My favorite thing about this game is that the game's "antagonist" isn't, like, a specific person. The antagonist is just the entire situation. Everything about the entire game is just about how much this situation, the conflict between the machines and androids is not only meaningless but also futile. All the Weapon Stories are depressing as hell. All the sidequests are depressing as hell. The situation between 9S and 2B is depressing as hell. I've heard someone describe the game as a "fractal of sadness." You start out thinking it's sad, but you zoom into it more and you find even more sadness and that sadness recontextualizes the previous sadness and then you zoom in more and more sadness happens. The entire situation of this game is helpless and depressing, but that makes the end all the more better. The fighting the credits thing is so good cuz of that. Like, you're literally fighting the will of the game's entire world just to get a good ending, and the way they show that is you fighting the people who made the game. And then you get help from everyone else playing the game. It's great. I love it. It's so clever and I cried at the end of the game cuz it's such good pathos.
The chorus that can be heard when you accept help is actually the game's development team. In the end, even those who created the situation want it to end. Also, i would like to call attention to the lyrics that loop in several different languages: "Cause we're going to shout it loud Even if our words seem meaningless It's like I'm carrying the weight of the world I wish that someway, somehow That I could save every one of us But the truth is that I'm only one girl " Accepting this is what accepting the rescue offer means. It means acknowledging that one person alone is powerless against the cruelty of the world, and that to create a miracle you need to reach out to other people for help.
I really like that there are negative options you can choose from when leaving a message too. It gives meaning to the fact that almost all of them are positive. If they were required to be, it wouldn't mean anything. This way, you know the people who left those messages meant them.
I felt so bad when playing this part, because I was having a shitty day, and after I started getting those nice messages, I was crying so hard I couldn't see the screen. I must've gone through 30 names because I kept dying since I couldn't stop sobbing, but when I finally made it to the end it was one of the most rewarding games I've ever finished. Gosh :^)
The one thing that never fails to bring me to tears are the messages from the players during Ending E, it just goes to show that whilst you may be sitting there on your own playing the game, you have the support of people from all across the globe, who are giving you messages of hope, support and encouragement. Also, the way that the pods are going against their programming is basically the players fighting to get the ending they want, and deserve. And that, makes me love this game even more.
Even more ironically, when 9S dies, he's holding 2B's sword, full of her memories, with 2B's hand. So she killed him one last time, even though A2, who has the same personality data as 2B and also all her memories couldn't bring herself to. Seems like 2B killing 9S is unavoidable. :( Thanks so much for playing, this was an awesome playthrough.
@@vault29a Actually he was looking up at the ark fired, that contained all the data of machine lifeforms and the like. It's basically saying her data was on the ark, and he could've chosen to be on it with her, but didn't.
Let me share with you one last story. Back in June, I finished the game and the ending really touched me. So, I paid the full $60 and got a code. And I gave it away! Sent to someone's Tumblr. "Thank you for playing."
I thought about you as I was editing this last episode here -- "wow, I might not even have played this if somebody hadn't randomly sent me a code for it!" Thanks again -- you da real MVP.
23:10 The red girls, or N2 are the network that developped a personality (or ego) inspired by the records on the humans. In these records, we have information and a bit of genome from the Original, being the original Nier, the Shadowlord. The red girls are based on Nier. N2 is a second Nier. N2 is Nier's automaton. Nier Automata. I had a mindfuck when I realized that.
That ending...also, "Square Enix" as the Final Boss, that's just genius! Thanks Ms Welonz, for the LPs and commentaries and just taking your time seeing this through right to the end.
Welonz, thanks very much for this series. I watched quite a lot of N:A Videos, but your's is far above all of them. Regarding N:A itself: Making a bullet hell sequence where you shoot at letters one of the most emotional experiences in video game history ever reveals what this is: a masterfully crafted piece of art.
This was overall an amazing Let's Play even by your standards Welonz, but I just wanna say - this was probably one of the most beautiful endings E I've watched out there, your reactions were great. Thanks for doing it! Looking forward to whatever comes next :)
1:06:00 yes. Definitely. This is what happens when a skilled indie team is assigned to a AAA budget. It would not have happened if it was handled by a AAA dev, nor would it have happened in an indie studio. This configuration is the optimal game development environment.
Well, it's over. And what a journey :) During ending C A2 removes the virus but it's implied that 9S dies as well. As for the pillar of light, it's the network/server of the tower. She manages to destroy it but it costs her life. Ending E is one of the most beautiful, depressing but at the same time uplifting endings ever. The metaphor behind the pods fighting their own core-programming(and the madness of bullets that comes after) it's simple but profound. The song that plays is called "End of YoRHa" and it's a remix of "The Weight of the World". That same weight you have to carry in order to conquer a new "ending", a new hope for those little androids. But no one is fit to carry that weight alone so all the people from around the world help you. They sacrificed their own data for you, for the future. Even if the outcome will not change, even if those androids will die again, there's always meaning in fighting. Because life is coping with a constant stream of embarrassment :) Makes me cry every time. Awesome playthrough Welonz.
Suppose this is the [E]nd. Thank you for a wonderful let's play, Welonz! Definitely one of, if not my favorite let's play I've seen of Nier Automata. I've loved your commentary. A lot of people think 9S has tissues in his bag haha I really love this ending.. it's just like what 2B said at the very start of the game.. you killed the "God" or.. everyone who worked on the game. To get your happy ending. To end the cycle of life and death. And gosh I get chills every time when the chorus comes in. That's all the game developers and Yoko Taro singing if I'm not mistaken. Man it'd be crazy if you wind up being one of the people who help me.
this is for those who have doubts about how the story continues: In the novel released by Nier: Automata and in the post ending data E it is known that the 9S data went with Adam and Eve in the ark, a few days later the pods they reactivate 2B and she worries because 9S does not wake up at the end a new 9S is created with her past memories stored in the pods and 2B together with 9S flee together to never be seen again. The resistance later finds out about the Yorha project and hunts the remaining models (this was a factor why 2B and 9S fled) after an unknown jump in time it is known that the machines evolved and created their own civilizations and classes social and this generated revolutions against the highest social classes that are the bourgeois and the royalty, in the novel they do not make clear what happens with the androids so they may still be there or have gone extinct and that is all that Yoko Taro leave for Nier: Automata.
Gosh, I can't believe this is the end... all I wanted to say was: *thank you*! Thank you so, so much for playing NieR, both Gestalt and Automata!!! Thanks to you, Welonz, I got really interested in the series. N:A quickly made it to the top of my favourite games list! It's scary to think that I might've never found out about this gem, if it wasn't for your playthroughs! I really enjoyed this let's play. I laughed with you, I cried with you (well, I definitely cried more than you, whoops) and every video was an important part of my day. I had some rough times, too... and I'm very thankful for this LP for helping me stay happy. Once again: Thank you so much!
Having watched your Let's Play after playing it myself, there's definitely foreshadowing for 2B being 2E, though it is extremely subtle. Thanks for the fantastic let's play!
Hey Materwelonz! You don't know me, and me commenting on this 2 year old video is probably either a surprise to you or you won't even see it... But I wanted to thank you. When I clicked on this playlist, I just wanted to know what this game was like. I didn't expect to fall in love with both the game and your commentary, and to be able to watch through this playlist full of hour long videos, but... here I am. I don't think I would have fallen in love with the game this much if you didn't play it this toroughly, and gave it this much love. So thank you again. I don't know if I'll stay around on your channel. I'll look through your other playlists and see if there are other playlists that interest me. Maybe I'll give Gestalt a watch, to see where this game came from, to see more of Emil... But wether I stay or move on and don't come back, this playthrough has been a special experience to me, and I'm grateful for that. So please keep being you, and remember that you've brightened my last few days on this amazing bingewatch. Thank you!
You, dear Materwelonz, earned a sub today. I loved your playthrough entirely. After playing it for myself for 60 hours, I wanted to see the reaction of other players. But the most don't try to dig as deep into the lore as you, questioning all the happenings like me. That's why I adore your playthrough the most - even if I didn't get even near to 100%, I learned a lot about the lore through your playthrough and I hope I get a chance to play the other NieR-games as this one was my first.
What a beautiful piece of art. Now...i have a number of issues with NieR:Automata. Both in terms of world-building and in terms of game mechanics. But you know what? Yeah i'm not gonna bother :D. Because honestly, nobody would probably care to read that, not any of the viewers and not you, Welonz :). Instead, i'm just gonna say this: that was one fantastic game. And one fantastic playthrough :). Thanks for that ^_-. If anything, this LP makes me hopeful that, one day, we _will_ see an LP of Soulsborne series on this channel. That would've been just spectacular to watch. P.S. 54:20 oh hey Vorlons, didn't figure you were behind this all along :D.
Sulfur I dont think the day of Wellonz playing soulborn ever come. Just because its not her type of game, at least i think so. I dont know if i can remeber correctly, bui i hear somewhere in her hellblade letsplay that she not good in that type of games. But of course it will be cool to have that LP.
Слава Салтыков Well, she did handle Hellblade, didn't she ;p. And she expressed interest in the series before, notably in a 20ksubs Q&A. So yeah, we'll see :).
i was thinking of soulsborne when she was talking about games that use the gameplay to tell stories. personally i would love to see her do bloodborne especially, partly because it'd be fun to see someone who hasn't done any previous souls game go in blind...
I'm not against Soulsborne games, but they're intimidating in that they seem to be massive time sinks in a "I could be spending 5 hours to do this one thing again and again that amounts to 20 minutes of releasable footage". I'm not a very good planner (e.g. I finished editing this video just last night) so I feel these games are really hard to schedule for! MGS - I'd also like to play this someday, but as I understand it, Konami is fairly aggressively anti-UA-cam/streaming. I've heard of many others havine lots of copyright issues.
In the end, mankind had died, but life will continue. As long as the earth remains, so too will our legacy. Through either the world we've built, or the machines to whom we gave the fruit of knowledge, humanity and what it means to exist will always live on. Regardless of how bleak the world may seem, we are never alone. Someday, we will reach the end we long for. This game, this game makes gets me everywhere, and it was amazing to experience it with everyone! Here's hoping the sequel that just got greenlit doesn't ruin it!
hankmillenium2000 I'm glad this game can bring such a positive vibe in all of us. I love both Gestalt and Automata. I hope whatever Square Enix is working on for Nier is wonderful.
Nier reminds me a lot of Undertale, in the way that they both bring being a video game and the mechanics there of into the story in a way that would make it impossible to replicate in another medium. Kind of like how I don't think you could make a movie out of House of Blue Leaves, hell I don't think it would even survive being turned into an ebook. It's great video games have matured enough to produce things that experiment with the boundaries of the medium. Also wow those credits, that was something. I was already slightly teary before the arrival of the help and the song that's been on repeat kicks in again only this time with a chorus. I've played entire games that got less of an emotional reaction than that one moment.
Slowly, across weeks and months, listening to you play Nier has been wonderful. Thank you for all the time you've put into this. You have definitely been a light at the end of the tunnel.
Gosh, I was so excited to see the others endings and I gotta say the effort you put in was really worth it! That final hack against A2 was once again a genius surprise. The sudden change in perspective seemed to make it so much more difficult (and it probably did, judging from your reaction). We only had that throughout normal gameplay, to see it utilised in a hack's really nice. And the final stage, when they zoom out and the it's the menu screen. Awesome. I don't really think the developers wanted to imply that hacking has always taken place in the menu screen in some way but rather wanted to place a little easter egg here (but with this game you never know, of course....I feel like there are 20 other layers of meaning here that I'll never get). Well done in getting through all of it. That's a hard fight. OMG even that little moment, when 9S looks up to the sky and says "So that's where you were. 2B" moved me to tears. I guess, it's a reference back to the point where they're talking about machines killing themselves in hopes of going to heaven. And 2B says they'll find out someday where they go after they die. I wonder if she hoped that she had a soul that could go to heaven... in the end at least 9S seemed to see her there. Maybe he believed it for her. Since sb pointed out in the other comments that 9S grabs 2B's sword, after it's pierced him, with the 2B copy arm, I went back to confirm this. You really don't see how exactly this happens. It really looks pretty ridiculous. I don't wanna laugh at the scene but it is so weird. It really seems like he's falling onto the blade by accident and then grabbing it with the 2B copy arm. Like she's killed him one last time (like the comment pointed out). I wanna convince myself of the deep poetic meaning of this...but it's hard.... And I agree with you that 9S dying after he kills A2 might not be the worst to happen. I mean, what's left for him in this world? Not even Pascal's the same anymore. Who could he turn to? Revenge was the only thing still driving him. Even his hatred for machines has become meaningless. He fully understands the meaninglessness of the war now and without 2B I don't think he could find anything else to live for. Maybe he's really thrown himself onto 2B's blade. All these different hacking environments are extremely interesting. Seeing how hacking A2 was really demanding and how 9S' inner world is like a convoluted labyrinth. It makes sense. If he's such a high end scanner model he should not be so easy to hack. Yeah, I think they could've made this at least a little more understandable. When A2 says she knows what she has to do in order to purge the virus from 9S I thought maybe she releases 2B's memories into him, letting 2B "set him right" again. Maybe that happened. But that he still dies...maybe one can interpret it as her putting him to rest. But I read through the rest of the comments in order to understand it. Sb said A2 destroyed the machine core/network thing in the end and that this also killed her. It was really confusing since I thought she's still in 9S' consciousness. But seems like she switched to the machine network consciousness after Pod carried him away. I guess it makes sense that she destroyed the core like this. When we think back that the core at the top of the 1st resource recovery unit also sounds like a baby and that A2 (who's had to destroy some kind of main server for the machine network in this mountain back on her 1st mission) had the memory of this thing saying "mommy" inside her. Still, the cutscene kept it pretty ominous. The moment A2 says "I never quite realised how beautiful this world is."... I deeply felt for her. She was roaming the world on her own for so long, hunted and sad and feeling guilty...she never had the time to stop and free herself from all of that. It's crazy how many layers we have to this character who we never really get to know. In the end credits, When the pod suddenly starts talking about how in order to finish Project Yorha they need to delete all memory data, I was confused for a moment. I had totally forgotten about that. Or better: I thought that was over. After the Tower had been erected I thought that they had other problems. But the program and the orders had still been inside the pods. It's still going on. Through all this shit. Of course, only a game like this would give you a last quite vital piece of information on the basis of a decision you have to make during the end credits scene while you don't even know what said decision actually entails. Good thing you clicked 'no' first. I was really going crazy in front of my PC. That file with the overall info on the history of the machine evolution and the network and all is so damn necessary to a properly grasp it all. I mean, I already suspected that the machines who said they'd disconnected from the network had not REALLY disconnected. I guess, I kinda assumed they're just not getting any orders anymore since their creators were dead. But that the consciousnesses in the network had actually, let's say, "motivated" that thought in order to push it's evolution makes a lot more sense and is really quite fascinating. I'm curious if the machines are actually done for, now. Like, is the network destroyed then? BC the 2 conceptual human personalities we encounter start fighting and destroy eachother. But then there seems to be sth else. In the D-ending it's said that the network made the decision instead of shooting at the moon to gather memories of machines and androids to shoot into space. So there must be sth else there, right? When the swearing in the document started I started wondering who the fuck wrote that. And of course, our old good friend Jackass. Bless her. You’re right, that you fight the end credits drop down shooter style is not even that shocking. It’s Nier:Automata. What else could you expect at this point? But it’s still an amazing idea and definitely not to be expected. And maaaan, they really make you work for that E ending. I can see a lot of people saying “Fuck it” at some point. But they’re extremely clever (once again) in encouraging you to continue. When that first message appeared I thought the name and the content read like it’s player commentary. But I was really not sure. This idea’s just so extremely brilliant. How do you come up with that stuff? Some people’s minds are just on fire all the time. So, yeah, they really make you work to get that ending but they also want you to get it so they’re helping you in the most genius and sweet way possible. Since I bought the soundtrack a few weeks ago I knew there were 4 versions of “Weight of the world” on there. I was wondering when the fourth one’d appear. I’m glad it was made for this ending. Of course the official soundtrack version’s shorter than the one you hear in the bg here (it’s probs really just the different versions played continuously). It’s a mix of the different lines from the different languages and ends with the chorus singing “Lalalala” and I adore it. People singing together makes me extremely emotional (the only thing that would’ve made it even better, would’ve been if the choir would’ve started to sing the lyrics together). And of course this version of the song with so many people joining to sing fits this ending so well. People coming to help and you willingly sacrificing all your safe data to help sb else in return. The idea’s just mind blowing. I mean, they really make you sacrifice sth that, at this point, might be quite valuable to you. But how could you not be willing to do so after playing this game? How could one be cold hearted enough to say no? I guess, they really know their players well. And you decided to help, yay! (You’ve played it on 100% anyway so I guess you’ve seen almost everything by now….and a game like this is worth a second playthrough.) I’m really glad your recording didn’t mess up. (to be continued)
“And being alive is pretty much a constant stream of embarrassment.” …. Pod153 spilling the juicy truth. “That concept is a bit too abstract for me to understand at this time. I will save it in my list of things to analyze later.” … This’ll be my answer to everything I don’t understand from now on. OMG THANK GOD FOR THIS ENDING I was praying for this to end on a positive note. They couldn’t make you work so hard for nothing. And hell, did they deliver!!! Watching it a second time for the comment overwhelmed me even more. The pods saving the people they’re made to protect. Putting all of them back together. Just seeing 2B and 9S lying next to eachother made my heart overflow with joy and relief. They’ll finally be able to look at eachother without the lies in between and the overwhelming presence of Yorha hanging over their heads. They can finally be honest with eachother. (and run away, and build a cottage to live in, and become all domestic….and I should stop). Even A2’s getting a new chance and they’re even making a pod for her. That’s so adorable and thoughtful. A companion of her own, whom she can argue with and be annoyed by (though maybe they could program her pod to be a little more sassy and rebellious). I share the pods’ fear that everything might lead to the same conclusion but then again...the circumstances are different now. So I think it’s not very likely it will. They know now that they must find their own purpose. “A future is not given to you. It is something you must seek for yourself.” … well said Pod042, well said… This ending is the canon ending for me (I think, I read the developers have confirmed this ending to be the official one for the story as well). I’m not gonna accept some ominous “everybody dies but maybe they’re happier after death”-ending anymore. I’m gonna take the happy ending, thank you very much. On your commentary at the end: Yeah, I agree. Though I called ending E a happy ending of course it’s not gonna be all fluff and no pain. They’ll remember the bad things. But now, just as you said, they can start to work through it, help eachother and heal. Now they have time and room to reevaluate. Also, on 9S remembering how 2B killed him several times...I agree that remembering exactly how it happened will be hard for him, but at the same time I think he already knew. It’s implied that he had suspected it for a very long time and still stayed with her. So the memories might be painful but I’m sure he’ll get through it. And 2B is getting a chance to atone. Also, what you said about how they made Yorha androids out of machine parts so it wouldn’t be inhumane to destroy them, but the androids developed a consciousness and will and desires, so it still became cruel. It’s like with the replicants, isn’t it (as far as I’ve gathered from your commentary and the infos)? They shouldn’t have one but they still got one. Just like the pods. ...The higher ups must be so tired of things developing a sense of self all the time. (“God, AGAIN?! Next time you tell me my fucking dish washer’s developed a consciousness!”) NYahahahaha 9S has become your favourite character. Little edge boy. But seriously, so true. The voice acting really elevates this character. And it’s needed for someone in such emotional turmoil to be acted well. Otherwise it could’ve gone so badly with him. At some point you also said sth about A2 being just introduced so late into the game (in terms of really playing as her and getting to know her). And I also think that’s a bit sad. Especially the way she appears at first makes it really not easy to like her. She seems so cold and kinda bitchy…. but still, they managed to turn her around even in the little time you have with her. Her banter with Pod042 helps a lot and the moments when she talks so sadly of 2B. I think she can empathise with her, not only bc she has her memories but bc A2 has also been very close to people she lost and has lived through a tragedy of her own. It would’ve been nice to get more time with her. But I still became a fan of her (she even got very compassionate towards 9S at the end, that warmed my heart). Also, agree with you on Nier: Automata really using the video game medium and game mechanics to deliver its story and give you a feel for it. I think it’s safe to say that this game’s a modern art piece. And I’m so proud of the developers to sneak this into the row of blockbuster games hehe (force the people to think!!!) “All good things come to an end.” .. very true I have spent about 3 weeks watching this let’s play. After Route A it got too intense for me, so I had to pace myself and watched only 1 maybe 2 episodes a day. And writing these long ass comments was really more a way to process is all. It’s quite therapeutic to write things down. But it was also a way to thank you for doing such a great lp and for taking the game seriously. This is so important for the experience, especially with a game like this. Honestly, I have never sat down to watch the episode of an lp like I’d watch a movie. Usually it’s binge watching while doing sth else simultaneously. But it felt almost like a sin with this game. And I cherished every moment. This was a lot of fun and though I’m glad I’ve finally seen the end I’m also a little sad. (what am I gonna do with my life now? damn, always this post-awesome-story-depression-hole XD) Well, I guess I’m gonna go watch your Gestalt lp and get into all Nier-fandom-content I can find. Thank you so much for all the effort.
I just finished the game myself two days ago... I couldn't do it. I couldn't save someone else. I was either too selfish or too much a coward. When I saw that you did a play-through of this game, I remember when I watched you play through Undertale. I want to thank you for truly being selfless sacrificing everything you did, everything you worked for, for no personal gain and for no reason other than to truly help a stranger in need. My heart shattered at that moment, I cried at that moment. This game has changed my life. So again, from the bottom of my broken yet still beating heart, "thank you"...
Thank you for this let's play, Welonz! It's been an absolute joy to experience this game with you. All of your little insights, right down to translating little bits of Japanese, have been so much fun. And truly, thank you for working so hard to get 100% on so many endings. Over fifty hours! I'm going to miss this game dearly, but I can't wait to see what else you've got in store!
Well that was a positive impact on deleting your data unlike in Gestalt, and man that game was sure a ride, and it makes me mad this game isn't nominated for GOTY. Regardless, I really enjoyed this play through and am glad to have seen it through to the end, it's one of my fav playthroughs of your this year tbh (^_^)
Oh wow, I teared up again watching this. Such a thoughtful and .. appreciative let's play of the game. Glad for you to have given this chance to vicariously experience it all again.
Welonz having to pause to contain herself from (I assume) tears from all the messages was very endearing and adorable. That part had me tearing up myself (even just watching after having gone through it myself). I'm glad it had the desired effect. But then when she was starting to choose her message and was like "Ugh, USA, get that outta here!" I was like "YOU WANNA FUCKING GO, MOUNTIE!?" xD Any time. Any place. Get on your moose and I'll come in on my eagle! This was also a great playthrough. Thank you for taking the time and care it seemed that you would, back when I started watching your Gestalt playthrough. I'm glad to see you enjoyed this AMAZING game, and thanks for sharing your unique experience through it! Also, for your own peace of mind, the Emil you talk to in the game IS the real Emil, confirmed by the unit data for the Emil heads boss. Though he dies for the purposes of the quest, you can still see him and access his shop afterward, so you could just say he didn't REALLY die :(
Thanks for the LP, I enjoyed watching it very much. Might be back for more. That ending is one of the few endings that always gives me the chills. The music is so effective, and then the nice messages from people.
God... what a good game this was... and it was also an amazing playthrough! So yeah... you essentially already said it Welonz... but I loved this game for doing everything Gestalt do wrong... right... And also it was great to have a breath of fresh air when it came to the storytelling and gameplay... which were both great... This is what happens when you give Yoko Taro a god damned budget! I haven't really looked up what Yoko Taro may be doing next... but I'm excited to see what he comes up with nonetheless! And also... to quote our good friend Yoko Taro... *"Shit Square Enix!"* So I think he made the Square Enix in the credits _extra_ hard on purpose in order to make people hate them a little... The absolute madman... never change... And another thing! Yeah! Why the hell was "Uruguay" near the top of the country select?! I mean... I love my country and all... and I appreciate that they made it easy to find... but still! WHY?! xD
What a great LP, you did so good, welonz! Yours is definitely one of my favorite LP channels with this game, loved hearing your opinions and observations about it, i also enjoyed the games' story . thanks for playing this beatiful game! :U
Both games have different strengths imo. I like the characters and music from the first game better, but I prefer the combat and story from Automata. I adore both games as well as Yoko Taro's Drakengard series. It was great watching your playthrough Welonz!
For me it depends. There's some parts of Gestalt story-wise that are better (the twist and you basically being the antagonist is much more shocking, and just heartwrenching overall, as are so many of the different story elements, though Automata has many as well), and there are some tracks for Automata that can surpass Gestalt's (I REALLY love the Atonement version of Song of the Ancients, though sometimes I prefer Fate, but then there's also Amusement Park, City Ruins, Blissful Death, and more). But unquestionably there's no blurred lines with Gestalt having better characters and Automata having better gameplay, even if Automata still has great characters and Gestalt has... passable gameplay lol.
Definitely check out theark (dot) wiki! It lists all the extra stories and information that makes the story extra deep. And sad. Also, Yoko Taro said 9S's bag contains tissues. Only tissues, nothing else. (They can be used for a lot of different purposes...)
Well done. Love the play through even at the times when it became ....crazed. There is alot of great youtube vids out there you can find praising this game. Skill Up. Thankyou.
That was a great playthrough, one of the best I watched, your commentry,the game, your funny mistakes, it us just great, the hours I spent watching this did not go to waste.
It was a pleasure watching your playthrough :) Nier Automata just won Game of the Year on Game Debate :D And there are a few stories written by Yoko Taro you can find on some sites that give you more info about the past and present of the characters, very interesting stuff; and even the voice actors of 9S and 2B made some videos on UA-cam reading them aloud (just look for Kyle's channel). Thank you for playing and sharing your experience.
9S fell on A2's blade. That seems to be the only real solution to how he died. Glad you went for A2's ending last as I think it is the strongest of the two even if A2 is a less engaging character (I think if we had encountered her a few more times in A/B it would have benefited her character immensely). Well, congrats on finishing this and, as usual, giving us your great commentary. It'll be interesting to see what you play next.
47:52 Just as I was thinking this is one of my favorite endings to a game, just behind Outer Wilds. "feldspar's data has been lost." Feldspar Nooooo!!! I'd bet they soloed the ending, then decided to go out helping someone else like the badass they are. You will be missed Feldspar, but never forgotten.
Congrats on finishing Nier Automata. The game is definitely not perfect, but enjoyed my time with the game so much that the problems seem small in comparison. For some reason, even though I've deleted my save file, Nier Automata sits in my Steam list and I have actively decided to not delete it for some reason. The only other game that has got me to do that is Undertale, even though I never plan on playing either one over again. I think it's pretty cool that there are negative comments available when you craft that message at the end. When I played and saw the ones that you got, I never saw a single negative comment. I'm sure they're in there, but the majority are pretty positive. So given the choice, people actively chose to send more encouraging comments instead of negative ones. Either that, or they were to lazy to scroll down to where the negative ones are, but I like the former explanation better.
Loved every min of your Let's Play! I recently finished this game and it's also first game I have played in a while aside from FFXIV. I can't explain but it truly made me think and not just slog through the story as some of the others do. I totally agree, they could pull it off ONLY cos the medium is a Video game. I can't think of how this could had been implemented into another medium. Another thing I really liked about this game was, it didn't had topnotch game play or animation but it kept things fresh with lot of different styles. Letting us imagine stories for ourselves during text based scenario part was probably one of my fav things. Really looking forward to Replicant remake next year since I haven't played the orignal version Gestalt/Replicant yet.
i know i'm like 3 years late, but i read somewhere actually that if you leave a negative message, the pods won't ask if you wanna delete your save data to help out another player! which is pretty neato :O also - ayeee canada let's gooo
One of my favourite series on this channel, such an incredible game! 1:07:34 really looking forward to how the anime adaptation turns out. "Nier Automata is how Gestalt should have been." Absolutely! Guess they got enough such feedback to go for the remake.
29:30 That one is better executed in japanese cause its the first time the pod refers to himself using watashi. Now that your save data is gone you have to play the game again with japanese dub ^^
i think it's so wonderful that people have the opportunity to be really mean in the messages, but in no let's plays or my own playthrough I have never seen anyone choose cruel options. There were some silly ones, of course, but after route [C]ry A Lot I needed some levity.
I think it's great that there were also negative options to choose from. Those messages wouldn't be worth anything if it was literally impossible to write anything not encouraging - that makes the fact that there are so many positive messages all the more beautiful.
i just realized this now but the pod that carries away 9S in ending C isnt 042 or 153, its all black with no red which all but confirms a theory i have, that unless we the player get ending E the pods who take away 9s betray you to complete their mission unless our influence as the sixth person that 042 mentions (while he talks about gaining a will of their own) show him said free will
Congrats on finishing the game, it was a wild ride with you, welonz~ oh yea-- check out Kyle McCarley channel, he and 2B VA doing reading Automata Concert script. it have more 9S, 2B, A2 moments~
I as watching this and this was first time i saw this game, a passive watcher, yet still i shed tears when second round of motivating player messages started to roll and from there on. This is game feels like i should have had bravery to play it myself before watching... This game seemed like experience in itself Got to keep eye on next game they make.
From what i understand: A2's last action was destroying the remainer of machine network, the ball that was intended to go to space. I could've easily understood wrong, tho.
Yea, I get that she destroyed it but I failed to see "how" she did it and how she fixed 9S as she said she was going to. the presentation of ending C is really confusing.
T2266 It’s technically the right order. Ending C goes into the concert’s continuation of ending E. And it’s listed after ending D in the chapter select. 9S is dead after ending C because he kills himself.
Great LP on this! Loved it. SPOILER BELOW!!!!!! Only thing I disagreed with on your summary was the revelation of 2B and her real identity. You said it was only mentioned in that one line but there is a whole side quest on route B that foreshadows this when you solve a murder and the killer was a YoRHa type E unit who was gave you the quest and is standing by the body and you see how they lie and blend in to get close to their target and how it messes with them, like her blocking the memory of having to kill yet another friend. Also the first boss as A2 in route C in the hacking part at the end you hear the commander saying ".... but for this operation you will be called 2B." After that side quest, I had my suspicions of 2B based on how her tone changed so much in route A from cold to 9S to almost destroyed by his apparent death at A ending, just like the E unit on that side quest. Then when I saw the desert part I was like yep, called this lol
Well, this ending was wonderful. I do love how, as others have said, the final ending is a rejection of the very design of the game itself, in favour of a new and better world. Without that all-encompassing sadness of the game before, this moment would not be nearly so powerful.
What a ride. I didnt know because I havent played the others, but I learned later Memory deletion in a Yoko Taro game isn't a first, maybe who played the previous ones expected it, but it was a total surprise for me. I'm sorry if my previous comment was a little spoily. And thanks for this lets play. This is the first Automata LP I've watched, and now I'll look for more. I'm sure I'll have trouble watching because most people wont be as complete and thorough as you. Thanks again. [Edit: I didn't want this to end. ;( It was my designated dinner show for so long lol Maybe I'll re-watch it.]
Probably watching this playthrough for the 3rd time now since i finished the game myself a long time ago. Doesn´t fail to amaze me everytime, such a masterpiece :) The game´s pretty nice too.
I remember getting to this part and realizing 'Oh they're going to make me literally fight their own actual real god for our happy ending' followed by "GODDAMNIT CINEMATICS" Actual tears happened, too. The more messages I read, the harder I fought, and then the chorus came in and the T E A R S. I felt like a little bitch but at the same time I felt like I could do it. Then I did. And I hope I helped someone else do it, too.
I know I'm 3 years late but a theory that I have never seen mentionned before: Is it possible that 9S reaccessed his aka 2B's memories when he died through her sword? In the scene when 2B passes the sword to A2, she tells her that those are her memories. 9S also squirms a lot before he dies. It could be just the pain but considering A2 dies immediately without much pain makes me doubt that. Through that explanation the "... that's where you were, 2B." line also makes more sense. It can't refer to the ark as the ark only ascends after his death.
21:10 Just an FYI, Yoko Taro said 9S had tissues in that little pack, not bullshitting you at all, he was trolling and admitted it but said that it is indeed the lore of what is in the pack lol
you say you didn't fight the "big wigs", the head androids, the Creators, but you did! You fought very hard, and failed, then got help from friends around the world. Together, you defeated the creators. hi five!
Think it should be noted that even in this ending, 9S's consciousness may or may not have blasted into space with Adam and the rest of the machines. 2B might be the one finding herself alone at the end of all this :(
Thank you for this awesome let's play Welonz! You really did the game justice. You probably already know her but if you don't check out ValkyrieAurora on youtube. She's a big fan of everything Yoko Taro and does some great background videos about the story of Drakengard/Nier/Nier:Automata. In case you want to fill in some of the blanks of things you might have missed in the (very complicated) story, this is the place to go. She's about your age i think and shares a similar love for Japan. Anyways, can't wait for your next let's play =D
I swear the amount of data you deleted... At least should count for 5 normal ships. Holy balls 98% You are insane and one of the best gamers i've seen of this game that has a LP on video (outside speedrunners)
"It would be significantly harder to adapt it to a movie" yeah people are not receiving well the anime lmao, I'll give it a try, I try to avoid getting influenced by others, I'm sure it will be entertaining
Gosh this game is such a masterpice and im glad i watched just after i fnished by myself. So i was wondering about something now the 2017 is over could you please make a top 10 video for 2017 that would be great so i could find other good games to play without getting spoilers.
Both are awesome IMO, and both are my fave LPs by Welonz. Still, it's a good question: which one does Ms Welonz prefer, I'd lvoe to have her make an hour long vid just discussing these two games.
This is like asking a parent "do you like your good-at-sports son or your academic-genius daughter more?" And no good parent should give a straight answer to this question :P
Then give us a long non-straight (crooked? hehehe) answer of the pros and cons of each one. Also, I presume Automata is the son and HZD is the daughter, or am I wrong? :)
Materwelonz So which game is which? And that comparison is fundamentally wrong for your childrens are your blood while these games has no familial bond with you and can be judged without bias
Oh God, it's been a few months now since I played N:A and I'm just now coming back to play NieR Gestalt and Drakengard 3. But in between that time, all I've been thinking of is NieR and I literally spend my time just listening to its soundtrack while playing other games that I now consider to be mediocre in comparison to N:A. I think I need to seek help. Lol
![A Comprehensive Reading of Nier Automata [MASSIVE SPOILERS]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/4EnbSokFpjQ/mqdefault.jpg)
![A Comprehensive Reading of Nier Automata [MASSIVE SPOILERS]](/img/tr.png)
![[FULL] RETROSPECTIVE : Final Fantasy Tactics](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/RUBmYqs1jZ0/mqdefault.jpg)
![Let's Play NieR: Automata Blind Part 1 - Glory to Mankind [NieR 2017 PC Gameplay]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/btaXpiQF4Wo/mqdefault.jpg)
My favorite thing about this game is that the game's "antagonist" isn't, like, a specific person. The antagonist is just the entire situation. Everything about the entire game is just about how much this situation, the conflict between the machines and androids is not only meaningless but also futile. All the Weapon Stories are depressing as hell. All the sidequests are depressing as hell. The situation between 9S and 2B is depressing as hell. I've heard someone describe the game as a "fractal of sadness." You start out thinking it's sad, but you zoom into it more and you find even more sadness and that sadness recontextualizes the previous sadness and then you zoom in more and more sadness happens. The entire situation of this game is helpless and depressing, but that makes the end all the more better.
The fighting the credits thing is so good cuz of that. Like, you're literally fighting the will of the game's entire world just to get a good ending, and the way they show that is you fighting the people who made the game. And then you get help from everyone else playing the game. It's great. I love it. It's so clever and I cried at the end of the game cuz it's such good pathos.
As a certain recently-released game said...
And if this world won't write me an ending
What will it take just for me to have it all?
Sulfur what game?
The chorus that can be heard when you accept help is actually the game's development team. In the end, even those who created the situation want it to end.
Also, i would like to call attention to the lyrics that loop in several different languages:
"Cause we're going to shout it loud
Even if our words seem meaningless
It's like I'm carrying the weight of the world
I wish that someway, somehow
That I could save every one of us
But the truth is that I'm only one girl "
Accepting this is what accepting the rescue offer means. It means acknowledging that one person alone is powerless against the cruelty of the world, and that to create a miracle you need to reach out to other people for help.
+NIK-MAXTER STORM
Doki Doki Literature Club. Great game, probably my third favorite game released this year. (After NieR: Automata and Persona 5)
In the end, "Square Enix" is the Final Boss, the real antagonist of the game :)
I really like that there are negative options you can choose from when leaving a message too. It gives meaning to the fact that almost all of them are positive. If they were required to be, it wouldn't mean anything. This way, you know the people who left those messages meant them.
I felt so bad when playing this part, because I was having a shitty day, and after I started getting those nice messages, I was crying so hard I couldn't see the screen. I must've gone through 30 names because I kept dying since I couldn't stop sobbing, but when I finally made it to the end it was one of the most rewarding games I've ever finished.
Gosh :^)
Even if nobody else thanks you for it, I will. Thank you for choosing to help someone.
The one thing that never fails to bring me to tears are the messages from the players during Ending E, it just goes to show that whilst you may be sitting there on your own playing the game, you have the support of people from all across the globe, who are giving you messages of hope, support and encouragement.
Also, the way that the pods are going against their programming is basically the players fighting to get the ending they want, and deserve. And that, makes me love this game even more.
Even more ironically, when 9S dies, he's holding 2B's sword, full of her memories, with 2B's hand. So she killed him one last time, even though A2, who has the same personality data as 2B and also all her memories couldn't bring herself to. Seems like 2B killing 9S is unavoidable. :(
Thanks so much for playing, this was an awesome playthrough.
@@vault29a Actually he was looking up at the ark fired, that contained all the data of machine lifeforms and the like. It's basically saying her data was on the ark, and he could've chosen to be on it with her, but didn't.
Let me share with you one last story.
Back in June, I finished the game and the ending really touched me.
So, I paid the full $60 and got a code.
And I gave it away! Sent to someone's Tumblr.
"Thank you for playing."
I thought about you as I was editing this last episode here -- "wow, I might not even have played this if somebody hadn't randomly sent me a code for it!"
Thanks again -- you da real MVP.
I just like to think that Yoko hated Squere Enix so hard that he create the final battle in ending E only to destroy them.
Hell, it's the only time you can literally hear him cheering you on. Keiichi Okabe confirmed, somewhere in that choir, was Yoko Taro.
SHIT SQUARE-ENIX !!
47:54 "Feldspar's data has been lost"
The guy came all the way from Outer Wilds to help you in another game
Yeah that hurt, especially as I discovered Welonz from her Outer Wilds play through.
23:10 The red girls, or N2 are the network that developped a personality (or ego) inspired by the records on the humans. In these records, we have information and a bit of genome from the Original, being the original Nier, the Shadowlord. The red girls are based on Nier.
N2 is a second Nier. N2 is Nier's automaton. Nier Automata.
I had a mindfuck when I realized that.
If you used emil's weapon at max level, with each hit you can hear him sing and talk hence the ability "Insanity".
I like how the pod says 'we six'. That means including the player, right?
Oh wow, I just sort of assumed 9S A2 2B etc... added up to six without actually counting. Now I'm like ;_;
I spent the longest time trying to figure out who the sixth person was.. makes sense now.
Ma Greiner Oh, I just assumed it was the three Pod 153s and the three Pod 042s. Maybe it could be either...?
That ending...also, "Square Enix" as the Final Boss, that's just genius! Thanks Ms Welonz, for the LPs and commentaries and just taking your time seeing this through right to the end.
Welonz, thanks very much for this series. I watched quite a lot of N:A Videos, but your's is far above all of them.
Regarding N:A itself: Making a bullet hell sequence where you shoot at letters one of the most emotional experiences in video game history ever reveals what this is: a masterfully crafted piece of art.
On an unrelated note: man it must've sucked for the first several guys to play through this ending :D:D:D
NO HELP.
NO MESSAGES.
JUST BULLET HELL.
actually, if you played it off line you still got messages, they would be form the cast of original NieR.
T2266
Come on, you had to spoil the joke >.< It's ruined now! :>D
T2266 Interesting, would be cool to get help from Yoko Taro.
Deepak Rajendra I actually mean the characters but oh well, that would be cool.
T2266 Oh! I just read "cast" too fast for my brain to comprehend, lol.
This was overall an amazing Let's Play even by your standards Welonz, but I just wanna say - this was probably one of the most beautiful endings E I've watched out there, your reactions were great. Thanks for doing it! Looking forward to whatever comes next :)
1:06:00 yes. Definitely. This is what happens when a skilled indie team is assigned to a AAA budget. It would not have happened if it was handled by a AAA dev, nor would it have happened in an indie studio. This configuration is the optimal game development environment.
Well, it's over. And what a journey :)
During ending C A2 removes the virus but it's implied that 9S dies as well. As for the pillar of light, it's the network/server of the tower. She manages to destroy it but it costs her life.
Ending E is one of the most beautiful, depressing but at the same time uplifting endings ever.
The metaphor behind the pods fighting their own core-programming(and the madness of bullets that comes after) it's simple but profound.
The song that plays is called "End of YoRHa" and it's a remix of "The Weight of the World". That same weight you have to carry in order to conquer a new "ending", a new hope for those little androids. But no one is fit to carry that weight alone so all the people from around the world help you. They sacrificed their own data for you, for the future.
Even if the outcome will not change, even if those androids will die again, there's always meaning in fighting. Because life is coping with a constant stream of embarrassment :)
Makes me cry every time.
Awesome playthrough Welonz.
Suppose this is the [E]nd. Thank you for a wonderful let's play, Welonz! Definitely one of, if not my favorite let's play I've seen of Nier Automata. I've loved your commentary.
A lot of people think 9S has tissues in his bag haha
I really love this ending.. it's just like what 2B said at the very start of the game.. you killed the "God" or.. everyone who worked on the game. To get your happy ending. To end the cycle of life and death.
And gosh I get chills every time when the chorus comes in. That's all the game developers and Yoko Taro singing if I'm not mistaken.
Man it'd be crazy if you wind up being one of the people who help me.
this is for those who have doubts about how the story continues: In the novel released by Nier: Automata and in the post ending data E it is known that the 9S data went with Adam and Eve in the ark, a few days later the pods they reactivate 2B and she worries because 9S does not wake up at the end a new 9S is created with her past memories stored in the pods and 2B together with 9S flee together to never be seen again.
The resistance later finds out about the Yorha project and hunts the remaining models (this was a factor why 2B and 9S fled) after an unknown jump in time it is known that the machines evolved and created their own civilizations and classes social and this generated revolutions against the highest social classes that are the bourgeois and the royalty, in the novel they do not make clear what happens with the androids so they may still be there or have gone extinct and that is all that Yoko Taro leave for Nier: Automata.
Gosh, I can't believe this is the end... all I wanted to say was: *thank you*! Thank you so, so much for playing NieR, both Gestalt and Automata!!!
Thanks to you, Welonz, I got really interested in the series. N:A quickly made it to the top of my favourite games list! It's scary to think that I might've never found out about this gem, if it wasn't for your playthroughs!
I really enjoyed this let's play. I laughed with you, I cried with you (well, I definitely cried more than you, whoops) and every video was an important part of my day. I had some rough times, too... and I'm very thankful for this LP for helping me stay happy.
Once again: Thank you so much!
Having watched your Let's Play after playing it myself, there's definitely foreshadowing for 2B being 2E, though it is extremely subtle. Thanks for the fantastic let's play!
Their have been two games that have moved me so much.
Brothers a tale of two sons.
And
Nier automata
Damn you game!
You made me tear up!
Thank you for your hard work welonz!
Hey Materwelonz!
You don't know me, and me commenting on this 2 year old video is probably either a surprise to you or you won't even see it...
But I wanted to thank you.
When I clicked on this playlist, I just wanted to know what this game was like. I didn't expect to fall in love with both the game and your commentary, and to be able to watch through this playlist full of hour long videos, but... here I am.
I don't think I would have fallen in love with the game this much if you didn't play it this toroughly, and gave it this much love. So thank you again.
I don't know if I'll stay around on your channel. I'll look through your other playlists and see if there are other playlists that interest me. Maybe I'll give Gestalt a watch, to see where this game came from, to see more of Emil...
But wether I stay or move on and don't come back, this playthrough has been a special experience to me, and I'm grateful for that. So please keep being you, and remember that you've brightened my last few days on this amazing bingewatch.
Thank you!
I forgot to say though...
There is only one sad part. You didn't wear the lunar tear while in conversation with 6O! :-P
You, dear Materwelonz, earned a sub today. I loved your playthrough entirely. After playing it for myself for 60 hours, I wanted to see the reaction of other players. But the most don't try to dig as deep into the lore as you, questioning all the happenings like me. That's why I adore your playthrough the most - even if I didn't get even near to 100%, I learned a lot about the lore through your playthrough and I hope I get a chance to play the other NieR-games as this one was my first.
I wasn't expecting to cry so much
Thanks for playing for me.
What a beautiful piece of art.
Now...i have a number of issues with NieR:Automata. Both in terms of world-building and in terms of game mechanics. But you know what? Yeah i'm not gonna bother :D. Because honestly, nobody would probably care to read that, not any of the viewers and not you, Welonz :).
Instead, i'm just gonna say this: that was one fantastic game. And one fantastic playthrough :). Thanks for that ^_-.
If anything, this LP makes me hopeful that, one day, we _will_ see an LP of Soulsborne series on this channel. That would've been just spectacular to watch.
P.S. 54:20 oh hey Vorlons, didn't figure you were behind this all along :D.
Sulfur I dont think the day of Wellonz playing soulborn ever come. Just because its not her type of game, at least i think so. I dont know if i can remeber correctly, bui i hear somewhere in her hellblade letsplay that she not good in that type of games.
But of course it will be cool to have that LP.
Слава Салтыков
Well, she did handle Hellblade, didn't she ;p. And she expressed interest in the series before, notably in a 20ksubs Q&A.
So yeah, we'll see :).
personally I kind wish to see her play the MGS series, but I don't think that day will ever come.
i was thinking of soulsborne when she was talking about games that use the gameplay to tell stories. personally i would love to see her do bloodborne especially, partly because it'd be fun to see someone who hasn't done any previous souls game go in blind...
I'm not against Soulsborne games, but they're intimidating in that they seem to be massive time sinks in a "I could be spending 5 hours to do this one thing again and again that amounts to 20 minutes of releasable footage". I'm not a very good planner (e.g. I finished editing this video just last night) so I feel these games are really hard to schedule for!
MGS - I'd also like to play this someday, but as I understand it, Konami is fairly aggressively anti-UA-cam/streaming. I've heard of many others havine lots of copyright issues.
In the end, mankind had died, but life will continue. As long as the earth remains, so too will our legacy. Through either the world we've built, or the machines to whom we gave the fruit of knowledge, humanity and what it means to exist will always live on.
Regardless of how bleak the world may seem, we are never alone. Someday, we will reach the end we long for.
This game, this game makes gets me everywhere, and it was amazing to experience it with everyone! Here's hoping the sequel that just got greenlit doesn't ruin it!
hankmillenium2000 I'm glad this game can bring such a positive vibe in all of us. I love both Gestalt and Automata. I hope whatever Square Enix is working on for Nier is wonderful.
Nier reminds me a lot of Undertale, in the way that they both bring being a video game and the mechanics there of into the story in a way that would make it impossible to replicate in another medium. Kind of like how I don't think you could make a movie out of House of Blue Leaves, hell I don't think it would even survive being turned into an ebook. It's great video games have matured enough to produce things that experiment with the boundaries of the medium.
Also wow those credits, that was something. I was already slightly teary before the arrival of the help and the song that's been on repeat kicks in again only this time with a chorus. I've played entire games that got less of an emotional reaction than that one moment.
Great game, great playthrough. So great that I don't want it to end, and that is why I'm still here hours later, "stuck" on this let's play.
Slowly, across weeks and months, listening to you play Nier has been wonderful. Thank you for all the time you've put into this. You have definitely been a light at the end of the tunnel.
Gosh, I was so excited to see the others endings and I gotta say the effort you put in was really worth it!
That final hack against A2 was once again a genius surprise. The sudden change in perspective seemed to make it so much more difficult (and it probably did, judging from your reaction). We only had that throughout normal gameplay, to see it utilised in a hack's really nice. And the final stage, when they zoom out and the it's the menu screen. Awesome. I don't really think the developers wanted to imply that hacking has always taken place in the menu screen in some way but rather wanted to place a little easter egg here (but with this game you never know, of course....I feel like there are 20 other layers of meaning here that I'll never get).
Well done in getting through all of it. That's a hard fight.
OMG even that little moment, when 9S looks up to the sky and says "So that's where you were. 2B" moved me to tears. I guess, it's a reference back to the point where they're talking about machines killing themselves in hopes of going to heaven. And 2B says they'll find out someday where they go after they die. I wonder if she hoped that she had a soul that could go to heaven... in the end at least 9S seemed to see her there. Maybe he believed it for her.
Since sb pointed out in the other comments that 9S grabs 2B's sword, after it's pierced him, with the 2B copy arm, I went back to confirm this. You really don't see how exactly this happens. It really looks pretty ridiculous. I don't wanna laugh at the scene but it is so weird. It really seems like he's falling onto the blade by accident and then grabbing it with the 2B copy arm. Like she's killed him one last time (like the comment pointed out). I wanna convince myself of the deep poetic meaning of this...but it's hard....
And I agree with you that 9S dying after he kills A2 might not be the worst to happen. I mean, what's left for him in this world? Not even Pascal's the same anymore. Who could he turn to? Revenge was the only thing still driving him. Even his hatred for machines has become meaningless. He fully understands the meaninglessness of the war now and without 2B I don't think he could find anything else to live for. Maybe he's really thrown himself onto 2B's blade.
All these different hacking environments are extremely interesting. Seeing how hacking A2 was really demanding and how 9S' inner world is like a convoluted labyrinth. It makes sense. If he's such a high end scanner model he should not be so easy to hack.
Yeah, I think they could've made this at least a little more understandable. When A2 says she knows what she has to do in order to purge the virus from 9S I thought maybe she releases 2B's memories into him, letting 2B "set him right" again. Maybe that happened. But that he still dies...maybe one can interpret it as her putting him to rest. But I read through the rest of the comments in order to understand it. Sb said A2 destroyed the machine core/network thing in the end and that this also killed her. It was really confusing since I thought she's still in 9S' consciousness. But seems like she switched to the machine network consciousness after Pod carried him away. I guess it makes sense that she destroyed the core like this. When we think back that the core at the top of the 1st resource recovery unit also sounds like a baby and that A2 (who's had to destroy some kind of main server for the machine network in this mountain back on her 1st mission) had the memory of this thing saying "mommy" inside her. Still, the cutscene kept it pretty ominous.
The moment A2 says "I never quite realised how beautiful this world is."... I deeply felt for her. She was roaming the world on her own for so long, hunted and sad and feeling guilty...she never had the time to stop and free herself from all of that. It's crazy how many layers we have to this character who we never really get to know.
In the end credits, When the pod suddenly starts talking about how in order to finish Project Yorha they need to delete all memory data, I was confused for a moment. I had totally forgotten about that. Or better: I thought that was over. After the Tower had been erected I thought that they had other problems. But the program and the orders had still been inside the pods. It's still going on. Through all this shit.
Of course, only a game like this would give you a last quite vital piece of information on the basis of a decision you have to make during the end credits scene while you don't even know what said decision actually entails. Good thing you clicked 'no' first. I was really going crazy in front of my PC.
That file with the overall info on the history of the machine evolution and the network and all is so damn necessary to a properly grasp it all. I mean, I already suspected that the machines who said they'd disconnected from the network had not REALLY disconnected. I guess, I kinda assumed they're just not getting any orders anymore since their creators were dead. But that the consciousnesses in the network had actually, let's say, "motivated" that thought in order to push it's evolution makes a lot more sense and is really quite fascinating. I'm curious if the machines are actually done for, now. Like, is the network destroyed then? BC the 2 conceptual human personalities we encounter start fighting and destroy eachother. But then there seems to be sth else. In the D-ending it's said that the network made the decision instead of shooting at the moon to gather memories of machines and androids to shoot into space. So there must be sth else there, right?
When the swearing in the document started I started wondering who the fuck wrote that. And of course, our old good friend Jackass. Bless her.
You’re right, that you fight the end credits drop down shooter style is not even that shocking. It’s Nier:Automata. What else could you expect at this point? But it’s still an amazing idea and definitely not to be expected.
And maaaan, they really make you work for that E ending. I can see a lot of people saying “Fuck it” at some point. But they’re extremely clever (once again) in encouraging you to continue. When that first message appeared I thought the name and the content read like it’s player commentary. But I was really not sure. This idea’s just so extremely brilliant. How do you come up with that stuff? Some people’s minds are just on fire all the time. So, yeah, they really make you work to get that ending but they also want you to get it so they’re helping you in the most genius and sweet way possible.
Since I bought the soundtrack a few weeks ago I knew there were 4 versions of “Weight of the world” on there. I was wondering when the fourth one’d appear. I’m glad it was made for this ending. Of course the official soundtrack version’s shorter than the one you hear in the bg here (it’s probs really just the different versions played continuously). It’s a mix of the different lines from the different languages and ends with the chorus singing “Lalalala” and I adore it. People singing together makes me extremely emotional (the only thing that would’ve made it even better, would’ve been if the choir would’ve started to sing the lyrics together).
And of course this version of the song with so many people joining to sing fits this ending so well. People coming to help and you willingly sacrificing all your safe data to help sb else in return. The idea’s just mind blowing. I mean, they really make you sacrifice sth that, at this point, might be quite valuable to you. But how could you not be willing to do so after playing this game? How could one be cold hearted enough to say no? I guess, they really know their players well. And you decided to help, yay! (You’ve played it on 100% anyway so I guess you’ve seen almost everything by now….and a game like this is worth a second playthrough.) I’m really glad your recording didn’t mess up.
(to be continued)
“And being alive is pretty much a constant stream of embarrassment.” …. Pod153 spilling the juicy truth.
“That concept is a bit too abstract for me to understand at this time. I will save it in my list of things to analyze later.” … This’ll be my answer to everything I don’t understand from now on.
OMG THANK GOD FOR THIS ENDING
I was praying for this to end on a positive note. They couldn’t make you work so hard for nothing. And hell, did they deliver!!! Watching it a second time for the comment overwhelmed me even more.
The pods saving the people they’re made to protect. Putting all of them back together. Just seeing 2B and 9S lying next to eachother made my heart overflow with joy and relief. They’ll finally be able to look at eachother without the lies in between and the overwhelming presence of Yorha hanging over their heads. They can finally be honest with eachother. (and run away, and build a cottage to live in, and become all domestic….and I should stop). Even A2’s getting a new chance and they’re even making a pod for her. That’s so adorable and thoughtful. A companion of her own, whom she can argue with and be annoyed by (though maybe they could program her pod to be a little more sassy and rebellious).
I share the pods’ fear that everything might lead to the same conclusion but then again...the circumstances are different now. So I think it’s not very likely it will. They know now that they must find their own purpose.
“A future is not given to you. It is something you must seek for yourself.” … well said Pod042, well said…
This ending is the canon ending for me (I think, I read the developers have confirmed this ending to be the official one for the story as well). I’m not gonna accept some ominous “everybody dies but maybe they’re happier after death”-ending anymore. I’m gonna take the happy ending, thank you very much.
On your commentary at the end:
Yeah, I agree. Though I called ending E a happy ending of course it’s not gonna be all fluff and no pain. They’ll remember the bad things. But now, just as you said, they can start to work through it, help eachother and heal. Now they have time and room to reevaluate. Also, on 9S remembering how 2B killed him several times...I agree that remembering exactly how it happened will be hard for him, but at the same time I think he already knew. It’s implied that he had suspected it for a very long time and still stayed with her. So the memories might be painful but I’m sure he’ll get through it. And 2B is getting a chance to atone.
Also, what you said about how they made Yorha androids out of machine parts so it wouldn’t be inhumane to destroy them, but the androids developed a consciousness and will and desires, so it still became cruel. It’s like with the replicants, isn’t it (as far as I’ve gathered from your commentary and the infos)? They shouldn’t have one but they still got one. Just like the pods. ...The higher ups must be so tired of things developing a sense of self all the time.
(“God, AGAIN?! Next time you tell me my fucking dish washer’s developed a consciousness!”)
NYahahahaha 9S has become your favourite character. Little edge boy. But seriously, so true. The voice acting really elevates this character. And it’s needed for someone in such emotional turmoil to be acted well. Otherwise it could’ve gone so badly with him.
At some point you also said sth about A2 being just introduced so late into the game (in terms of really playing as her and getting to know her). And I also think that’s a bit sad. Especially the way she appears at first makes it really not easy to like her. She seems so cold and kinda bitchy…. but still, they managed to turn her around even in the little time you have with her. Her banter with Pod042 helps a lot and the moments when she talks so sadly of 2B. I think she can empathise with her, not only bc she has her memories but bc A2 has also been very close to people she lost and has lived through a tragedy of her own. It would’ve been nice to get more time with her. But I still became a fan of her (she even got very compassionate towards 9S at the end, that warmed my heart).
Also, agree with you on Nier: Automata really using the video game medium and game mechanics to deliver its story and give you a feel for it. I think it’s safe to say that this game’s a modern art piece. And I’m so proud of the developers to sneak this into the row of blockbuster games hehe (force the people to think!!!)
“All good things come to an end.” .. very true
I have spent about 3 weeks watching this let’s play. After Route A it got too intense for me, so I had to pace myself and watched only 1 maybe 2 episodes a day. And writing these long ass comments was really more a way to process is all. It’s quite therapeutic to write things down. But it was also a way to thank you for doing such a great lp and for taking the game seriously. This is so important for the experience, especially with a game like this. Honestly, I have never sat down to watch the episode of an lp like I’d watch a movie. Usually it’s binge watching while doing sth else simultaneously. But it felt almost like a sin with this game. And I cherished every moment.
This was a lot of fun and though I’m glad I’ve finally seen the end I’m also a little sad. (what am I gonna do with my life now? damn, always this post-awesome-story-depression-hole XD) Well, I guess I’m gonna go watch your Gestalt lp and get into all Nier-fandom-content I can find.
Thank you so much for all the effort.
I just finished the game myself two days ago... I couldn't do it. I couldn't save someone else. I was either too selfish or too much a coward. When I saw that you did a play-through of this game, I remember when I watched you play through Undertale. I want to thank you for truly being selfless sacrificing everything you did, everything you worked for, for no personal gain and for no reason other than to truly help a stranger in need. My heart shattered at that moment, I cried at that moment. This game has changed my life. So again, from the bottom of my broken yet still beating heart, "thank you"...
Thank you for this let's play, Welonz! It's been an absolute joy to experience this game with you. All of your little insights, right down to translating little bits of Japanese, have been so much fun. And truly, thank you for working so hard to get 100% on so many endings. Over fifty hours! I'm going to miss this game dearly, but I can't wait to see what else you've got in store!
Well that was a positive impact on deleting your data unlike in Gestalt, and man that game was sure a ride, and it makes me mad this game isn't nominated for GOTY. Regardless, I really enjoyed this play through and am glad to have seen it through to the end, it's one of my fav playthroughs of your this year tbh (^_^)
This was an amazing Let's Play! Great content!
Oh wow, I teared up again watching this. Such a thoughtful and .. appreciative let's play of the game. Glad for you to have given this chance to vicariously experience it all again.
Welonz having to pause to contain herself from (I assume) tears from all the messages was very endearing and adorable. That part had me tearing up myself (even just watching after having gone through it myself). I'm glad it had the desired effect.
But then when she was starting to choose her message and was like "Ugh, USA, get that outta here!" I was like "YOU WANNA FUCKING GO, MOUNTIE!?" xD Any time. Any place. Get on your moose and I'll come in on my eagle!
This was also a great playthrough. Thank you for taking the time and care it seemed that you would, back when I started watching your Gestalt playthrough. I'm glad to see you enjoyed this AMAZING game, and thanks for sharing your unique experience through it!
Also, for your own peace of mind, the Emil you talk to in the game IS the real Emil, confirmed by the unit data for the Emil heads boss. Though he dies for the purposes of the quest, you can still see him and access his shop afterward, so you could just say he didn't REALLY die :(
Thanks for the LP, I enjoyed watching it very much. Might be back for more.
That ending is one of the few endings that always gives me the chills. The music is so effective, and then the nice messages from people.
God... what a good game this was... and it was also an amazing playthrough!
So yeah... you essentially already said it Welonz... but I loved this game for doing everything Gestalt do wrong... right...
And also it was great to have a breath of fresh air when it came to the storytelling and gameplay... which were both great...
This is what happens when you give Yoko Taro a god damned budget!
I haven't really looked up what Yoko Taro may be doing next... but I'm excited to see what he comes up with nonetheless!
And also... to quote our good friend Yoko Taro... *"Shit Square Enix!"*
So I think he made the Square Enix in the credits _extra_ hard on purpose in order to make people hate them a little...
The absolute madman... never change...
And another thing!
Yeah!
Why the hell was "Uruguay" near the top of the country select?!
I mean... I love my country and all... and I appreciate that they made it easy to find... but still! WHY?! xD
I really loved this let's play, you did a great job and saw everything the game had to offer. We are all proud of you Welonz
What a great LP, you did so good, welonz! Yours is definitely one of my favorite LP channels with this game, loved hearing your opinions and observations about it, i also enjoyed the games' story . thanks for playing this beatiful game! :U
Thank you for playing this game, I enjoyed a lot watching your Let's plays. Love your channel ❤️
Both games have different strengths imo. I like the characters and music from the first game better, but I prefer the combat and story from Automata. I adore both games as well as Yoko Taro's Drakengard series. It was great watching your playthrough Welonz!
For me it depends. There's some parts of Gestalt story-wise that are better (the twist and you basically being the antagonist is much more shocking, and just heartwrenching overall, as are so many of the different story elements, though Automata has many as well), and there are some tracks for Automata that can surpass Gestalt's (I REALLY love the Atonement version of Song of the Ancients, though sometimes I prefer Fate, but then there's also Amusement Park, City Ruins, Blissful Death, and more).
But unquestionably there's no blurred lines with Gestalt having better characters and Automata having better gameplay, even if Automata still has great characters and Gestalt has... passable gameplay lol.
Definitely check out theark (dot) wiki! It lists all the extra stories and information that makes the story extra deep. And sad.
Also, Yoko Taro said 9S's bag contains tissues. Only tissues, nothing else. (They can be used for a lot of different purposes...)
Well done. Love the play through even at the times when it became ....crazed. There is alot of great youtube vids out there you can find praising this game. Skill Up. Thankyou.
That was a great playthrough, one of the best I watched, your commentry,the game, your funny mistakes, it us just great, the hours I spent watching this did not go to waste.
It was a pleasure watching your playthrough :) Nier Automata just won Game of the Year on Game Debate :D And there are a few stories written by Yoko Taro you can find on some sites that give you more info about the past and present of the characters, very interesting stuff; and even the voice actors of 9S and 2B made some videos on UA-cam reading them aloud (just look for Kyle's channel). Thank you for playing and sharing your experience.
9S fell on A2's blade. That seems to be the only real solution to how he died. Glad you went for A2's ending last as I think it is the strongest of the two even if A2 is a less engaging character (I think if we had encountered her a few more times in A/B it would have benefited her character immensely).
Well, congrats on finishing this and, as usual, giving us your great commentary. It'll be interesting to see what you play next.
Cowinspace From what I've noticed, it felt more like A2 pulled 9S down, which made him fall on her sword? I dunno...
Looked more like 9S tackled her as he shoved his sword into her to me.
47:52 Just as I was thinking this is one of my favorite endings to a game, just behind Outer Wilds.
"feldspar's data has been lost."
Feldspar Nooooo!!! I'd bet they soloed the ending, then decided to go out helping someone else like the badass they are. You will be missed Feldspar, but never forgotten.
Congrats on finishing Nier Automata. The game is definitely not perfect, but enjoyed my time with the game so much that the problems seem small in comparison. For some reason, even though I've deleted my save file, Nier Automata sits in my Steam list and I have actively decided to not delete it for some reason. The only other game that has got me to do that is Undertale, even though I never plan on playing either one over again.
I think it's pretty cool that there are negative comments available when you craft that message at the end. When I played and saw the ones that you got, I never saw a single negative comment. I'm sure they're in there, but the majority are pretty positive. So given the choice, people actively chose to send more encouraging comments instead of negative ones.
Either that, or they were to lazy to scroll down to where the negative ones are, but I like the former explanation better.
I like to think most of the people who enter in a shitty message aren't willing to pay the price of deleting their save. If true it's quite clever.
What a journey! I really enjoyed your playthrough. Thanks for the ride :D
Loved every min of your Let's Play! I recently finished this game and it's also first game I have played in a while aside from FFXIV. I can't explain but it truly made me think and not just slog through the story as some of the others do.
I totally agree, they could pull it off ONLY cos the medium is a Video game. I can't think of how this could had been implemented into another medium.
Another thing I really liked about this game was, it didn't had topnotch game play or animation but it kept things fresh with lot of different styles. Letting us imagine stories for ourselves during text based scenario part was probably one of my fav things.
Really looking forward to Replicant remake next year since I haven't played the orignal version Gestalt/Replicant yet.
i know i'm like 3 years late, but i read somewhere actually that if you leave a negative message, the pods won't ask if you wanna delete your save data to help out another player! which is pretty neato :O
also - ayeee canada let's gooo
A pleasant surprise this came out today instead of tomorrow.
This was an awesome series. Thanks.
45:48
The translation of the last sentence of the german one isnt quite right.
The translation would be: "But you are not alone."
One of my favourite series on this channel, such an incredible game!
1:07:34 really looking forward to how the anime adaptation turns out.
"Nier Automata is how Gestalt should have been." Absolutely! Guess they got enough such feedback to go for the remake.
29:30
That one is better executed in japanese cause its the first time the pod refers to himself using watashi.
Now that your save data is gone you have to play the game again with japanese dub ^^
i think it's so wonderful that people have the opportunity to be really mean in the messages, but in no let's plays or my own playthrough I have never seen anyone choose cruel options. There were some silly ones, of course, but after route [C]ry A Lot I needed some levity.
I think it's great that there were also negative options to choose from. Those messages wouldn't be worth anything if it was literally impossible to write anything not encouraging - that makes the fact that there are so many positive messages all the more beautiful.
i just realized this now but the pod that carries away 9S in ending C isnt 042 or 153, its all black with no red which all but confirms a theory i have, that unless we the player get ending E the pods who take away 9s betray you to complete their mission unless our influence as the sixth person that 042 mentions (while he talks about gaining a will of their own) show him said free will
Congrats on finishing the game, it was a wild ride with you, welonz~
oh yea--
check out Kyle McCarley channel, he and 2B VA doing reading Automata Concert script. it have more 9S, 2B, A2 moments~
Also strange: those pigeons at the end might actually be the pods for whatever reason (Drakengard 3 for reference).
Super late to comments. But ran puppet bunker tonight and finished welonz nier vids. Just wanted to say ending song is from A2s eyes.
I as watching this and this was first time i saw this game, a passive watcher, yet still i shed tears when second round of motivating player messages started to roll and from there on.
This is game feels like i should have had bravery to play it myself before watching...
This game seemed like experience in itself
Got to keep eye on next game they make.
I'm sure there's some crazy Japanese guy who cleared the credits alone.
17:56 that's what happened when you play the endings in the wrong order lol.
And I don't really get what happened in ending C either.
From what i understand: A2's last action was destroying the remainer of machine network, the ball that was intended to go to space.
I could've easily understood wrong, tho.
Yea, I get that she destroyed it but I failed to see "how" she did it and how she fixed 9S as she said she was going to. the presentation of ending C is really confusing.
T2266 It’s technically the right order. Ending C goes into the concert’s continuation of ending E. And it’s listed after ending D in the chapter select.
9S is dead after ending C because he kills himself.
Yoko Taro may have mentioned in an early interview about remaking the original Nier as a future project.
Pod 042's VA is Legion's from mass effect wonder if that had any effect on the casting decision given what happens here.
He also voices Valimar in The Legend of Heroes: Trails of Cold Steel games... another robot who gradually becomes more empathetic and warmer lol
Great LP on this! Loved it. SPOILER BELOW!!!!!!
Only thing I disagreed with on your summary was the revelation of 2B and her real identity. You said it was only mentioned in that one line but there is a whole side quest on route B that foreshadows this when you solve a murder and the killer was a YoRHa type E unit who was gave you the quest and is standing by the body and you see how they lie and blend in to get close to their target and how it messes with them, like her blocking the memory of having to kill yet another friend. Also the first boss as A2 in route C in the hacking part at the end you hear the commander saying ".... but for this operation you will be called 2B." After that side quest, I had my suspicions of 2B based on how her tone changed so much in route A from cold to 9S to almost destroyed by his apparent death at A ending, just like the E unit on that side quest. Then when I saw the desert part I was like yep, called this lol
Well, this ending was wonderful. I do love how, as others have said, the final ending is a rejection of the very design of the game itself, in favour of a new and better world. Without that all-encompassing sadness of the game before, this moment would not be nearly so powerful.
What a ride.
I didnt know because I havent played the others, but I learned later Memory deletion in a Yoko Taro game isn't a first,
maybe who played the previous ones expected it, but it was a total surprise for me.
I'm sorry if my previous comment was a little spoily. And thanks for this lets play.
This is the first Automata LP I've watched, and now I'll look for more.
I'm sure I'll have trouble watching because most people wont be as complete and thorough as you.
Thanks again.
[Edit: I didn't want this to end. ;( It was my designated dinner show for so long lol Maybe I'll re-watch it.]
No worries! I'd finished the game by that point so nothing spoiled :) Glad to hear you enjoyed it!
Probably watching this playthrough for the 3rd time now since i finished the game myself a long time ago. Doesn´t fail to amaze me everytime, such a masterpiece :)
The game´s pretty nice too.
I remember getting to this part and realizing 'Oh they're going to make me literally fight their own actual real god for our happy ending' followed by "GODDAMNIT CINEMATICS"
Actual tears happened, too. The more messages I read, the harder I fought, and then the chorus came in and the T E A R S. I felt like a little bitch but at the same time I felt like I could do it.
Then I did.
And I hope I helped someone else do it, too.
I know I'm 3 years late but a theory that I have never seen mentionned before: Is it possible that 9S reaccessed his aka 2B's memories when he died through her sword? In the scene when 2B passes the sword to A2, she tells her that those are her memories. 9S also squirms a lot before he dies. It could be just the pain but considering A2 dies immediately without much pain makes me doubt that. Through that explanation the "... that's where you were, 2B." line also makes more sense. It can't refer to the ark as the ark only ascends after his death.
21:10 Just an FYI, Yoko Taro said 9S had tissues in that little pack, not bullshitting you at all, he was trolling and admitted it but said that it is indeed the lore of what is in the pack lol
Thanks you for the journey !
you say you didn't fight the "big wigs", the head androids, the Creators, but you did! You fought very hard, and failed, then got help from friends around the world. Together, you defeated the creators. hi five!
Think it should be noted that even in this ending, 9S's consciousness may or may not have blasted into space with Adam and the rest of the machines. 2B might be the one finding herself alone at the end of all this :(
The facial animation is fine. The lip syncing was off because it was made for the Japanese voice-over. That's why it seemed weird to you.
You're not so bad Pod. You know that?
44:30 Haha, a good one.
Thank you for this awesome let's play Welonz! You really did the game justice. You probably already know her but if you don't check out ValkyrieAurora on youtube. She's a big fan of everything Yoko Taro and does some great background videos about the story of Drakengard/Nier/Nier:Automata. In case you want to fill in some of the blanks of things you might have missed in the (very complicated) story, this is the place to go. She's about your age i think and shares a similar love for Japan. Anyways, can't wait for your next let's play =D
*Welonz [Shitty world shitty game!][One thing is certain][Im starving ][USA]*
You're kinda evil :D.
somehow when I saw this line, it's read out in in my head in AVGN's voice.
Can't be too shitty if it brings such emotion, right? :MoonFace:
I swear the amount of data you deleted... At least should count for 5 normal ships.
Holy balls 98% You are insane and one of the best gamers i've seen of this game that has a LP on video (outside speedrunners)
"It would be significantly harder to adapt it to a movie" yeah people are not receiving well the anime lmao, I'll give it a try, I try to avoid getting influenced by others, I'm sure it will be entertaining
This series ended, i feel sorrow like never before
Gosh this game is such a masterpice and im glad i watched just after i fnished by myself. So i was wondering about something now the 2017 is over could you please make a top 10 video for 2017 that would be great so i could find other good games to play without getting spoilers.
Thank you.
Good job Welonz :)
I just spent the last 3 days binging this entire series, all of my thoughts consist only of NieR, do I get an award?
please help
caught me off guard when u read that japanese easily lol
Just a thank you here from a stranger for deleting your save files to help another stranger :)
I'm sobbing ngl
부삭씨,.. 정말 잘 봤습니다...
RIP save
It's time for the ultimate question Welonz: Horizon Zero Dawn vs NieR Automata?
Both are awesome IMO, and both are my fave LPs by Welonz. Still, it's a good question: which one does Ms Welonz prefer, I'd lvoe to have her make an hour long vid just discussing these two games.
This is like asking a parent "do you like your good-at-sports son or your academic-genius daughter more?"
And no good parent should give a straight answer to this question :P
Then give us a long non-straight (crooked? hehehe) answer of the pros and cons of each one. Also, I presume Automata is the son and HZD is the daughter, or am I wrong? :)
Materwelonz So which game is which? And that comparison is fundamentally wrong for your childrens are your blood while these games has no familial bond with you and can be judged without bias
Oh God, it's been a few months now since I played N:A and I'm just now coming back to play NieR Gestalt and Drakengard 3. But in between that time, all I've been thinking of is NieR and I literally spend my time just listening to its soundtrack while playing other games that I now consider to be mediocre in comparison to N:A. I think I need to seek help. Lol