All Articles: Nier: Automata

Platinum Games has always operated in their own little corner of the game industry, but a string of bad reviews (for Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutants in Manhattan and Star Fox Zero) and bad luck (the cancellation of Scalebound) left the developer on the ropes earlier this year. Thankfully, their fortunes have been on the upswing in recent months thanks to the massive success of Nier: Automata.

Platinum’s Director, Hideki Kamiya, knows exactly how important Nier: Automata has been for the company’s bottom line. He recently wrote on Twitter that the game (along with it’s Director, Yoko Taro) saved the developer:

Nier’s success gave Platinum a different fan base, as well as a growing staff, a successful experience, an increased number of excellent employment candidates and immense benefits. Originally, I tried to do everything myself. It is a sad story, but Platinum was saved by Yoko-san. I can not thank him enough.

Nier: Automata was released for the PC and PS4 by Square Enix this Spring, and it’s an action RPG that features advanced cyborgs battling for control of Earth against a race of invading aliens. Even though it’s a sequel to a spinoff of a forgotten franchise, Nier: Automata’s distinctive visuals and wild universe resonated with gamers.

Platinum Games is currently hard at work on Granblue Fantasy: Project Re-Link for the PS4. A Western release for the game has yet to be announced.

The original Nier has gathered together a rather dedicated cult following since its release in 2010, and this built-in audience has helped propel the recently-released sequel to new heights. Nier: Automata was released for the PC and PS4 last month, and Square Enix announced today that worldwide shipments and digital sales of the game have surpassed one million copies.

Square Enix also turned the Square Enix Blog over to Character Modeler Hito Matsudaira, who went over the process he used to create Nier: Automata’s 2B:

Does anyone famous in particular come to mind when you think of a character modeler? No one comes to my mind – character modelers rarely come out in public these days! Fortunately for me, I was given this opportunity so I would like to explain what kind of thoughts I had, and how I modeled the character 2B using some in-progress images of the character.

I would like to show you that the process isn’t as simple as changing an illustration into 3D.

If you’re still on the fence about Nier: Automata, a demo is now available to download for the PS4 through the PlayStation Store.

Androids, swords, mech-suits, and platinum blonde hair abound in the latest Nier: Automata trailer.

The latest trailer for the PlatinumGames-developed RPG takes us to a post-apocalyptic, war-torn setting, in the extremely distant year of 11945 AD. 2B and 9S, members of an elite android squad, are tasked with saving the human race, and they’re fighting against the likes of other androids, titan-sized robots, and a host of other enemies during the 14th Machine War.

Nier: Automata is a sequel to 2010’s Nier, which was itself a somewhat polarizing spinoff of the Drakengard series. But if you’re unfamiliar with the action RPG, Square Enix is here to help with a quick primer of the game’s plot:

Invaders from another world attack without warning, unleashing their secret weapon: the machines. In the face of this insurmountable threat, the human race is driven from the earth and takes refuge on the moon.

The humans develop an army of android soldiers to fight back against the mechanical horde, but succeed only in slowing its advance. To break the deadlock, a new breed of android infantry is sent into the fray: the YoRHa squad.

In the forsaken wasteland below, the war between the machines and the androids rages on. A war that is soon to unveil the long-forgotten truth of this world…

Fans who have been anxiously awaiting Nier: Automata’s North American release for PlayStation 4 and Steam on March 7 can download and play a demo of the game right now. And for those of us who haven’t been eagerly awaiting for the latest arrival in the Nier franchise, the demo is still worth checking out. You never know, you might actually find that you like it.

All that being said, after seeing the above trailer (and a brand new 25-minute walkthrough from the PlayStation Blog, which is available after the break), it’s pretty clear that Nier: Automata is one to add to your wishlist. I mean, who doesn’t love swords and mech-suits? (more…)