NieR: Replicant is the Greatest Flawed Gem in Gaming

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  • Опубліковано 29 бер 2024
  • I've never encountered a game where most of its elements reach utter perfection, only to be let down by somewhat unrefined gameplay.
    Extra footage borrowed from Shirrako (mostly footage from the first hour and a half of the game)
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    #nier #nierreplicant #nierautomata
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КОМЕНТАРІ • 338

  • @420Birkin
    @420Birkin 2 місяці тому +252

    Small correction: Emil was never a replicant. He was experimented on as a human during the early days of the WCS and was subsequently made immortal. His purpose was to keep his sister Halua in check with the petrification power in case she went berserk.
    Love this game! Attended the concert in Paris and boy was it something

    • @jokerdony
      @jokerdony 2 місяці тому +30

      Yeah, funnily enough, Emil is the last human alive even if he doesn't look like one.

    • @splairs
      @splairs 2 місяці тому +15

      @@jokerdony that's the irony of it. the only "monster" looking character is the only real human :C

    • @baziworld
      @baziworld 2 місяці тому +3

      NieR Gestalt was my second game in yokoverse for me, until this day, nier having one of greatest story for me...definitely first time experience is most shocking moment in my video game for me, even more surprising thant nier automata...although i cherish drakengard 3 characters and lore, nier was a story which truly broke me, with realization of story.

    • @newlandpencilnut4754
      @newlandpencilnut4754 Місяць тому +1

      @@splairs >all of the gestalts

  • @Aranelyn
    @Aranelyn 2 місяці тому +305

    SPOILER
    Max, small correction, you missed the point of the repetitive quests. If you read the short novels about Nier Replicant, which are canon and provide more info about the characters, you realize that Nier life has being always an endless chore. Everything he did, he did it for Iona, trying to get the means to sustain himself and his sister. Devola and Popola also play a big role in this, as they are the ones giving him all the tasks. Now, if you have played Nier Replicant and Automata til the end, you know that they had a task to keep Nier replicant in check in order for him to be ready for the real Nier to go back on his body. Hence the long, super tedious quests that even Grimoire Weiss calls out for being useless, are Devola and Popola attempt to keep Nier busy and distract him from the Shadowlord. Again, Yoko Taro purposely choose a poor design choice, to communicate something.
    Amazing video as always, tho!

    • @diafenix
      @diafenix 2 місяці тому +26

      Wow, nice catch.
      You don't play Yoko Taro games... Yoko Taro games play you.

    • @SaltedMallows
      @SaltedMallows 2 місяці тому +15

      c o p e

    • @HorribleNimbo
      @HorribleNimbo 2 місяці тому +4

      @@SaltedMallowslmao

    • @theoriginallurkalot
      @theoriginallurkalot Місяць тому +26

      I was goin to make the same point, but I would also add that the game trolls you as well, so as you do these tedious fetch quests you get to see snippets of Yonah's diary, and all she wants it to spend time with her Brother/Dad, she misses him and wishes to see the things he sees, to have him at her birthday, to cook him a meal... it breaks my heart every time, you are laterally wasting your time fetching tulip bulbs and the person most dear to you is sick and lonely. This is all by design and to subvert the RPG format. DAMN YOU YOKO TARO!

    • @giuseppebiundo6356
      @giuseppebiundo6356 Місяць тому +4

      Not to mention the main character selling his body for the sake of his sister.
      ...
      Now that I think about it, is this supposed to be a metaphor for the interactions between video game characters and the players?

  • @giuseppebiundo6356
    @giuseppebiundo6356 Місяць тому +61

    Humans, Replicants and Shades, Heartless and Nobodies...
    What was going on in Japan in the 2000's and 2010's that this concept of separating bodies, spirits, and souls to kill each other had such a grip on video game pop culture?

    • @kylespevak6781
      @kylespevak6781 Місяць тому +4

      It's a very common trope in Japanese fiction

  • @AngraMainiiu
    @AngraMainiiu 2 місяці тому +55

    Playing Nier Replicant right after Drakengard is like how veterans must feel after a long war, the peace is somehow disturbing...

    • @swedensy
      @swedensy Місяць тому

      Man Drakaengard 3 was such a good time on ps3 emulator. But this crap replicant too slow full of invis obstacles and the music is just noise nothing emotional like they claim. And most of the picture in the game is actually a picture yo cant go there.

  • @qwfp
    @qwfp 2 місяці тому +62

    Someone in Facade (I don't remember who exactly) says something like "Rules are there to give you freedom". Basically, if you know what you can't do, then by subtraction you know what you can do. This line/mindset stuck with me ever since I heard it.
    Also, I expected you to at least mention having to replay the second-half of the game 3 times to get all the endings (which are required to understand the entire story). It's the biggest pain point for me. Maybe it was intended to be painful, but it doesn't make it any less painful. But it being painful doesn't exactly make the experience "worse" (if that was the intended experience)

    • @Nabekukka
      @Nabekukka 2 місяці тому +12

      Rules do not exist to bind you. They exist so you may know your freedoms. Fyra states this I think after you're done with the city tour

    • @qwfp
      @qwfp 2 місяці тому

      @@Nabekukka Yes, that's the one! Thanks

    • @newlandpencilnut4754
      @newlandpencilnut4754 Місяць тому

      @@qwfp Why did that stick in your mind?

    • @anarche4900
      @anarche4900 Місяць тому +1

      Evangelion reference ?

  • @Uberwenis
    @Uberwenis 2 місяці тому +77

    As far as the sidequests are concerned, I feel like that's a lesson in itself. Not everything is going to have a profound meaning. Sometimes, you just have to do errands. But also, you never know what the people you're talking to have been through in their lives unless you take a chance or make the effort.

    • @jmh8817
      @jmh8817 2 місяці тому +13

      also sometimes NPCs just scam you because they can tell you, the player, are an easy mark

    • @PixelHeroViish
      @PixelHeroViish Місяць тому +5

      I also feel like it's a tongue-in-cheek joke where Yoko Taro laughs at the people who expected legitimately good rewards out of every, or even the majority, of Quests, because very few would be "worth it" to most players, cuz most people who bother with sidequests tend to be completionists or get some sense of reward/fulfillment doing them, so they just made most of them "worthless".......but are they really worthless?

  • @webbrowser6454
    @webbrowser6454 2 місяці тому +23

    Yoko Taro is an evil genius and I love him for it. I cant wait for a continuation in the Nier series. Hard not to pick them as my favorite video game sound tracks too, so beautiful.

    • @-siranzalot-
      @-siranzalot- Місяць тому

      Yes. Got into the Series wie Automata a year ago and just played Replicant and am now Replaying Automata for the additional insights after the first game. I hope there is going to be another NieR Game in the future

  • @LETIshNick
    @LETIshNick 2 місяці тому +49

    The flawed one may be Drakengard 3, although brilliantly flawed, whereas Nier is pure gold.

  • @zaragachizanparo4948
    @zaragachizanparo4948 2 місяці тому +18

    I think of how Kingdoms of Amalur subverts the "chosen one" trope by making the hero of the story the one guy who isn't bound by fate.

    • @maowcat1587
      @maowcat1587 2 місяці тому +3

      I found a lot of room to ponder learning that the whole Irish mythology angle was just symbolic dressing for the setting being the components of a personal computer. Tirnoch being a virus, the Fateless One being an anti-virus with SuperUser clearance, the mortals being loaded RAM data and the Fae Application Processes.

  • @thehater6189
    @thehater6189 2 місяці тому +12

    We can hardly fully accept that Nier was killing "humans". In the context of the game's story, the humans/shadows felt entitled to the Replicants who were meant to be shells for them. The shells become the more sympathetic group, imo, because they are trying to defend their existence instinctively. The shadows are no longer human, including shadow nier. The obvious parallel between the replicants and human souls addresses this quite well. "Humanity" as a concept had evolved to include another type of being capable of "humanity's" good and evil, the replicants. This is further elaborated on by a similar dichotomy between the androids and robots in automata. In the world of nier, humanity does not belong only to humans. Pascal from automata is far more "human" than Caim, despite Caim being an actual human. This is the central revelation to me of the series as a whole (at least until now)

  • @rouhee
    @rouhee 2 місяці тому +16

    7:13 "What we do in the Shadows" reference huh, great movie, also has a great show. Definitely recommended.

    • @Indi_51
      @Indi_51 2 місяці тому +1

      Thank you! :D also thanks for watching!!

  • @michaeloconnor5480
    @michaeloconnor5480 2 місяці тому +17

    I will NEVER forget ending E. Never. It possibly got me more than Automata's. Straight masterpieces.

    • @matthewlugo2417
      @matthewlugo2417 Місяць тому +1

      Really? While i like endind e in replicant, automatas ending e is more meaningful and makes its player one of the characters, its an ending that brings everyone around the world together to help one another even complete strangers and even enemies. Cause even tho we are different we are still one people. Nier automata cannot be matched by any game created today

  • @DirtyCasual36
    @DirtyCasual36 2 місяці тому +6

    2:30 I also like to point out that Yoko Taro chose this ending because of the amount of people that hated that ending. YOKO TARO CREATED THE NIER UNIVERSE OUT OF *SPITE* AGAINST HIS HATERS.

  • @MrMartin27
    @MrMartin27 2 місяці тому +16

    Yohan’s disease is the rampancy of her human soul becoming a shade. In order to find their Shadow Lord/Material donor they handed out copies of grimoire noir to find the one human who would not turn rampant. With Yohan starting to turn into a shade but kept on status to prevent her turning if nier agrees to become the stable genetic material donor for all shades. The continuing deterioration of her soul manifests itself as the black scrawl on her replicant body.

    • @ValyEK
      @ValyEK 2 місяці тому +4

      The disease Yonah was suffering from at the beginning wasn't related to the Gestalt Project or shades, she was just very sick. Only after she touched the grimoire she started to relapse, because she wasn't the Original Gestalt (Nier). Nier agreed to become Shadowlord only if they managed to cure Yonah. She was put in cryogenic sleep while still being in the process of relapsing, hence why every Replicant Yonah would get the Black Scrawl everytime.

    • @MrMartin27
      @MrMartin27 2 місяці тому

      @@ValyEK yes she was sick before, but not with the same thing after touching noir

  • @Alecs250
    @Alecs250 Місяць тому +6

    9:01 the whole game actually in a whole parody/reference to rpgs in general. I noticed this because in japanese they call the shadow lord "Maou" (demon king) just like Dragon Quest and other rpgs

    • @Alecs250
      @Alecs250 Місяць тому +1

      14:57 Again, i feel like repetitive quests, even the farming element was done in such a bland way that for me it can only be some kind of parody of other games. Why are we doing these unnecessary things? Just because they're there and it feels like you should, but should you?

  • @yassinefarah2423
    @yassinefarah2423 2 місяці тому +9

    I would say that Drakengard and Nier demonstrate how bad choices will create harmful outcomes and how horribly difficult and permanent they are while others have to live with the consequences.

  • @deathsyrup
    @deathsyrup 2 місяці тому +79

    Commenting again asking for a video about Thief the Dark Project. The esoteric lore has yet to be touched upon by anyone. The 3 religious groups in the game have a very strong dichotomy that I think a lot of games today still take inspiration from. Especially Dishonored and Deus Ex.

    • @michaelhowell2809
      @michaelhowell2809 2 місяці тому +4

      This your chance to put it on the Internet first lol

    • @AL-lh2ht
      @AL-lh2ht 2 місяці тому +2

      Plenty of people made videos about Theif. They just don't focus on the lore you are talking about.

    • @winstonsmith3703
      @winstonsmith3703 2 місяці тому +5

      I like how thief did a pagan themed enemy for the first game and an industrial enemy for the second while dishonored did the reverse.

    • @user-gh6sn3wd7v
      @user-gh6sn3wd7v 2 місяці тому +2

      What I find more interesting about thief is its portrayal of relatively “modern” tech in a medieval setting…

    • @anomitas
      @anomitas Місяць тому

      Very good game, haven't seen any game with the depth of stealth as thief

  • @Tampaandrewful
    @Tampaandrewful Місяць тому +1

    The mansion segment isn’t just paying homage to resident evil with the camera angle. That’s literally a remake of the Spencer mansion. The main hall, the side hall and the dining hall.
    And underneath it is a secret lab where they turn people into weapons…just like Umbrella did underneath RE1 mansion.

  • @LeoFalcon
    @LeoFalcon 2 місяці тому +26

    Releasing this so close after Reincarnation's ending is so sweet.
    Thank you

    • @xupr4301
      @xupr4301 17 днів тому

      Wait it ended already? I got lost on the lore and barely antibody uploads summaries of the newer seasons

  • @valide1
    @valide1 2 місяці тому +4

    What always gets me, and I think is the best use of the mechanic, is the inability to understand shades until you play through a 2nd time. Then the heartbreak starts and you realize the depth of how horrible the situations are. Like in Drakengard, then the question looms in your mind once again, "what kind of person are you, to still be playing this?" The only right thing to do is to stop playing because you know where this all leads, that it will only get worse and worse. The moral choice is to not play.

    • @FunnyGorillaHaha
      @FunnyGorillaHaha Місяць тому

      This plot thread didn't really connect for me, I think the only case where I felt any pity for a shade was the one with the robot. Wolf shades? The desert didn't just appear, it would've taken hundreds of years to get that way. The girl in the boat? She eats innocent people, even if she wanted to just be normal she still lured in and killed people. They are almost always the aggressor and just cos they want their bodies back it's not justified imo

    • @newlandpencilnut4754
      @newlandpencilnut4754 Місяць тому

      Having a lot of the small shades being non-combative was more effective than that entire playthrough. If you play the game again, watch, they just stare at you and back away. The dog chose to fight, the robot one was almost too guilt-trippy and started to feel silly, fuck the monster girl, Gretel was sad tho.

  • @jmh8817
    @jmh8817 2 місяці тому +4

    This game also made me think of the silent hill 2 joke ending sequel idea and I'm glad to not be alone in having that stuck in my head for years anymore.

  • @quillclock
    @quillclock 2 місяці тому +4

    your dog ending explanation is my new head cannon. use to be aliens now its all the dog

  • @ClockworkGearhead
    @ClockworkGearhead 2 місяці тому +5

    Yoko Taro's games have always been a "genre-blender."

  • @AlbedoAtoned
    @AlbedoAtoned Місяць тому +2

    I'm not sure where you got the idea that the villagers of the Aerie hated Kaine because of the shades. They hated her because she was different. Kaine was born intersex, and the villagers treated her like shit because of it. The kids of the village would throw rocks and their parents encouraged them to do so. They never accepted her, even when she and Nier saved them from hook, they blamed her for it because they hated her more than they hated the shades.
    Over the course of several years, the Gestalts got tired of waiting and tried reuniting with their Replicants in the Aerie. The Gestalts wanted to coexist with the replicants in the Aerie and elsewhere. If you pay attention, there are hints throughout the game that this is happening as some people say their loved ones are acting different.
    That's why they sent letters inviting others to visit. The Replicants in the Aerie were just as untrusting and seemed to not know anything about the invitation. But when they heard that Nier planned to eradicate all of the shades, the Gestalts went berserk and started to attack Nier and his friends with complete disregard for the Replicants of the Aerie.
    This is why when Emil ends up wiping out the entire place, the player feels sad for Emil, but not the people off the Aerie. The Replicants there were judgmental assholes up until the very end, and the Gestalts in the area put everybody at risk over a single line of dialogue. Keep in mind that the Gestalts know far more about the situation. If they had kept quiet, they and the remaining replicants that hadn't fused with their gestalts would have still been alive. So you feel sad because Emil is sad, not because of the people there.

  • @emiliolopez2023
    @emiliolopez2023 2 місяці тому +7

    I think your impression might be a bit colored by modern knowledge? At the time No one knew about the connection to Drakengard when NieR: Replicant / Gestalt came out. Yoko Taro was also not the household name he is currently and there were no expectations from fans. The Connection is a jumping off point but ultimately not important to the full narrative of the game.
    While I agree, the state of Drakengard is a statement on the mindless killing of a Musou game. I argue that it was intentionally made to play bad. No one ever goes out to make a bad game especially if it is your first Like Drakengard was for Yoko Taro. Especially, with his comments expressing disappointment with the technical prowess of his titles before NieR: Automata. I think he wanted to make a full on musou game and comment how mindless they were, so he thought of a creative solution to address the limitations he experienced. Kind of like in comics you have an amazing writer and they have a weak artis providing visuals. The writing does all the heavy lifting.
    One thing I do feel like may have gotten lost in your assessment of the gameplay is the fact you are not playing the original game. You are playing a revised version with quality of life improvements, graphical updates, added content and fully reworked combat. You say the combat isn't that bad, It is horrendous in the original. ;)
    That said Ultimately I feel the way you experienced the plot was not lost. I feel that the update takes away the burden of lackluster combat. Great video.

    • @giuseppebiundo6356
      @giuseppebiundo6356 Місяць тому

      I've heard but cant confirm that Drakengard was originally supposed to be just the dragon flight missions and the ground combat was added later in the games inception or even development.
      I don't remember seeing a bunch of writing in reviews of NieR mentioning it was a spiritual successor or spinoff to Drakengard but there are some items in-game that allude to its predecessor, both accessible to the player and in the artwork/cutscenes.

  • @jokerdony
    @jokerdony 2 місяці тому +2

    Man I hope you do that video about Lost Odyssey soon. I actually wanted this video to go on longer (in the same way I don't want a video game to end), and I also hope you do a video dissecting ending E with Kaine since it supposedly is the one that leads to NeiR Automata, somehow.
    Anyways, love the video. Always look forward to your uploads.

  • @3rdStepStudios
    @3rdStepStudios 2 місяці тому +3

    You made one error regarding the Replicants: Emil is not a Replicant, his official race is that of a "Weapon", which is a modified original human.

    • @landop3320
      @landop3320 Місяць тому

      I mean yeah he's a weapon, but still the last human alive

  • @tiagocosmos
    @tiagocosmos 2 місяці тому +1

    i know all I know about this series from youtube. I missed out on it entirely during the ps2/3 eras, but the setting and worldbuilding is so fascinating to me, from Drakengard up to Automata.

  • @slightlytwistedagain
    @slightlytwistedagain 2 місяці тому +7

    This is similar to the train conundrum where you have a switch to either let the train run over a bunch of people or run over a single person who is a loved one. The answer isn't which one is right and which one is wrong, the answer is what choice you're prepared to live with.

  • @GarretDejiko
    @GarretDejiko 2 місяці тому +3

    2:59 better than ascension and short message

  • @OsokaOiv
    @OsokaOiv 2 місяці тому

    The DrakenNier Series has taught me so many lessons through playing games that lead me through life. And I am so happy that you also discovered those games and made videos on them. Even seeing beyond the not fun game design.

  • @richardgordon5362
    @richardgordon5362 Місяць тому +1

    This is a great way to spend lunch. Chicken tendies, bottle of cola and one of Max’s gold-tier video game analysis

  • @PixelHeroViish
    @PixelHeroViish Місяць тому +2

    Spoiler warning just in case!!!!
    I'd like to address the "runs contrary to the legend" point because it's both accurate and inaccurate in the most insane way possible:
    You see the legend states Weiss will defeat Noir (unifying being one such way) and the Black Scrawl will be vanquished. We then find out that them combining will "set Shades free to the world" which sounds extremely bad, right?
    But combining and bringing Shades freedom WILL defeat thw Black Scrawl as it was intended to begin with, meaning the legend was true after all, just not in the way we expect. I really like that aspect of it because, if we take it literally, defeating Noir actually had the OPPOSITE effect and doomed everyone, rather than saving. It's really funny how that played out in the end 😭

  • @szellemsam
    @szellemsam 2 місяці тому +1

    I always liked to thing that replicants can be viewed as an adaptation of humanity to fight agains an apocalyptic event. Humanity didn't really went extinct, they adopted a new form. I believe it was stated that replicants carried the dna information of their human counterpart. And like you said, it's not their fault they developed a "soul", it just happened.

  • @FreyOdyssey
    @FreyOdyssey 2 місяці тому +2

    Bro didn't mentioned the novels or the other endings at all... There better be a part 2!

  • @AscendantStoic
    @AscendantStoic Місяць тому +2

    When I first started playing this game several years back I wasn't ready for what I consider now one of the best gaming experiences I ever had ... and don't get me started on the heavenly OST that's almost impossible to match .. although I have to say I prefer the Gestalt version with the Dad main character, the story feels like it works better that way ... specially loved the fact that with New Game+ you actually learn new things and the shades language that was unintelligible mess now makes sense.

  • @qrowing
    @qrowing Місяць тому

    Man, I hadn't realized just how much this game impacted me. Felt a legitimate pang of sadness being reminded of both the fisherman and the old lighthouse keeper. It's not often side-quest characters stick with you like that.

  • @TheBlueLink3
    @TheBlueLink3 2 місяці тому +1

    Personally, I had no issues with the sidequests. They never got tedious and were mostly easy to do while playing the main story. I thought they all brought something to the table, even if that was just fun banter. I honestly had a blast going for the platinum trophy. The only time it truly got tedious was when I was fully upgrading all of the weapons. I guess I was just that much into the world.
    Also, if you do ever get a chance to play Drakengard 2, please don’t ignore it. I know it has its flaws, and Yoko Taro wasn’t really involved with it, but I do think it’s still important. It did also have the rest of the team that worked on Drakengard, NieR, and Drakengard 3 (minus the composers). Even if you don’t end up liking it, it’d still be interesting to hear your thoughts on it.

  • @SciFiMangaGamesAnime
    @SciFiMangaGamesAnime 2 місяці тому +7

    26:30 Its worth pointing that Replicants cannot reproduce (like certain other Replicants, from different franchise, come to think about it.. Huh). Which means, that all of them will perish (and they did), regardless of their actions, while Gestalts, if they succeeded, would restore humanity. This.. makes Yonah, the most selfish character in the game. She is willing to refuse to cooperate with her brother, who sacrificed all he could to save her, knowing that it will lead to death of everyone (other than sexy robots).
    27:19 - I mean, when dying race is willing to destroy not dying race for sake of few more years of living.. I mean, come on. Obviously, Replicant Nier have no idea about all of it, because he is, well, just uneducated chum, with big sword, who is living in post-apocalyptic Truman show (androids are always watching.. and Watchers - they watch too).

    • @yassinefarah2423
      @yassinefarah2423 2 місяці тому +3

      Sadly in both cases of Yonah both didn't even know anything about Project Gestalt while indirectly keeping humanity alive and the other didn't want to live with the fact they were a stealing someone else's life.

    • @SciFiMangaGamesAnime
      @SciFiMangaGamesAnime 2 місяці тому +3

      @@yassinefarah2423She spent few years with her brother while being reunited with her replicant body (not to mention her being with him as gestalt before that), so, how can we be certain that she did not knew anything?

    • @yassinefarah2423
      @yassinefarah2423 2 місяці тому +3

      @@SciFiMangaGamesAnime because it was stated that gestalt Yonah had already relapsed and was in that state while in stasis for a long time and the Shadowlord and Noir couldn't tell the truth because they were busy restoring Yonah while keeping her replicant alive.

    • @Grimdark_Replays
      @Grimdark_Replays 2 місяці тому

      Replicant Nier did know, his ignorance was lifed. Devola and Popola clearly spell out the stakes before their boss fight. Nier just didn’t care at that point, perhaps sunken cost fallacy.

  • @jarradbilliot3618
    @jarradbilliot3618 2 місяці тому

    What will really throw you for a loop is that Kaine probably heard the shades as you were killing them

  • @ThePewdsBro98
    @ThePewdsBro98 Місяць тому +1

    small correction: the Aerie didn't start hating kaine because of the shades, they hated her from the moment she was born because she was "born" because she was a hermaphrodite

  • @Cernunn0s90
    @Cernunn0s90 2 місяці тому +1

    Yoko Taro has always had a thing against completionism, hence why some of the side quests are awful. He did the opposite in Automata by letting you buy trophies outright, giving full actual completion no added value. The terrible chance farming side quest is there just to drive this point home, that wasting your time with doing all side quests is just stupid.

  • @beto8493
    @beto8493 2 місяці тому +1

    I really enjoyed that video! I agree with you-I think Yoko Taro learned a lot from it, and Nier: Automata turned out much better. Yoko Taro is a genius in the gaming world. It’s fascinating how the Nier universe emerged from the joke ending of Drakengard, yet Yoko Taro managed to connect both universes seamlessly.
    The characters in Nier, especially Kainé and Emil, are incredibly well-written and deep. It’s hard to find similar character depth in recent games. The Nier universe dives into thought-provoking philosophical themes, and the battles are super fun. Plus, the music is amazing, and there’s plenty of fan service. I hope more gamers get to experience these games. Oh, and did you catch the easter eggs featuring 2B and 9S in Nier Replicant? They’re fantastic!"

  • @tatltails3923
    @tatltails3923 Місяць тому

    Small correction: Emil is not a Replicant! Emil is, at the start of the game, the last living complete flesh human, immortal due to fucked up experiments done on him and others by the same corporation that made Project Gestalt. This makes the loss of his human body hit even harder than it already does in retrospect, as well as his fate in Automata...

  • @thetalantonx
    @thetalantonx 2 місяці тому

    3:05 - HIGH KEY, I NEED THIS

  • @AlbedoAtoned
    @AlbedoAtoned Місяць тому +1

    Another correction. Not every shade you kill is relapsed. In fact, gestalts don't "become shades" when they relapse. that's just the name that the replicants call them because they don't know what a Gestalt is, or that the Gestalts were human souls. Many of them are relapsed, but most of the ones you fight in the game are still sane. Pay attention early on as well. Many of the child shades you encounter at the beginning of the game won't actually attack you.
    In the second half they became more aggressive because they saw how many of their kind were being slaughtered by Nier and the other replicants. That said, in the Ending E part of the game, most if not all have relapsed. All of the boss gestalts you fight are also sane as well. Hansel and Gretel, Hook, Jack of Hearts, Kalil, Roc Wendy, Louise*, and Goose. None of these bosses relapsed, not even Hook.
    Some of the gestalts you encounter are because of your previous actions. Early on at the beginning of the game, Nier encounters some child gestalts. He of course kills them because he thinks they are monsters. This enrages some of the adult gestalts, which is why there is one attacking replicants who were trying to repair the bridge.
    *Not a real Gestalt. She does not have a replicant.

  • @ilregiallo4151
    @ilregiallo4151 2 місяці тому

    2:45 We all need "Silent Hill: Pet Therapy" right now.

  • @diafenix
    @diafenix 2 місяці тому

    I'd be delighted to have a coffee talk with you Max.
    Thanks for your work and congrats for your channel.

  • @saulothebebop2581
    @saulothebebop2581 24 дні тому

    Fun fact: Yoko Taro chose the joke ending of Drakengard as a way to distance his story from Drakengard 2 as much as posible.

  • @tomekm1804
    @tomekm1804 Місяць тому

    Ok, now I want a Silent Hill sequel that continues the dog ending.

  • @baziworld
    @baziworld 2 місяці тому +1

    NieR Gestalt was my second game in yokoverse for me, until this day, nier having one of greatest story for me...definitely first time experience is most shocking moment in my video game for me, even more surprising thant nier automata...although i cherish drakengard 3 characters and lore, nier was a story which truly broke me, with realization of story

  • @kayskreed
    @kayskreed Місяць тому

    No mention of the multiple playthroughs and endings, or why it's necessary to collect all the weapons? You certainly _subverted_ my expectations!😉(Hopefully we can get a Part 2.)

  • @Zyco178
    @Zyco178 2 місяці тому

    Gonna be honest it was kind of hard for me to focus on what you were saying with such an amazing soundtrack in the background lol. I played this game on the Xbox 360 when it initially came out (yes I played as Old Man Nier). I managed to convince my friend to buy it just because it was a Square Enix game. I did not own an Xbox 360 at the time so I was only able to play the game at his house, however I was able to get 3 of 4 endings over several weekends.
    I found the game to be alright. I remember liking both Kaine and Emil waaay more than the main protag. The soundtrack though has been in my top 10 game OSTs since than.

    • @anomitas
      @anomitas Місяць тому

      Play the remake, nier is best boy also the story works better as the original nier and not the father.

  • @ElivTheMightyena
    @ElivTheMightyena Місяць тому

    The saddest thing is that by killing Shadowlord the replicant Nier has also doomed replicants to extinction. Since without gestalts there was no longer a way to create more replicant bodies (replicant bodies were infertile) and thus replicants would die out.

  • @gmicaro
    @gmicaro 2 місяці тому +3

    Max, you misunderstood a fundamental part of the game that makes it way more horrifying. The shades you fight are NOT relapsed gestalts. They are mostly regular sentient people defending their kids and their homes. Once you start hearing the shades voices you realize at some points you were actually killing children.
    Excelent video though. Cheers.

  • @restinginn9906
    @restinginn9906 2 місяці тому

    That fisherman side quest you described hit me in the feels. The only good one apparently. The main story was incredible though. I love the voice actor of Weiss. The OST is just as fantastic as automata as well. Your analysis is spot on as always. Love your videos Max.

  • @Grei_Undyne
    @Grei_Undyne 2 місяці тому

    19:07 Windwaker reference that
    19:53 Bongo Bongo too!

  • @onthespiral4054
    @onthespiral4054 Місяць тому

    15:35 I had fun. Farming for eagle eggs was not

  • @FriendWithADemon
    @FriendWithADemon 11 днів тому

    The side content was done like this on purpose, most likely.
    In my opinion they were trying to emulate real life to some degree, because let's be honest, life is a multitude of tedious tasks that by the end of them we forgot all the hard work that was put in them and we cherish the result.

  • @TheBeird
    @TheBeird 2 місяці тому +2

    Nier Replicant? Should have called it Nier Depression. But I loved it. I love it and Automata equally, warts and all. Both firmly made me a Yoko Taro fan for life

    • @michaeloconnor5480
      @michaeloconnor5480 2 місяці тому +2

      That's just it, hey? These aren't just good games and some of the best stories told, they've a tendency to some (or even most) that play it, that if it is in any way your jam, you are gonna be a fan for life. The story is SO affecting to the player and so effective in general....it just... it's masterful.
      Full grown men and women cry at this shit. Harder than normal. It's absolutely beautiful. Fan for life.

  • @Gy0952
    @Gy0952 2 місяці тому +3

    I love this game,
    but sadly I had to see the true ending on youtube because I didn't know about the fact that you have to collect all 33 weapons to get it... Seriously? I don't buy the "artistic" choice behind the lazyness of the side quests design. Only a couple of them are good to do, most of them are just shitty fetch quests. Nier Automata didn't have this stupid requirement for the true ending and it worked well.

    • @kephalai
      @kephalai 2 місяці тому +2

      my point of view on those tedious side quests existing is to make the player feel more reluctant in choosing to delete their save file in which they invested a ton of hours into

    • @Gy0952
      @Gy0952 2 місяці тому

      @@kephalai Yeah but it's too much in my hopinion, it could have been in a less tedious way

  • @kotenara10
    @kotenara10 2 місяці тому

    I think that's a pair of F-4EJ Phantom that shotdown Angelus not an F-2A Viper Zero

  • @frdveloz
    @frdveloz 2 місяці тому

    That grand Turismo cameo xD

  • @roperaustraman4445
    @roperaustraman4445 2 місяці тому

    His next game after Drakkengard with Caim was not Nier, that is a weird thing to say at the start of the video.

  • @daviddu4948
    @daviddu4948 2 місяці тому

    Have you ever read the manga Land of the Lustrous (houseki no kuni) ? I believe it's exactly something you will love knowing the philosophical aspect deeply rooted in buddhism. It's also ending next chapter (ch.108 for 108 wordly desire heh)

  • @guttgrinder1626
    @guttgrinder1626 2 місяці тому

    What a good time to talk about this game because its ending "E" has connections to another Nier game called "Nier : ReINcarnation" (which sadly will be EOS this month). It maybe a gacha game but the character stories in that game is very much Nier-like. Its hard to recommend the game though due to the amount of grinding or time to finish it (I finish the game btw without spending any real money). I guess, just watch YT videos for the characters stories.

  • @disturbedrebirth
    @disturbedrebirth 2 місяці тому +1

    I'm so happy to see more and more videos about this beautiful game.

  • @MelancholicGuts
    @MelancholicGuts Місяць тому

    Max, do you have any updates on the fan made shadow of the colossus game?

  • @Tomorrowomari
    @Tomorrowomari 2 місяці тому +2

    Love this game. It really is such a unique experience. Yoko Taro is one of the goats

  • @lysanderxx1664
    @lysanderxx1664 Місяць тому

    Protagonist is on the genocide route. But I might be, too, when all the shockingly, good natured shades all start by attacking me. Like the very first Froggit in Undertale.
    My main dislike of the game design is the need to basically play the exact same evrything multiple times in order to see the game through to it's final end. Although, perhaps that's similar to the idea Sans presents: You killed them just to see what happens.

  • @sirnutaku7716
    @sirnutaku7716 2 місяці тому +2

    Let's gooo, I'm glad we got another person hooked into the fanbase cuz ur about to fall into the weirdest most addictive deep dive ever

  • @d_shuffles
    @d_shuffles 15 днів тому

    Yoko Taro is a true artist and genius to story telling through gameplay.

  • @TasTheWatcher
    @TasTheWatcher 2 місяці тому +1

    Nier: Flawed gem
    Drakengard: A flaw, with gems

  • @Franzolly
    @Franzolly 2 місяці тому +3

    I see what you did here. I assumed you were taking a route of explaining the whole philosophy and all that typical max derrat video and yet this video is so different, albeit a couple of hooks here and there to confuse us. This is so different from like, your xenogears video..like i was making expectations that you d say that subquests are just there to make you feel more and more miserable, as to make you feel that the more you pry on others life the more damage you can do to get your quest prize...i wonder if i am right and you took all of us out for a loop

  • @juanma26m
    @juanma26m 2 місяці тому

    The thing is... The canonical endings of the silent hill saga are the alien endings

  • @tydendurler9574
    @tydendurler9574 2 місяці тому +2

    3:03
    Since this is a weird channel, i'll go on a weird rant:
    "Lowkey awesome"
    "lOwKeY aWeSoMe"
    What does that even mean?
    What happened to "really awesome" or "very awesome"?
    As a german who's bilingual for most of his life...this sounds lowkey literally crazy. af.
    I get lowkey bamboozled, when even people i consider intelligent & eloquent literally talk like that.
    I had to (literally) stop the video and go on an (lowkey) inner monologue rant, which led to typing this now.
    Maybe i have some issues. Lowkey issues tho.

    • @maxderrat
      @maxderrat  2 місяці тому

      It means that you think it's awesome but you either don't want people to know you think that, or you're ashamed (to whatever degree, big or small) that you think it's awesome.

    • @tydendurler9574
      @tydendurler9574 Місяць тому +1

      @@maxderrat 1. I still don't get it
      2. Do you think that (young) people who use the term frequently know what you just tried to explain to me?
      ...
      I lowkey don't

  • @ghazad1660
    @ghazad1660 2 місяці тому

    music at 11:30?

  • @splairs
    @splairs 2 місяці тому

    this is so far the best nier replicant synopsis/ analysis video i've seen

  • @Tullerman
    @Tullerman Місяць тому

    Whoa, that is one awesome plot twist there

  • @luizalexandreazevedo1435
    @luizalexandreazevedo1435 2 місяці тому

    Ah I wanted your input on Drakengard3's story, which is another whole convoluted and dark tale

  • @Sumaleth
    @Sumaleth 2 місяці тому

    You would enjoy Kentucky Route Zero and its interludes.

  • @Shane0622
    @Shane0622 Місяць тому

    The Nier series is, and always will be, in my top series of all time. It's an absolute masterpiece, flaws and all. And that final battle, when you realize what it actually means, the Shadowlord OST in the background, it's tough to not cry for what you're doing and what has to be done to survive... This game is legendary.

  • @CyberXviking
    @CyberXviking 2 місяці тому

    Love Nier and love your content. This video was amazing. Thank you.

  • @Captain1nsaneo
    @Captain1nsaneo Місяць тому

    Nearly 30 minutes and no pig drifting?

  • @chamchamtrigger
    @chamchamtrigger 2 місяці тому

    I know that some lines ended up becoming kind of weird in the Nier Gestalt version because of his age, but I still kind of preferred him to the one in Nier Replicant. Mind you, I don't think that one character made more sense in their motivations than the other...well I guess Brother Nier worked better with Kaine, maybe.

  • @pdg3513
    @pdg3513 2 місяці тому

    Please try Void Stranger and Slay the Princess. You would really love them

  • @n0ctiz456
    @n0ctiz456 Місяць тому

    NieR Gestalt/Replicant is one of my favorite games I replay it every year around April like a ritual

  • @kira516
    @kira516 2 місяці тому

    23:30 yooo xenosaga video teased?

  • @johndrowned7170
    @johndrowned7170 2 місяці тому

    I also want Silent Hill Dog Days to come out

  • @averagesoul8256
    @averagesoul8256 2 місяці тому +1

    a yes nier one of the greatest pieces of art ever created, i put it on the same pedestal as automata

  • @blizzysgarden
    @blizzysgarden Місяць тому

    Bro, I still haven’t beat the Drakengard 3 ending 😭😭😭💀

  • @Venus_Raven
    @Venus_Raven 2 місяці тому

    This is the 4th video today ive seen on replicant hahaha just s reminder to go back and get all weapons to get the extra play through

  • @assimo9841
    @assimo9841 Місяць тому

    Did you say... that this game taught you the concept of patience..?

  • @FaceFister
    @FaceFister 2 місяці тому +5

    Few games have stuck with me as much as Replicant has, that second play-through fucked me up haha

  • @Davlavi
    @Davlavi 2 місяці тому +1

    Another great video.

  • @yordimedina8879
    @yordimedina8879 2 місяці тому

    I'm not sure if you'll read this Max. But thank you so much for all of your work and this video. And respecting the Nier series as a whole so much. This game means the world to me and it changed my life back when I played it 10 years ago so I have no words to express my gratitude. Keep it up! I love all of your videos.

  • @Naterkix
    @Naterkix 2 місяці тому +1

    Dooming humanity and the Replicants _did_ later give us 2B sooooo...

  • @smartsmartie7142
    @smartsmartie7142 2 місяці тому

    Was there ever a second Planescape torment video?

    • @maxderrat
      @maxderrat  2 місяці тому

      Yup! Right here: ua-cam.com/video/EKBSxGOgqyw/v-deo.html&pp=ygUVbWF4IGRlcnJhdCBwbGFuZXNjYXBl

  • @furyberserk
    @furyberserk 2 місяці тому

    Here's a theory. The name is NieR. Both n snd r are capitalized, and the mc what a test subject. My theory is his name starts with R, but gis last name is Nie. After ending e, he is forgotten, but his sister still lives. People know he's missing, but not enough. N is all Kaine knows, but the relattion to Yonah Nie, is all the evidence they have. Even the creator doesn't know his real name, thus ending E is canon.

  • @kukukachu
    @kukukachu 2 місяці тому +2

    I'm PISSED that they didn't add the Dad....

    • @kira516
      @kira516 2 місяці тому

      Didn't they added it in remastered?

    • @kukukachu
      @kukukachu 2 місяці тому

      @@kira516....no....
      What they did is teased it...kinda, but no. It's actually pretty cruel...unless there's an update I don't know about. There's a Nexus Mod, but it wasn't ever put into the game except one part that was kind of a nod to it than anything.

    • @TheNobodyNamedDubyaBee
      @TheNobodyNamedDubyaBee 2 місяці тому

      It's pretty clear "that" aspect of Nier has been discontinued, most likely due to Square Enix wanting to streamline the branding of the series (i.e., two game versions = more marketing costs).

    • @kukukachu
      @kukukachu 2 місяці тому

      @@TheNobodyNamedDubyaBeepapa nier was better.

    • @Hawkenwhacker
      @Hawkenwhacker 2 місяці тому

      The dad was but an illusion conjured within the mind.