only game to have ever made me tear up at the end, and I don’t tear up easily. I don’t think it’s a stretch to say it’s changed the way I see the world. It definitely isn’t a game for everyone but for those of us that it resonates with, it a truly indescribable experience. Best $20 I’ve ever spent
I don’t think any game will ever top this one for me. I played NieR automata late last year, and it was the perfect time for me. I was in a very depressive episode, felt hopeless, didn’t feel motivated to do anything, and so on. I decided to pick up this game after owning it for so long, and it was the best gaming experience I’ve ever had. The game has flaws, every game does, but my love for this game is strong. The characters, the chemistry between 2B and 9S, the vast arsenal of weaponry you have, the beautiful locations, the fast and satisfying combat, and the damn music. This game is my favorite of all time, and I feel it always will be. I even went through the effort of getting the platinum trophy for it, which I hardly ever do for a game. 80 hours well spent, and I would happily add 80 more when I get this game for my pc :) I suggest this game to anyone, it is a beautiful masterpiece from the brilliant mind of Yoko Taro. You won’t regret it, I assure you
I agree with you as someone who played nier in a similar position as you did this game just means so much to me I don’t think any other game that can make me feel so emotionally invested
Well said. It's an incredible experience only a videogame could provide. Hope your mental health is recovering. Remember tough times don't last, tough people do!
I haven't played this one yet, however, I had a very similar experience with Gears 5, which I never would have expected. It just goes to show that state of mind is a big deal when playing a game.
Video games have gotten me through some rough times too, Fren! Good to hear that you are doing better, as well.
I can recommend you final fantasy IX. If you can pass through the old graphics, You will find an story just as beautiful as this one.
I love this game! It's my favorite right now. I cry every single time "Weight of the World" starts during that end credit scene. Shit, I started tearing up watching your video of that section starring!
me too I cried during the credit scene during this video even. Weight of the world (kowaretasekainouta) is a hell of a song and that moment is so emotional I loved this game.
There’s no shortage of hour-long video game analysis on CZcams, but this video is one of the best. You did justice to this wonderful game.
A game very near and dear to my heart. Glad to see it still gets covered like this
OMG it's you! 😊
Never, this was brilliantly written and edited. You can tell the games themes really resonated with you and you did an incredible job at digging into a number little details that I totally missed. Your passion and dedication to these videos is admirable and I just want to say how much your work is appreciated.
It really hit me how empty 2021 is when Steam released its "Game of the Year" Vote and I only had three games that came out this year (There were 2 more that I was interested in but didn't get but one of the ones I did get was a massive disappointment).
May I ask what those 3 games were (and the one that was a massive disappointment)? I, too, am perplexed by what games to vote for this year lol. This pandemic indeed shook up the games industry for the worse lately.
@@Outplayedqt Pathfinder Wrath of the Righteous loved it. Cyberpunk 2077 which should answer one of your questions and the Cynide and Happiness game.
The two games I missed out on (but might get later) are Psychonauts 2 and Encased. I ended up getting Underrail instead of Encased but I might get it later
You might have missed Voice of Cards: the isle dragon roars, 2021 game from Yoko Taro, Drakengard and Nier series creator.
Get nier replicant!!!!!
Yeah, my Steam Awards list was similarly empty; i only had 8. One a friend gave me to play with them on, one a massive rerelease (ME Legendary Edition), one because i love the series (RE Village), and Replicant because i'm a Yoko Taro fan. i find myself going more and more into the indie scene or smaller games to introduce to my friends (i'm doing a playthrough of 9 Hours 9 Persons 9 Doors for my friends on discord). There's just a lack of emotional resonance and depth to games mostly, it feels.
Thank you! Nier: Automata is in my opinion THE game of the decade. Also for the reasons you mentioned but more importantly because N:A cannot be done in any other medium as effectively as in a game. There are VERY few examples of games that NEED to be games. Many would be fine as book, movie or TV series.
One other example of a game that could never have been done in any other medium is "Brothers: A Tale of Two Sons". It is a quite short indie game which you NEED a controller to play to experience the full weight and meaning of "the twist". Do yourself a favor and don't spoil it for yourself, because once you know, you rob yourself of its emotional impact.
I love N:A not for its graphics, its lovely anime ladies, or its thought provoking story. I think N:A shows how much potential games CAN have if the right people just want to.
PS: I sacrificed my gameplay data... just to replay it anyway once again to 100% it... playing it again with the whole story uncovered is fascinating. Not for everyone but it was so worth it for me.
PPS: The song during the ending credits stage "Weight of the World" was recorded in many different versions, and when you finally accept help from others the chorus swells with the voices of many different singers and languages; it's beautiful and during that moment brought a very rare tear to my eye.
This! N:A and Brothers are always the games I bring up when discussing the unique value of the medium - at least when talking about story driven singleplayer games and how they actually tell their stories through gameplay.
And I think the chorus at the end is sung by the developers. Yoko Taro has always made games with not exactly happy endings and now they are encouraging you to fight them to gain at least a hopeful ending.
@Wall Paint of course they are best engaged with as games but that was not the point. You play Deus Ex for the variety of choices in gameplay, you play Destiny for the looting and shooting and of course these things are bound to the medium. But do these games actually use their gameplay to tell and enhance their stories and characters? I haven't mentioned ME because roleplaying games have their unique storytelling mechanics (like complex dialogue systems, morality and whatever) which are cool but mostly separated from the rest of the gameplay.
Immersive sims have their systems to dynamically change tiny parts of the story but they are also restricted.
Now think of Spec Ops: The Line. The game makes you DO something and you later realize the horrible consequences of your action. It wasn't a dialogue option you picked or something in a cutscene. You DID it without thinking much about it because it is setup as a typical gameplay section like you have played many times before. And while this is a rather obvious and easy use of gameplay as a storydevice (at least compared with Brothers) it is a plot point that wouldn't hit as hard as it does in a different medium.
NA's lovely anime ladies are a fantastic bonus tbf
Nah, I don't agree with this. Dark Souls also released at 2010's
Text-based stuff is something Yoko Taro does frequently too. He likes to combine lots of genres together. i mean, hell, he condenses a play to VN-style text in the game.
EDIT: Also, Pascal's choice? there's a third option. You can walk away, leaving him with his memories. This could be the chance to grow and learn from them, rather than reset and try to do the same thing over and over, or admit it was a failure and end it.
I was checking your channel daily for weeks to make sure I missed an upload and thought well he probably got burnt out due to the last couple of videos being so dense and coming out on a monthly basis, words cannot describe how happy I am now to see that not only you uploaded but it's about one of my favorite games of all time
Truly a Masterpiece. People say video games are Art but Nier automata is truly Art in a way that only can be made in video games.
If anyone needs a mirror due to the age restriction try here:
odysee.com/@NeverKnowsBest:8/nier-automata-a-review-and-analysis:d?r=J2ib53JBXPohGCZpbRcESqcxJgBBFYBX
If anyone sees this comment can you like it so it gets towards the top, as I can't change the pinned comment and I don't want to reply to people individually.
If anyone wants to know why the video is age restricted, welcome to the club. CZcams do not provide reasons for age restriction and will not give me a reason when I ask. I'm doing all I can to try to get it removed, but it takes time and is probably hopeless anyway.
When the "Weight of the world" play in your video, there is this gush of emotion that i felt when i first completed. Awesome commentary about the game. The game really make me ponder about life purpose and its reason after completing it . I don't think i ever had another game that make me feel this way . The closest i got was from FF9 Vivi story , the existential question that it presented. Life might not have a purpose, its up to us as individual to struggle and create/shape it the way we want. As long as we do not give and not afraid to ask for help , maybe someday we can all reach our happy ending.
I do be gushin too
Honestly idk why this video was recommended to me. I've finished nier automata 3 years ago and yet I'm glad i was recommended this. This game had such an impact on me especially for ending E when the questions kept popping up every time i failed. And then seeing the message of other people cheering me on and or just lending a hand to a complete stranger just hit me hard. Because... Well during that time i had tried committing suicide 3 times i had depression and it felt like my world had no meaning no purpose no real end. And yet here are other people around the world sending positive messages encouraging me to keep going. To let me know i wasn't alone and that no matter what happens you have to keep going and then the music just.... It truly felt as if the entire world was helping me. That day i cried so hard during the credits my eyes looked like i hadn't blink for hours😅. To this day i hold nier automata near and dear to my heart and I'm planning to get two tattoos one that says glory to mankind and the other it's between two quotes. one is from A2 it goes: I never quite realized... how beautiful this world is. And the other is from pod 042 from ending E which goes: a future is not given to you. It's something you must take for yourself. Thank you for making such an amazing video^^ and yes i am doing much better now although life is a struggle and a challenge. That isn't going to stop from giving it my all.
I am so happy to know that you overcame your depression and kept going! Cheers!! This game is a masterpiece indeed!
It is been years since I finished this game (after months of playing this game on and off) and ending E still tear me up like it did the first time. I experienced this masterpiece on a dark time of my life and I will probably won't be who I am today if not because of it, I mean as in, I won't be as calm as I am today when facing difficult stuff. Not saying I am perfect now or anything but man, I had been through some rough time in my life and this game gave me some meaning in life through its messages. I now want to be somebody who bring meaning to other people's life, I now want to be someone who inspire and help others no matter how small it is and this probably won't happened if I didn't randomly picked up this game on a local Gamestop back in late 2017.
One more thing, thank you for making this video. After 2020 I kind of forget about everything I promised myself back then (hmm wonder why, not like something depressing or anything happened that year?). Not only this video remind me of myself and what I have been through, it also confirm that I am not the only one who interpret the meaning of "****" as an action of certain... desire...
But seriously, good video, thank you.
I spent over 10 hours trying to beat the first mission on the hardest difficulty before I lowered it. I was able to speak the opening cutscene from memory. I used to make jokes like (at least we’re still here 4B!). I got to right before the end and I died again and I said fuck it and lowered the difficulty. The game has amazing depth but the attitude towards the difficulties was super depressing. Great video as always, and I’m glad I’ve waited to buy plates so long!
Nier Automata is probably my favorite game ever made. It never left my memory, I still find myself relaxing to the mysterious yet calming soundtrack, as well as the feelings they make me feel. No experience like this will come again, at least not for a very long time. I think we really need games and stories like this that deals with the existential dread that has morphed into pretty much our modern society's curse. This game makes the player think about maybe topics that have never been presented to them before, yet these are universal feelings that we all feel and needs to be addressed --questioning God and life and its meaning, questioning our purpose here, freedom and what the horrible things we choose to do with our freedom, in example wars. It's for me the ultimate critique of humanity. Love, compassion, hate, anger, sadness. Meaningless wars, dead gods. One of the most tragic story in existence. However, what gets me the most is the ending credits. Among all the despair, this one hopeful note, choosing others over you. This is the core of humanity, or at least I want to believe that it is. It's more close to *I need to believe that it is.*
Our current society as we all live in, is very alarming in quite a bit overwhelming aspects. Wherever you go, there are problems in it with rotten broken systems we all feel trapped in that only gets more and more suffocating with time yet you usually have not much other choice but to try your best to survive in it, all the meanwhile asking, is there any reason for this suffering? Is there any answer to all this? If so, what is it? If not, why? And this brings me to another major aspect for my love for this game: Existentialism and the philosophy. There is not many examples I can think of that tackles Existentialism, and definitely not at the level of Nier Automata.
We are trapped in a world that makes no sense. "We are left alone, with no purpose. Condemned to be free."
Yet there is a thinly veiled beauty in this. We are free to be and to do practically anything. Yet we choose love, compassion, kindness. Some of us of course, do unspeakable acts and terrible, terrible things to each other. Yet I'd like to believe that we have this capability to choose love and compassion over fear and hatred. If I'm free, this is the humanity I freely choose to believe in. The kind spark in your eyes that shines ever more brightly when you do a selfless act. The smile you give to a stranger. I choose to believe you.
Thank you for reminding me of this game with this much needed video. I cannot appreciate this game enough, even writing this long paragraph brought tears to my eyes. I hope you have a lovely day.
Thinking about philosophy in other games in ways that they fully embrace those concepts, I can only think of Enderal.
Enderal tackles Determinism which I find even more interesting, as gives Existentialism a twist even more desperate.
If everything you do is already predetermined, and you don't have free will at all...
If even questioning your existence is something you are bounded to do...
If killing yourself to declare your freedom is an illusion in itself, and you were going to do that no matter what...
If you don't actually really exist (or only exist as a puppet of something else) no matter what you do and think...
The despair of being is even better portrayed there.
With Existentialism, there is comfort in that we *are* and can make choices, no matter how meaningless those choices can be in the big scale of things.
But Determinism just erases your existence, you no longer *are,* and I find it more fascinating because of it.
For that reason, even if I think Enderal is an amazing game (calling it just a mod is an insult) I can't really recommend it to everyone.
You need to have the right mindset to enjoy a game with that theme, as Determinism is so well embraced that you can say anything you do in the game is a waste of time, on purpose.
Maybe a late reply, but you should also give Disco Elysium a try. No other game discusess and presents political philosphy and human condition in such a way as it does.
I started replaying the game a while ago after my last E ending. There is some late game content I have missed. I just came from ending C and saw that you just released a video on it - perfect timing! :)
I think NieR:Automata is outstanding not only as a game but as a piece of art in general. It explores the narrative potential of video games and while doing so delivers a touching story and an amazing take on Existentialist topics. Also, having a machine quote Sartre "Existence precedes essence" made me laugh so hard. Also also, LIttle Sister Machine is the best character ever.
Maaan, do I love this game!
meddl
My favorite game of all time. Your comment at the end I think is pretty true - the references to philosophy are mostly just that, references (though realizing that you are literally seizing the means of production (Engels' arm) and beating Engels over the head with them is very cute). The true value of the game is in the vast amount of emotional resonance the story generates rather than any particular form of analysis.
Yoko Taro actually does critique Engels though, check out SocraTetris' videos on N:A
He critiques all of the philosophers he has in his games
You like it more than disco elysium? interesting.
@@junkoe3808 Disco Elysium is my #2
@@SigmaWhy for a narrative experience, I recommend you take a look at Pathologic 1 and 2. For exceptional novelty, look at Baba is you and Outer Wilds:)
I was crying when the help emerges for the title battle. Such a strong feeling from a video game. Truly a one of a kind game. Thank you for the video and the memories :)
As always, thanks for the fantastic analysis. I hope your channel explodes, im pushing for it
Wasn't expecting a review on this game...really appreciate it!
This game is in my top 5 of all time and for me it was an unique and unforgettable experience...that Ending E was something else entirely that I've never seen before in a game that affected me a lot on an emotional level.
It’s a great day when there is a new NKB video. Fantastic work as always.
OMG so psyched for a new video, haven't even watched it yet but I'm confident it's fire. Thank you.
Always great to hear more people talk about this game, one of my favorites
Now I have to go listen to the whole soundtrack again
Wholeheartedly agree in your comments on difficulty. Amazing video. Thank you for uploading this.
I'm one of those weird people, who unironically enjoyed the original Nier a lot more than Nier automata.
The combat was janky and repetitive, but I found the characters, story and atmosphere to be so much more intriguing and interesting.
Haven't played the remake yet, been busy with other games (the backlog keeps growing), but will eventually give it a shot.
Not the only one)
I can't speak for the original NieR, since I never played it but having played the Remake, I'd say the same. I love Automata but for me a lot of it falls flat emotionally, since I found 9S really annoying. Incidentally I loved A2 from the very beginning, she's still my favorite character in Automata and having found out she most likely inherited Kainé's memories and to a degree personality, I loved her even more after having played the Remake.
The version up is the definitive experience for me. I've played the original aswell, hopefully you haven't been spoiled as to what it adds...though you may have an idea from the translated book. I cried my ass off during the added sections. I couldn't believe it now exists, as it was meant to be. I love this series so much. Drakengard and Nier is incredibly special to me. On a very personal level to.
I like the thematic elements of Automata more but I think Gestalt/Replicant has a better cast of characters and overall narrative. It's hard to pick a favorite over the other, though I'll admit the new ending on the newest Replicant remaster might've just nudged it over on top.
never played the original but replicant was a much better narrative experience. automata's plot did at times just feel like a series of events made to provoke first year philosophical discussions, there wasn't really a central theme tying everything together whereas replicant had yonah, kaine and emil propelling the plot forward
Yesss! Can’t wait to watch this. Love your content man!
This is why I love video games. I had only played through a portion of NieR and I wish I had kept going. Even through a video, I started to tear up at the end when people started joining you to help. It’s so easy to get wrapped up in life’s meaningless aspects. This video has started out my week with a good perspective on what really matters. Thank you NeiR and thank you NeverKnowsBest.
I love your perspective of everything. I've watched a lot of Nier videos but this one is the most professional and emotional for me.
I know what I'm watching tonight!
edit:
Great video. I do want to add that 2B's professionalism (highlighted by your clips of her telling 9S to not feel emotions and pledges loyalty to the cause) I think is also her trying to temper 9S's curiosity, as a way to possibly make THIS the time she doesn't have to kill him for overstepping his boundaries. Closely related to the other reasons you mention, but w/ an extra layer of intent behind it.
Came to your channel from the Elder Scrolls videos and got geeked when I saw you did a Nier video to. Love the content man keep it up!
Yeah boii new NKB vid and that too on one of my favs. Glad you loved it as much as I did
i just want to say i love your channel so much. Great work
Like so many other CZcamsrs, when you release content, I know it will take a long time till the next art work, but I am always overly hopeful that next week there will be another. Well done!
Thanks for this video, I recently played through both Replicant and Automata and it helped me through my first semester of college. nice to see a recent video about one of my favorite games!
I literally just looked at your channel yesterday to make sure I hadn't missed a video, and was a bit disappointed to see that I hadn't. I should have waited a day; Nier: Automata is one of my favorite games, and one I constantly recommend whenever I get a chance. I haven't finished watching, but had to stop and comment to say thank you for covering this gem in your inimitable style. This video is great (so far), so now I'm off to finish it.
Wow, this game's story is insane. This is also the best video on the game, as well as a channel with the best video essays. Really great work. BTW this video needs at least a million more views, it's that good.
Hell yeah man, I love your videos. Glad you made one on one of my favourite games!
exactly what I needed on this cold November Sunday
Now that it's december, how about some thesummerofmark reviews christmas games?
A review for my favourite game ever? Ive been blessed. Cant wait to watch it tommorow
I have no idea how you managed to pull this off, but your video made me relive the emotional intensity of first (truly) beating the game. Which is something I never though was even possible.
Wow the most Pleasant of surprises tonight! Thanks never
This channel is becoming one of my favourites!
Man do I love this game, nice to see you cover it.
Great analysis. Keep Up the good Work 🙂 i allways enjoy your videos. Greeetings from Denmark.
You are by far the best game analyst out there nowadays. I'm so glad I found your channel.
Absolutely superb video, thank you for another tour de force
Truly amazing critique Never! Your best video to date , imho!
I'm very glad you decided to make this video. It's such a weird game, but in all the best ways possible and still hits me in all the right places.
Recently found your channel and I love your reviews. especially this one. This one pulled at the heart strings when going over the whole meaning and take away from the game. excellent!
Beautiful work 🙏
1:08:10 subtle point here that probably didn't warrant mention, but the machines seem to have also copied their form (at least for the head) from Emil, from the first NieR, who basically was the only being on Earth who fought back against the machines, as innumerable copies of himself, all the same dead-eyed smiling skull sphere. Knowing that actually makes the bit at 1:08:00 where the little ball heads show up on the YoRHa diagram ambiguous as to whether that depicts the machines coming to Earth off the alien ships, or Emil's clones coming from Earth to try to drive them off.
Automata and Umineko are the only pieces of media ever that made me reexamine how I live life and truly touched me on a level that I thought was impossible for anything to resonate with me.
It is so crazy that while watching this 90 minute video one could add 90 more minutes of meaningful commentary about certain events, plot threads and themes and still probably end up with am incomplete interpretation of this masterpiece.
I hope whatever Yoko Taro is working on next is as good as Automata, but I wouldn't be surprised if it's his magnum opus.
Could you sell Umineko to me? I would look it up, but I'd rather hear from someone who cares for it. I'm always looking for new experiences in the games I play.
@@l-boi8173 it's a bit hard to talk about Umineko without spoiling anything, but I'll do my best.
Besides the absolutely amazing and life like characters that you get to meet deeply, the thing that I appreciate about Umineko the most is that you can feel that the author respects the readers.
You think you're getting yourself into a mystery VN and you end up experiencing a philosophical thesis on truth and some other themes that I don't want to spoil.
It's a really hard sell, but it's meaningful in the same way that ending E of Automata is meaningful, it's a master class in mistery writing and making human characters.
Also you get to debate a sexy witch.
One of my favorite game ever! The soundtrack just elevates it from a great game to a masterpiece
I love the soundtrack so much
My favourite youtuber surprises me with a video of one of my favourite games - today was a good day
I remember watching my brother play the "brother...please start moving" part and I wanted to cry with how futile the robot's efforts were
This is exactly what my Sunday needed
This is by far the best game I've played in many years, just seeing ending e in this video got me emotional again
I was going to type out a long comment about the video but I just want to say that the intro is pure fire. Its really atmospheric and gets me in the perfect mood.
Every time I see someone talk about "ending E" it feels like I want to experience it but I feel like if I were to actually play the game and see it again I would feel nothing and miss out on this incredible moment (as they say)
You should experience it first hand I promise you will not regret it
@@ih8you794 I'll come back to thank you later on :)
Joseph Anderson promised us a Nier: Automata video years ago and still hasn't delivered (as far as I'm aware), and it's the one thing I've been waiting for from him. Turns out I was trusting the wrong person.
He as been inactive for some time now.. wonder if he's okay
@@geoffdb8118 He's still semi-active on Twitter, and I think he's finishing up on that really long Witcher 3 conclusion to his Witcher series. He has like 4 kids with one born last year and I think he spent much of 2021 on a paternity leave of sorts
@@RariettyC thanks, that's good to hear
Hahahaha I was about to check your patreon to see if there was news on a new video and I refreshed youtube and BAM here it is.
Love this! Thank you so much
Never played this game but have still watched every review and essay on it … why am I like this
Great analysis. Thank you for mention the B story was the most difficult one to get through. I will try it again to get all the way to the true ending.
I only have 42 hours logged on this game. I will remember it until the day I die.
Love this. Thank you
I’m gonna have to replay this again it seems, brilliant review
Outstanding video!
I recently found your channel after the Genshin video, you're now one of my favorite content creators
Mr Never, after a careful binge of your elder scrolls series among others i am amazed at how you are able to put out such high quality videos, in rapid fashion and with great insightful commentary.
I would love there to be a video (even a short one) detailing how you go through the production of an episode on your channel.
P.s. prey 1 video when?
This is a very good review and spot on.
oh man, thanks for covering nier, it was such a gem back in 2017
48:41 - 9S most likely didn't get corrupted because he didn't synce his data to the server. This also meant none of the other scanners could run updates, which probably spared the life of that one scanner in the forest kingdom too. I have to admit though, 9S having resistance from being in the machine network is a much more interesting idea though.
I've been waiting for this.
Thank you. Truly, thank you. I have enjoyed every second of this video. You are a great writer and content creator, and I wish you all the best, dear.
Awesome. Good job getting all this in one video.
I think the philosophers the machines are named after being ironic is very purposeful. It shows how the machines reference and imitate without understanding the original.
Great, a gaming review made me cry. You're a monster. An amazing, poetically beautiful monster. That ending is just ... so moving. I'm hooked, subscribed and now a good chunk of my time will be spent watching your videos. Thanks, I guess. :D (in all seriousness, so good!)
Not including checkpoints in the prolouge is actually pretty cool from a dev stand point.... it makes it so that you understand as soon as you start playing exactly how hard it can be and makes you really think about whether or not you can handle hard mode
Dude you are such an awesome creator.
I have played automata since release, it is one of if not my favorite game of all time, naturally i have watched many reviews, anaylises and so on, but this might just be the best one. I actually teared up hearing you describe ending E and remembered why i love this game so damn much. Thank you man, really, fantastic video
This was perfect timing, I just finished my first blind playthrough last night and can't stop thinking about it now
This game is so good. It's such an experience, as each playthrough peels back the layers, descends into madness and nihilism, and then lifts you up in ending E in a way I have never experienced in any other game. I cannot play or see this ending without crying. It's just so well made and beautiful. Thank you for reviewing this gem.
There are only a select few channels to which I like the video before actually watching it. Yours is one of them
I never thought a game review could move me so much. I hope you can get the issue with youtube resolved because your work deserves to be promoted by the algorithm.
Thanks for the new video, see ya in 6 months
Damn. This is it. This is the one. This is the analysis that encapsulates why this game is so special to me. Thank you so much for your efforts!
This is by far your best video. I know I may be biased because this game is awesome. But you truly connected all my thoughts about it in a way not even myself could do it. Keep on and honestly, thanks for video.
This game was the best story I’ve ever consumed in a video game. Great music, fun mechanics, brilliant story twist. Loved this game! Loved this review video. Was very fair and engaging.
Love your content 👍
the game has its flaws but overall experience is still amazing. when memories of dust, wretched weaponry, alien manifestation or one of the songs of the ancients plays in my player i teleport to a wondrous dreamworld. and even at the begining of this video goosebumps are strong with this one.
Man, that's gonna be a sweet, beautiful and sad ride.
Hope ya had fun.
41:18 hacking needs arcade style temporary power ups, more bullet spread options, and map veriety