Back to the roots of NieR | Science

After the reasonable success of Replicant and the great success of its successor NieR Automata, Square Enix felt it was time to give NieR Replicant another chance for a new audience, resulting in a contemporary adventure with modern gameplay and graphics. , but which only in part 12 the basis of a year can disguise itself.

What is that?

We meet our hero in a rather dire situation. He and his sick sister Yonah are trapped in a half-collapsed department store surrounded by dark, dark monsters. The main character – let’s call him NieR – calls out a magic book for help and together they fight the hordes of monsters. In no time at all, they defeat all of the monsters together, with NieR getting stronger and stronger thanks to the magic of the book. Yonah gets worse. We don’t see how it ends. We take a step back in time, up to 13 centuries later, where we again meet NieR and Yonah who is still ill. This is where the game really begins.

This prologue recalls the start of a good dramatic film and sets the tone for NieR Replicant. NieR is worried about his sick sister and will do whatever he can to save her. That he has to fight a whole world of demons and maybe save the same world is a secondary issue for him. His sister is everything to him.

Gelukkig hoeft hij de wereld niet alleen in te trekken, gaandeweg ontmoet hij een magisch boek genaamd Grimoir Weiss (ja, hetzelfde boek uit de proloog), een nogal schaars geklede dame genaamd Kainé en Emil, een jongen kan die met zijn blu switch.

Together, they must do everything in their power to try to heal Yonah.

Is it something?

This NieR replicant is not just any new version. The game has been completely overhauled. The world of NieR is provided with much more detail and the gameplay has also been adjusted considerably. Everything looks and plays much smoother and more pleasant. The combat system borrows good from its successor NieR Automata, which means it meets contemporary standards as well.

Still, that can’t hide the fact that the base of the game is now twelve years old. The player is regularly sent from one place to another via the same area. NieR does not know any Fast travel and although an explanation is given for this, the gaming experience would have benefited a lot.

Despite the graphics upgrade, NieR Replicant looks a bit lackluster. Where in contemporary games colors often splash onto the screen, NieR Replicant always seems to suspend a slight haze over the surroundings, making the color scheme look a bit overexposed. Oddly enough, it’s even more extreme than in the original.

The history of NieR remains fascinating. The love of brother and sister, the strong characters you meet along the way, it’s still interesting. The gameplay is varied. You can regularly use new weapons and suddenly the whole playstyle can turn into a puzzle game or a text adventure with puzzles. You definitely get what you pay for, after a first round, which lasts around 40 hours, you can safely start over, experience new endings and see different scenes.

Advantages and disadvantages

Interesting story

Replayable through multiple endings

Excellent gameplay and smooth combat system

Dull use of color

No need to come and go in the same area

Conclusion

NieR Replicant offers what fans want: more gameplay like in NieR Automata and a good (background) story. This remake can’t completely hide the fact that it’s already 12 years old. This is mainly reflected in the somewhat drab use of color and the need to cover the same long distances over and over. Nonetheless, NieR Replicant remains solid and plays like a modern game due to the reworked combat system. NieR Replicant is definitely recommended for those who like a game with a good storyline and enjoyable gameplay.

This review was carried out in collaboration with XGN.NL

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