Game director and scenario writer Yoko Taro took to social media to celebrate the eighth anniversary of NieR: Automata. After the official NieR Series X account thanked fans for being along for the moose ride (a cheeky reference to one of the rideable animals in the game), Yoko Taro retweeted the post, along with a simple “Thank you.”
NieR: Automata quickly became a classic after its 2017 release. Though mainly an action RPG, it borrows elements from multiple game genres like bullet hell shooters and puzzle games. Add in the unique stories of the androids 2B, 9S, and A2 that are complimented by a riveting cast of supporting characters and a soundtrack composed by Keiichi Okabe, Keigo Hoashi, Kuniyuki Takahashi, and Kakeru Ishihama, and NieR: Automata keeps players on their toes and tugs at their heartstrings.
Apart from the original game, both the world and the story of NieR: Automata have been translated into other media. In 2014, Yoko Taro created a stage play titled “YoRHa”, which served as a backstory for the 2017 game. Various books including manga, novels, and artbooks were written to complement and retell the game’s events, as was the 2023 NieR: Automata Ver1.1a anime produced by Square Enix and Aniplex. NieR: Automata characters and outfits have also made appearances in other games such as Goddess of Victory: NIKKE, Stellar Blade, Granblue Fantasy Versus: Rising, and Tom Clancy’s Rainbow Six Siege, just to name a few.
While Yoko Taro is ecstatic about NieR: Automata’s eighth anniversary, Square Enix is already preparing to celebrate the NieR’s upcoming 15th anniversary, as the franchise began with the release of the original NieR on the PS3 and Xbox 360 in 2010.
On April 19 at 6 pm Japan Standard Time (JST), the Square Enix YouTube channel will host a Nier series 15th anniversary livestream. The livestream will be attended by game director Yoko Taro, game producer Yosuke Saito, senior game designer Takahisa Taura, composer Keiichi Okabe, and Grimoire Weiss’s Japanese voice actor Hiroki Yasumoto – who will talk about the games as well as upcoming events and merchandise. Fans are hoping that the occasion may also be accompanied by information on a new entry to the franchise. A mini concert featuring some of the NieR franchise’s most iconic tracks will also take place during the livestream and allow Okabe to melt hearts with NieR’s unforgettable soundtrack.
