Nier Replicant
2010
- role-playing (rpg)
- hack and slash/beat 'em up
- adventure
- fantasy
- science fiction
- drama
- open world
- single player
The story
NieR RepliCant is a Japanese PS3 version of NieR Gestalt with a younger main character. Both games are based in the same world, but differ only in the lead character's design, relationship with the character of Yonah, and the time in which the game takes place.
What it’s like
Washed-out, melancholy fields under overcast skies, with ruined cities of concrete and rust rising from tall grass and a constant drift of pale, ash-coloured dust. The palette is muted greys, browns and dull greens, broken by sudden bursts of colour in the bullet-hell fights, where glowing magic and shadowy creatures fill the screen. The soundtrack is one of the game's great pleasures: a sweeping, choral and string-driven score that swells over empty landscapes and quiets to solitary piano and wordless vocals during the sadder stretches. The hack-and-slash combat feels weighty and chaotic in the hands, with a camera that pulls back during swarms of enemies. Pacing is loose and exploratory, with long wandering stretches through open fields and dungeons punctuated by sudden, often strange, set pieces. The vibe is wistful and bittersweet, a slow-burning melancholy that gives way to surprise and an unsettling, bleak humour, and the tone shifts often between tender and grotesque. Violence is frequent and stylised, with plenty of blood spray and slashing, though rarely gory in a lingering way. The story drifts through a brother's devotion and a found family of misfits. It suits players who want a moody, music-led RPG with heart, a comfort-yet-uneasy late-night playthrough, and fans of unconventional, quietly strange storytelling.
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