NEED TO KNOW
WHAT IS IT?
A full remaster of a beloved and strange action JRPG
EXPECT TO PAY £50
DEVELOPER In-house, Toylogic Inc
PUBLISHER Square Enix
REVIEWED ON Windows 10, Intel Core i7-8750H, 16GB RAM, NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060
MULTIPLAYER No
LINK nier.square-enixgames.com/en-us
If you didn’t know that Nier was the final game from studio Cavia Games, you might be able to tell from playing it. The action RPG feels like a final act: a swing for the fences characterised by anger, tragedy, and a desperate sense of sincerity. And like most desperate swings, it failed at the time: sales were poor, Cavia Games was absorbed into its parent company, and Nier’s creative director, Yoko Taro, moved on to ply his craft elsewhere.
If Nier was characterised by desperation, Nier Replicant (technically named Nier Replicant ver.1.22474487139… but that’s just silly) is an act of love. Created by developer Toylogic and publisher Square Enix with the direct involvement of Taro and his regular band of collaborators, this remaster feels like an attempt to make good on the ideas and promises of that original game. After its sequel Nier Automata became an unlikely hit in 2017, the team is betting that now is the right time to reintroduce broader audiences to the charms of the original game. Maybe this time they’ll be more receptive.
This story is from the {{IssueName}} edition of {{MagazineName}}.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber ? Sign In
This story is from the {{IssueName}} edition of {{MagazineName}}.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber? Sign In
A New Dawn - The rise, fall and rise again of PC Gaming in Japan
The so-called 'Paso Kon' market (ie katakana's transliteration of 'Pasonaru Computa') in Japan was originally spearheaded in the 1980s by NEC's PC-8800 and, later, its PC-9800.
MARVEL: ULTIMATE ALLIANCE
Enter the multiverse of modness.
SLIDES RULE
Redeeming a hated puzzle mechanic with SLIDER
GODS AND MONSTERS
AGE OF MYTHOLOGY: RETOLD modernises a classic RTS with care
PHANTOM BLADE ZERO
Less Sekiro, more Wo Long: Fallen Dynasty
STARR-MAKING ROLE
Final Fantasy XVI's BEN STARR talks becoming a meme and dating summons
THIEF GOLD
Learning to forgive myself for knocking out every single guard.
HANDHELD GAMING PCs
In lieu of more powerful processors, handhelds are getting weirder
FAR FAR AWAY
STAR WARS OUTLAWS succeeds at the little things, but not much else shines
FINDING IMMORTALITY
Twenty-five years on, PLANESCAPE: TORMENT is still one of the most talked-about RPGs of all time. This is the story of how it was created as a ‘stay-busy’ project by a small team at Black Isle Studios
