Based on the 2010 game simple called Nier in the west, Nier Replicant is more than just a remake. After the success of its sequel Automata, Yoko Taro has polished more than just the graphics in his new version update 1.22474487139. The game follows the titular protagonist as he embarks on a quest to find a cure for a mysterious disease affecting his sister.
The environments in Nier Replicant are expansive, beautiful, and packed with secrets. As well as references and allusions to other games, players will also find many clues along their way that reveal the extensive history and lore behind this post-apocalyptic epic.
7 The Sun Never Sets
One of the first things players may notice when playing Nier Replicant is the lack of a day-night cycle. Some players may simply assume this was a technological limitation of the original game however, if players visit the tavern and talk to Devola she will say that the sun never sets in-game either.
Yoko Taro offered an explanation for this obscure aspect of the story in an interview, stating that the earth in Nier was affected by an unknown catastrophe that left it semi tidally locked. The village and surrounding pastures all exist in the twilight zone where life can continue, while other areas such as the desert were killed by the excessive sunlight.
6 Shades With Fairytale Names
During its development, the original Nier went through numerous changes before becoming a sequel to Drakenguard. At one point, the game was meant to be about fairytales leaking into the real world. This version of the game had 13 magical Grimoires, though all but three of these were cut for the final release.
This previous concept for Nier is why many of the game's boss fights have names from famous fairy tales. While players are hunting for sidequests, or trying to complete story missions they will encounter a number of familiar names from children's stories, including Hansel, Gretel, and Gepetto among others.
5 Both The Remake And The Original Are Cannon
Replicant is a fusion of the original Nier and its sequel Automata, although there are still quite a few differences. While the story is the same, there are still some minor changes that long-time fans will notice. For instance, Replicant's prologue occurs in 2053 rather than 2049 and after the introduction, the plot skips ahead 1412 years rather than 1312 as it was in the original release.
Yoko Taro has stated that this different time jump was an intentional decision meant to reflect that the events of Nier's plot are an endless cycle that is constantly repeating. While the major events of each timeline are the same, there are still minor differences or fluctuations as Taro calls them, with each repetition. This means that both Nier Replicant and the 2010 Nier Gestalt are part of the same cannon and the version update doesn't replace the original story as much as it retells it.
4 The Game Follows A Specific Ending From Drakenguard
The Nier franchise has been defined by its spectacular combat and complex story, with each game having multiple endings for players to discover. This was still the case in the Drakenguard series, and Nier Replicant is a direct continuation of one of the endings from Drakenguard 1.
The first Drakenguard game has five endings to choose from but only one of these conclusions is directly tied to future games. Ending E sees the game's main characters defeat the Queen beast, who releases all of her stolen time upon death, transporting herself and the protagonists to modern-day Japan. Upon reaching the modern world, the queen beast dies and turns to ash, leading some fans to speculate that this event is what led to the White Chlorination Syndrome that wiped out the human race in Nier.
3 The Reason Behind Kaine's Outfit
Of all the people Nier encounters on his quest to save his sister, Kaine is definitely one of the most quotable and enigmatic. Some players may assume that Kaine's sparse clothing is solely intended for titillation, however, the game's artbook actually provides a reason for her revealing attire.
While Kaine's human form was a female, due to unspecified complications her replicant was born a hermaphrodite. Being intersex was one of the reasons for her ostracisation from the village and other settlements, as the other replicants often ridiculed her. This mockery led to Kaine preferring clothes that emphasized her female qualities, allowing her to more comfortably associate as a woman.
2 Forest Music In The Desert
As well as gameplay, and graphical updates, the soundtrack has also been revived with many of the game's songs rerecorded by a professional orchestra. In order to find all of the sacred verses and words, Nier will have to travel through many different landscapes, each of which has its own unique music.
While traveling through the desert zone, players can enjoy a piece of music called The Lost Forest. This seemingly incongruous title is actually a hint revealing the history of the area. Later on, Nier is informed by Roc that the desert was once a vast forest, which was probably destroyed by excess sunlight when the world became semi tidally locked.
1 Are There Any Humans?
Those who have completed Nier Automata will know that the human race is extinct and the world is solely populated by androids. As such some fans will wonder if this is also the case in Nier Replicant which takes place during rather than after humanities extinction.
By the end of the game, players will know that the shades they have been fighting since the prologue are actually the disembodied spirits of human beings who separated themselves from their bodies to escape the White Chlorination Syndrome. Furthermore, as well as being intersex, Kaine is also half-human, due to a malfunction that caused her replicant to be semi merged with a male Gestalt called Tyrann. Even though she is half replicant, by the end of the game Kaine is the closest thing left to a human being on the planet earth.