Yazu13
 
 
I'm primarily a PC gamer, but I usually have a Sony console as well for the exclusives. I like discovering games that are more on the indie side and don't get the attention they deserve, so being on PC is a good place for that. I try to write a review for a game if it left a lasting impression on me, or isn't already covered to death by gamers and journalists. I enjoy writing, and hopefully my reviews get read by somebody and helps them find a new hidden gem.
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(I would first like to preface this review by saying that despite any technical troubles this game may currently suffer from, they are minor and you would be doing yourself a disservice by not giving this game a shot. I don't condone the fact that Square Enix seems content with leaving the game as is for those with minor problems even after the most recent patch, and I feel bad for Platinum having to shoulder the blame, but the game is nearly issue-free at this point if you incorporate the FAR Mod.)

Nier: Automata is a breakthrough moment in gaming. I can only recall one other game that married its gameplay, soundtrack, and story so effectively to deliver such a masterclass gaming experience, and that would be Undertale. This is high praise considering how Undertale shook the gaming world, but comparing this game to it is far from unreasonable. Yoko Taro will go down in gaming history as one of the most talented directors of his time, alongside titans such as Hideo Kojima and Shigeru Miyamoto. Nier's balance of fluid and effortlessly stylish combat, haunting and evocative musical accompaniment, and brutally resonating, emotional storytelling is a recipe for one of the most compelling experiences in all of gaming.

Controlling your character feels responsive and tight, and combat never feels like a chore thanks to its diversity. The game delights in surprising the player with its variety, as one moment you could be hacking and slashing away at enemies in a ballet of swords, then participating in a twin-stick shooter the next moment, and finally a bullet-hell style hacking minigame. Yet, these changes in style, both bold and sometimes subtle (like forcing the camera to shift to a new perspective to nudge you into playing differently) never feel like they don't fit in the flow of the game. Every part of the game strives to make sense of the mad mixture of styles by making each style contribute to the other, and tying them all very closely to a story context. Never will you be doing an action in Nier that does not have some impact or relevance to the lore or story, which you will eventually care about deeply. In this way, many of the quests are given more weight and pertinence to the player's actions, making the fun gameplay its own kind of rudimentary reward beside the payoff of learning some new piece of information about the fascinating world of Nier and its characters.

Its characters as well, really are the stars of the show. It's been hundreds of years since an alien-led invasion of Earth left the planet inhospitable, forcing mankind to flee to the moon. The aliens employed machines to fight for them, and humanity in turn, made androids to fight this proxy war and hopefully regain their former home. The war is not going well for humanity, and it has been raging longer than anyone can remember. Androids in a central stronghold called the Bunker, as well as those left on Earth as part of a resistance movement, try to eek out some sort of life amidst the neverending conflict. Likewise, the machines they fight against, while initially simplistic and seemingly mindless, begin to take on human characteristics such as seeing eachother as family, getting angry over the death of a friend, or pondering existence itself; blurring the lines between the machines and more emotive androids.

In no time at all, making you care about the fates of friend and foe alike becomes the game's bread and butter, and lends an added weight to all of the tragic conflict unfolding on-screen. Nier Is a sad tale, steeped in melancholic moments of humanity for characters that are, by all accounts, not human. The world is an endless war, and both sides feel the fatigue and sorrow of waging it. It's compelling and heartbreaking in a way few games dare to be, and it will leave you thinking and feeling long after the credits roll. Nier has a lot of story to tell though, and even after the initial cedits, the game will drastically change things up as you progress to each "New Game+". It paces itself so that the story, the stakes, and all of the beautiful moments are continually raised to greater heights as you progress. The game also finds ways to radically shake your expectations the further you delve into it, and masterfully prevents you from getting too comfortable with any currently established gameplay pattern or story breakthrough.

All of these moments are brought to life by a musical score that is ever-changing and consistently enthralling. Nearly every piece of music is unique and has multiple versions of itself, with vocals ranging from French to English to Spanish, played at exactly the right moment to help reinforce the emotions or scenery on display. Not enough can be said about Nier's masterful use of audio and music to make its world believable and so unforgettable. While in the middle of a discussion with an NPC, if the tone in the conversation shifts to a more sad or ponderous one from the initial harmless small-talk, the background music will shift from a cheery melody into a slow acoustic guitar accompanied by wistful French vocals. At all moments, Nier knows exactly what it wants to convey and make you feel, and its audio design perfectly accompanies its multifaceted world every step of the way.

Truly, Nier: Automata makes such a lasting and deep impression that it can be hard to let go even once you've finished all that it offers. After it has left you emotionally devastated and absolutely captivated, with its subject matter so fascinating and endearing, you will only wish you could forget it all so you could experience it once again from fresh eyes. Nier: Automata, despite what you may preconceive about it as a game, will absolutely astonish you and take your breath away in unexpected ways. You will let down your guard while playing this game, and it will plant itself in your mind like a seed waiting to sprout into something utterly ineffable, and you won't ever be able to forget it.
Yazu's Music Discovery Corner
Some of my favorite lesser-known bands and musicians. They're all extremely talented and make some of the most unique and enjoyable music around, especially if you're sick of what's on the radio.

-3LO - A producer on Soundcloud with some serious talent for Trap, Beats, and House style music.
Highlight Tracks --- 1. Bed, Bap & Beyond 2. Ctrlla 3. Flame Emoji 4. Golden Hour 5. Pwr

-Andy McKee - An amazing acoustic guitarist with some very soothing tracks and fast fingers.
Highlight Tracks --- 1. Art of Motion 2. Drifting 3. Keys to the Hovercar 4. Practice is Perfect 5.

-Capsule - A japanese electronica band with a big catalogue of tracks, most of which are pure gold.
Highlight Tracks --- 1. CONTROL 2. Electric Light Moon Light 3. Eternity 4. Jelly (Album Edit)

-Cavalier - Chill Trap artist that dabbles and experiments in a lot of different styles.
Highlight Tracks --- 1. Dream State 2. External 3. NEXT UP (Ft. Ezra & Oshi) 4. MIST

-Cavanaugh - Jazzy and mellow tracks, with some Rap and Beats mixed in. Relaxing stuff.
Highlight Tracks --- 1. Rain in the Morning 2. Blue Moon 3. Blissful 4. Damn Girl

-CHON - Progressive Rock with no vocals, but seriously talented and enjoyable. Great albums.
Highlight Tracks --- 1. Dew 2. Newborn Sun 3. Puddle 4. Story

-Clever Girl - Progressive jazz. Unfortunately only made 4 tracks, but they're mindblowing.
Highlight Tracks --- 1. Elm 2. Ohmygodiloveyoupleasedontleaveme 3. Sleepyhead Symphony

-Courage My Love - A Canadian Pop and Alternative Rock band. Young but very talented.
Highlight Tracks --- 1. Cold Blooded 2. I Sell Comics 3. Smoke and Mirrors 4. The River

-Coyote Kisses - Electronica and Dubstep. Amazing stuff, even if you don't normally like Dubstep.
Highlight Tracks --- 1. Acid Wolfpack 2. Ferrari 3. Galactic Love Song 4. Stay With You

-||DILIP|| (AKA Lil' Stank) - A God of Trap and bass work, if you have speakers with good bass.
Highlight Tracks --- 1. Day/Night 2. Elegance 3. Hold Up 4. Might As Well 5. Mochi 6. ♥♥♥♥

-DOJO! - Very unique electronic stuff, with some Japanese influence.
Highlight Tracks --- 1. Champagne Wednesday 2. Courts 3. Honest 4. White with Blue Stripes

-DEAF KEV - Unique dubstep and electronica music. You'll be hooked.
Highlight Tracks --- 1. Fade Away 2. Fly Away 3. Samurai

-Frij - Unique electronic stuff and some experimental tracks. Catchy and addictive.
Highlight Tracks --- 1. Bumblebee 2. Lynx 3. Panorama 4. Peripherals 5. Requisite 6. Superimpose

-Ghost Data - Electronica and Trance with some Japanese influence. Dabbles in other genres.
Highlight Tracks --- 1. Mahou Shoujo 2. Blatant Plagiarism 3. Tender Kiss 4. White Rabbit

-GrynPyret - The "Happy Sound" as I like to call it. Unique stuff to put a smile on your face.
Highlight Tracks --- 1. A Song About Naps 2. Boba Beach 3. Forces 4. Kites 5. Tamagotchi

-James Gent - Electronic music with some experimental tones and nice Beats work. Very talented.
Highlight Tracks --- 1. Distance 2. Funny Feeling 3. Hurry 4. Kindling 5. Ramen 6. Relieved

-Kaivaan - Japanese electronic music with some truly excellent tracks. Quite a gem.
Highlight Tracks --- 1. Future Candy 2. Moonshine 3 Ruby 4. Stardust 5. Yunomi

-Lemaitre - Electronic, Pop, Funky music with some very impressive Complextro sounds. Catchy.
Highlight Tracks --- 1. Cut To Black 2. Fiction 3. Iron Pyrite 4. Time to Realize 5. Wait (Ft. LOLO)

-Ling Tosite Sigure - A Japanese Progressive Rock band with an absolutely phenomenal sound.
Highlight Tracks --- 1. A 7 Days Wonder 2. A Moment Rhythm 3 Beautiful Circus 5. Illusion is Mine

-Luxior - Very unique sound, hard to describe. Kinda jazzy, with electronica and cool bass work.
Highlight Tracks --- 1. 200th Floor 2. Fagaras 3. Moth 4. Tundra 5. Psilocybin

-Madeon - Impressive Electronic and Complextro music. He's getting popular, and for good reason. Check out his mindblowing album "Adventure"
Highlight Tracks --- 1. Beings 2. Icarus 3. OK 4. Technicolor 5. You're On 6. Zephyr

-Maxo - The king of the "Video Game Sound", with a huge collection of awesome music.
Highlight Tracks --- 1. Cloudrace 2. Crush~ 3. Honeybell 4. Ranger 5. Reach You 6. Sunset BB

-Mitch Geist - A confident and catchy artist that likes to dabble in Soul and Trap.
Highlight Tracks --- 1. Hopeful 2. Lately (You've Been On My Mind) 3. Our Love 4. Too Long

-Mord Fustang - One of the best House and Dubstep artists around. Truly legendary stuff.
Highlight Tracks --- 1. A New World 2. Falling Up 3. Mirai 4. Wait 4 Me 5. Welcome to the Future

-My Morning Jacket - Alternative/Indie Rock with a lead singer who has a one-of-a-kind voice.
Highlight Tracks --- 1. Compound Fracture 2.Smokin' From Shootin' 3. Wordless Chorus

-Navor - Trap and Chill sound, with some electronic mixed in. Really unique sound.
Highlight Tracks --- 1. Gardens 2. Lush 3. Saw You in the Hallway 4.Wanna Be Down

-Night Tempo - Disco isn't dead, it just waited to come back with Night Tempo.
Highlight Tracks --- 1. 90's Teenager 2. Again 3. Close My Eyes 4. Dreamer 5. Mint 6. Ocean Side

-Passion Pit - Alternative/Electronic with some very unique vocals and great storytelling.
Highlight Tracks --- 1. Better Things 2. Constant Conversations 3. Sleepyhead

-Pigarette - Acoustic Guitar and Jazz, with a very evocative sound.
Highlight Tracks --- 1. Anapola 2. Casa De La Costa 3. Foundry 4. Poinsettia 5. Redline 6. Traps

-Quickly, Quickly (AKA Slowly, Slowly) - An amazing Trap artist that's done some great Jazz stuff.
Highlight Tracks --- 1.Contrast 2. Fog 3.Ghost 4. Hushed 5. Love Echoes 6. Survey 7. Trilogy

-Rob Araujo - A pianist and Jazz musician with some serious talent for funk.
Highlight Tracks --- 1. Drift 2. Drive By 3. Gruv-E 4. Heartbreak 5. Home 6. Wavedash

-Spire - Really chill and soulful stuff. Easy to listen to, easy to love.
Highlight Tracks --- 1. A Million Miles Away 2. Byee 3. Hey 4. It's Okay 5. Still Don't Understand

-Syntact - One of the best Dubstep artists I've ever heard. There is a method to this madness.
Highlight Tracks --- 1. Cloud Nine 2. Day Zero 3. Shallow 4. Snowblind 5. The Race

-The Pattern Forms - A band that specializes in a wistful and dreamy, sometimes powerful sound.
Highlight Tracks --- 1. A Simple Walk 2. Black Rain 3. Daylight 4. Don't Let Me Dream

-Ujico (AKA Snail's House) - A Japanese techno artist putting out some really special stuff.
Highlight Tracks --- 1. Aloha 2. Grape Sode 3. Hot Milk 4. Summertime Memory 5. Pixel Galaxy

-V A L E N T I N E - A great techno artist that tries some experimental stuff to make things fresh.
Highlight Tracks --- 1. Anything 2. Dream Cream 3. Latch 4. Pillow Talk 5. You Know

-Vitalism - A progressive metal band with no vocals that is very heavy and brilliant.
Highlight Tracks --- 1. Bipolarity 2. Clairvoyance 3. Gradus 4. Luxata 5. Pagan

-Wave Racer - A techno artist with video game inspirations. Really catchy and pure gold.
Highlight Tracks --- 1. Don't Be Shy 2. Flash Drive 3. Introoooo 4. The Dofflin 5. World Record
截图展柜
I snapped this picture after my heart started beating again.
mcgillc_10 2019 年 2 月 6 日 上午 6:00 
Thanks for letting me know about Hardland I will check it out again and do another review. :hicken:
Yazu13 2019 年 1 月 31 日 下午 2:45 
Anyone who is here to check out my profile after commenting about Hardland, no I am not a bot, just a concerned gamer that doesn't want a game with a lot of potential to die before it's time. Please spread the word and let people know Hardland is alive and almost finished with development!
Vicarious 2019 年 1 月 30 日 下午 2:32 
Fair enough, I'll re-download Hardland when I get home later and give it a try. If they've apologized and put in some honest work then I will absolutely change my review
Gothicpolar 2019 年 1 月 30 日 下午 1:52 
Before the actual launch happens, I will wait before changing the review. I knew that it came back but I'll wait for the 1.0 launch .. Plus they didn't really apologize for it at all which kinda sucks :/
Apop85 2019 年 1 月 30 日 上午 3:00 
You just made my day. Thx for the info about HL.

rep+1
White ⁧⁧Wolf 2019 年 1 月 29 日 下午 2:39 
Thanks for letting me know about Hardland. I had given up hope. Will check it out and adjust/delete my review accordingly. Have a nice day.