NieR Replicant ver.1.22474487139 Review
A quick browse on social media will reveal that Toylogic’s NieR Replicant ver.1.22474487139 is a game whose pedigree confuses many people. A spin-off of the Drakengard series and published by Square Enix, Replicant the remaster is actually the fourth iteration of what is essentially the same game. In 2010, the original NieR Replicant was released in Japan for the PlayStation 3, with an alternate version called NieR Gestalt launching on the Xbox 360. Outside of Japan, Gestalt was released as simply NieR. According to Yoko Taro, the game’s creative director, this latest release is not a remaster or a remake, but rather an update, version 1.22474487139. Those who pick up NieR Replicant because they’re fans of the sequel Nier Automata will likely be pleased, as the two games have comparable overall themes, gameplay, and – shares one writer, Hana Kikuchi – intriguing characters. story. Replicant’s camera and battle system have been reworked to be more streamlined and similar to Automata. But it’s worth noting that the original NieR Replicant pre-dates Automata by nearly a decade, and the overall feel of the game reflects that, despite the tweaks. NieR Automata’s soundtrack has garnered many awards, and Replicant’s first-rate score comes from one of the same composers, Keiichi Okabe, who also worked on Tekken and Drakengard. The music in Replicant ver.1.22474487139 has been re-recorded, but only to make it cleaner and sharper. It will still be completely familiar to fans of the original soundtrack, as well as some of Nier Replicant’s English voice actors, some of whom reprized their roles from the first game with an updated that script.
NieR Replicant tries to be inventive, and succeeds in many ways. The game’s core mechanics don’t introduce anything that hasn’t been seen in countless RPGs over the years. But the gestalt, one might say, of what the Replicant has to offer distinguishes it in many of the areas where it matters most. Most of it goes through the oddities – the story is a little strange, the bosses are a little strange, but in an acceptable and maybe even brave way. Although the main narrative is very linear, it manages to prevent players from feeling forced, thanks to almost 70 side quests that give the freedom to deviate from the predetermined path for quite some time. The game can be beaten in about 20 hours, but a completionist can easily spend 80 hours fishing, tending to the garden, completing quests, and farming materials for weapon upgrades. The foundation of the story is the overused premise of a main character who discovers that he is special and sets out on a quest to save the world. But from that foundation, Replicant moves into a story unique enough to be one of the game’s strongest points. While it starts off slow and may lose players expected to be drawn in right away, those who stick with it will be treated to a bold and creative story that breaks away from the usual RPG fare. It evokes emotion, from sad plot twists to hilarious banter, and also introduces some interesting and charismatic characters. And, of course, one of the possible endings of the Replicant is known in the gaming world for its inventiveness and finality.
One notable difference between Replicant and NieR as it aired outside of Japan is that the main character is no longer Dad Nier, an older man looking to save his sick daughter. The main character is now a teenager whose sister is dying from a mysterious disease. While searching for a cure, he came across a talking mystical tome called Grimoire Weiss, which gave him magical powers that were the key to curing the terrible disease. Other intriguing characters join the party such as Kainé, a standoffish woman with a powerful secret, and the blind boy Emil, who undergoes a traumatic transformation after regaining his suppressed memories. Hand in hand with the game’s strengths are weaknesses that cannot be ignored. Replicant’s biggest fault is the tedium that pervades the entire game. Navigating towns with unnecessarily clunky and nonsensical layouts, weapon upgrades that require hours of mindless farming in NieR Replicant dungeons, and looping music that even a beautiful soundtrack begins to sound in the ear. Simply moving from location to location becomes monotonous because fast travel doesn’t unlock until after the halfway point of the game. This is not a small problem; it detracts from the whole experience. While many aspects of the game shine and surpass other RPGs, Replicant takes repetition and grinding to a new level as well. Even discovering the true ending and full story of the game is a challenge, as unlocking it requires multiple playthroughs and the fulfillment of specific requirements. Add to that the fact that most of the game’s side quests are delivery or fetch quests of the “collect 10 of this and 20 of that” variety, requiring more farming that will soon turn any eager player into a heavy-lidded automaton . But at the same time, most immersion in the game world happens by doing side quests and interacting with NPCs.
Repetition also brings in the design of the enemy. The main enemies in the game are known as Shades, which come from the same darkness that spread a deadly disease to the inhabitants of the land. Although they vary in size and attack pattern, the run-of-the-mill enemies share a similar look and style. Even as the game progresses to a more “hard” stage, many of the enemies are only given armor to differentiate them from their weaker counterparts. On the other hand, the designs and boss fights are for the most part innovative and enjoyable, with some even earning a jaw-dropping or exclamation point with their impressive presentation. NieR Automata’s highly regarded combat influenced some of the changes introduced in the Replicant remaster, with combat animations redone and the entire system tweaked for a more seamless experience. However, players who play for the story will enjoy it more than those looking for challenging combat that requires skill to master. Despite the overhaul, fighting in Replicant remains relatively simple and mainly consists of button mashing, with combos occurring automatically. However, while not completely innovative, the combat remains engaging, and some spells add a welcome bit of flavor as players endlessly slash at enemies with sword or spear.
One gameplay mechanic of NieR Replicant that showed potential was the ability to kite Shades in light, weakening and potentially killing them. The game’s weather changes regularly from overcast to sunny and, when the sky is overcast, certain areas will be filled with Shades busily killing the local fauna. When the sun shines brightly, the Shades become difficult. It is not often that a location has both sunlight and a shadow area where Shades spawn. So, unfortunately, this promising feature is not used in the game and rarely survives. NieR Replicant is generally a successful remaster, with a bit of spit and polish that improves many aspects of the original game, but with some of the negatives, unfortunately, also persisting. The result is an action RPG that will keep most players entertained for hours, as the story, combat, and characters outweigh the boredom of playing Replicant over and over again. NieR Replicant ver.1.22474487139 was released on April 23 for PC, PS4, and Xbox One. Today Technology was provided with a PS4 code for this review.