NieR series – A N∋w ∟1F∑ βEG1n∳…
NieR & NieR: Automata are absolutely two of the most important titles released in the last decades!
Much more than simple video games; inside them, we may find so many sociopolitical and religious significances that make both a must-have even for the people who don’t like action RPGs!
To understand the importance of this opus is necessary to go back in time; more precisely to 19 years ago when the original Drakengard game was released for PlayStation 2. Part action RPG, part musou, and part shooter; it is set in a dark fantasy world that sees hundreds of humans, elves, fairies, and dragons fight a long war against the evil Empire which is determined to rule over the whole planet.
Keep true, never be ashamed of doing right!
Receiving very good reviews practically everywhere; without it, there wouldn’t be any NieR game. Inside NieR and NieR: Automata, Yoko Taro has implemented his point of view on the most important questions about human nature such as “why do people kill?” or “is the impact of killing on others still valid now that humanity itself may be considered obsolete?” In addition, we can experience potent visions of the future. If you (like us) love William Gibson, Philip K. Dick, and Isaac Asimov novels; you surely loved these great sci-fi adventures…
Especially in NieR: Automata; we can see how in the next future humankind created a very advanced generation of AI beings that have reached our level of personhood. Feeling emotions; 9S, 2B, A2, and all the other YoRHa androids developed by the Council of Humanity allow us to create a brand new future, but is it really new? From the beginning of the game seems… not. In fact, in the opening we can read this statement: “We are perpetually trapped in a never-ending spiral of life and death. Is this a curse? Or some kind of punishment?” The time is a circle, and this rule is valid also for the machines of the year 11945; after all, they are built to win a war, and they are not programmed to do anything else but this.
And I think to myself what a wonderful world…
But while in the firsts chapters they accept this uncritically; as the adventure proceeds the YoRHa androids – and we as well – discover that humans and aliens’ existence were ended a long time ago, and due to this awareness we all realize that “no one can fight without reason. We need a God who deserves that we offer up our lives”.
Like Hideo Kojima did with Metal Gear Solid, even Yoko Taro wants to demonstrate that humankind cannot escape from war, hate, and tragedy, and in this way, we can all experience how great developers like them can port the real world in a so vivid way on our screens. Guided by our decisions, YoRHa androids descend on our planet trying to put an end to a conflict that has no more reason to continue; in NieR and NieR: Automata – even if for different reasons – the world is a “prison” from which there is no escape.
Due to its complexity; through the years the sociological and ethical implications of the NieR series have been transcended the digital universe trying to find the answers to fundamental questions of how we may best live together through novels, audio dramas, manga, and unforgettable live events that mix legendary music with new revelations about the story.
Filled with the weight of the world; the NieR series portrays some of the most potent visions of the future!
Bodies are replaceable, but memories and data, once lost; cannot be reconfigured so easily. with its powerful posthumanist message; here we can easily live a different life and witness the protagonists’ vulnerabilities, but choosing wisely the different paths to stretch the limits of our established way of thinking, and expand our horizons many centuries far into the future!
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