Out of this world

Nier: Automata is an open world action game set in a time where Earth is overridden with machines and the rest of mankind resides on the Moon. As part of the on-going war over the planet, androids 2B, the main character, along with a recon unit 9S, are sent out to turn the tide of battle.

The world is relatively small with multiple regions belonging to different biomes. A resistance camp acts as your main base and you will constantly travel back and forth as you finish the main story or complete side quests.

2B carries two swords, in addition to a pod for ranged damage, and players must focus on performing combos to fight different types of machines. The combat animations in Nier: Automata are spectacular, as every swing of your sword seamlessly transitions into the next without any jump. It’s exhilarating to see how well all the moves flow together, especially when one sword keeps swinging to attack enemies as 2B combos into her secondary weapon. Upon pressing dodge at the right time, your character splits into four and unleashes a barrage of attacks. It looks and feels thrilling to dodge attack after attack from an enemy.
The combat is fast and extremely satisfying, and it’s not hard to pull off these over-the-top moves. From a gameplay and story perspective, Nier: Automata will delight and captivate you in unexpected ways. Powerful moments are accompanied by great voice acting and a beautiful soundtrack.

The camera will frequently change perspective to facilitate its many genres. From third person action to a side-scroller to even a twin-stick shooter, it rarely feels like a mishmash of ideas. Instead, a large amount of thought has been put in to how each section is paced and they all combine to give you something coherent. The same holds true for most of the boss fights in the game.

The light RPG elements largely revolve around finding, purchasing and fusing plug-in chips that can enhance your attack, hp, defence or give you special effects. Players can also find materials that can be used to upgrade weapons. Upon dying, you lose your equipped plug-ins and must find your body to recover them. You can also repair your corpse so that it fights alongside you.

While the action during missions remains smooth, the performance in the open world is very much the opposite, with frame drops and stuttering being extremely common.

The design of the areas themselves is bland. I also think the game needed more enemy variety as well as more personalisation in its combat design.

Nevertheless, Nier: Automata is filled with memorable story and gameplay moments that will surprise you in many ways. When it works, it successfully blends multiple genres to make a game unlike any other on the market.

As with every title, there are frustrations and several annoyances, but Nier: Automata is a must-play, whether you want to experience an emotional story or take out giant robots in the most badass of ways.