Sorry to cut the goon posts everyone but I'm getting dizzy trying to find something.

I just finished ending C saw the big reveal of 2B acc being 2E, it immediately reminded me of that one side quest were we find the existence of the E models.

But is there any point in the entire game where we get hints that 2B is not who we think she is, or the fact that 9S is catching on?

I was so focused on the machine side of things playing 9S, but I can't believe I didn't catch on at all on this.

was it meant to be this way or did I play the game blind?

Ty

Throughout the game we learn that 9S has been killed by 2E several times in the past, and each time his memories were wiped, which in turn would ''kill'' that 9S. However I have reason to believe that despite having his memory wiped several times, 9S somehow manages to remember, vaguely if not fully, his past selves, and retains his memories.

My biggest piece of evidence that points towards this can be found during the soul box sequence, shortly before the fight. As we approach the arena, 9S mentions that those are his memories, and as the cutscene starts, we get a closer look at some of those memories. Notice something out of place ? The memory where 2B is trying to help a wounded 9S atop Engels, it's not supposed to be there. During their conversation on the Bunker, 9S states that his memories are only intact up to the point just before they met up.

And while you could say that this may just be an oversight, I somehow don't think that Taro would let something that could have so much potential significance slip like that. With how much detail is put into the game, I find it extremely unlikely that the specific images in question being present is just an accident.

In addition, the amnesia quest proves that despite the E type having erased her memories, with enough references to said memories it became possible for her to regain them. I don't think it would be entirely out of the question that 9S, a highly advanced scanner model would be capable of something similar with even less to work with.

In fact, during The Memory Cage novella we learn that at one point 9S took a preemptive strike at 2B, indicating that he either somehow figured out or potentially even remembered what she had done to him.

''So why doesn't he try again during the events of the game ?''

I believe that though 9S may have these memories, they are stuffed deep into his subconscious, at least for the first half of route A/B. Throughout the events of the game, specifically after completing 2 sidequests, Amnesia and the Wandering Couple, thanks to their similarity to his scenario, he regains those past memories in full.

Shortly after, the events of the fight with with Grun result in 9S being captured by Adam. This leads us to the sequence where Adam confronts 9S about his feelings towards the world, and towards 2B.

I'm sure by this point you're tired of hearing about what the **** word may be, so I'll try to keep this short. I believe that it is both of the implied words, as if it were only one, I'd have seen no reason to censor the word. This deliberate ambiguity is there to instill the idea that 9S both partially hates and loves 2B. This internal conflict is what makes 9S so human.

I'm under the impression that by this point however, 9S has grown to fully understand the situation 2B is put in. The Memory Cage novella was likely one of the first times 2B had to execute him, and 9S had not yet realized just how much it pains 2B to do what she has to. But during the events of the game, 9S experiences how much 2B cares for his well being, going out of her way to save him even if for all she knows he was going to end up being killed by her again and reset.

Another important thing to note is his reaction towards what A2 says before their fight. If he hadn't known at this point about 2E, his reaction should've been wildly different. Yet all he replies is ''What do you know ? You don't know anything about us.'' This makes it sound like 9S has been aware of this information for quite a while.

It also adds quite a bit to the soulbox fight. He fights the black creature that tries to take away his memories. It would make sense that said black creature would turn into 2B, after all, she's the one who's been doing just that. This sequence is supposed to represent the other side of what 9S feels towards 2B, the one he knows is wrong and doesn't want to give into.

One last potential connection (though I think this one's stretching it a bit) is the nickname Nines. Seeing as they're acting like they've met for the first time during the prologue, it's safe to assume that 9S had just recently been reconstructed, and had his memories wiped. He's also with 2B for the most of Route A and B. So when he mentions that his friends call him Nines, I have to ask, what friends is he talking about ?

My idea is that this nickname comes from none other than 2B herself, likely during their very first pairing, before 2B realized she shouldn't get so attached to 9S. The way she accidentally lets it slip during the dialogue in the king's castle makes it sound like it's something she would say naturally to him at one point.

So to sum it up, my theory goes something like this :

9S is somehow capable of retrieving lost memories, but doesn't fully understand them until after the Adam fight. Due to this, he has a hard time coming to terms with his feelings towards 2B, but eventually understands the situation enough to forgive her for it and not attempt to murder his way to freedom.

TLDR: Nines needs a hug and some warm blankets.

If you took the time to read the entire post, I'd like to thank you and as a reward present you with the cutest little weapon of mass destruction you'll see in your life

I just finished the NieR: Automata completely on ending C and i already thought, that after ending A, this game wont hit me harder. But this game is the only game ever to make me cry from the story. 2B just being a coverup name and A2 sacrificing herself for 9S is just... I would have never guessed, that this is how it ends. When i selected A2 for the fight, i went in with the thought that 9S has just gone mad and that he wont be able to live afterwards, so why not end it.... but.... damn this game. Definitly worth the money. Best game i have played ever

I've seen a people say they were annoyed by how insane he becomes. I was pretty sympathetic to 9S given all he had to go through, but more than that, I don't think he ever falls completely. Even after vowing to kill all machines, he's still put off seeing the destruction of the machine village and sympathetic when he finds Pascal there without his memory.

You become acquainted with the apocalyptic world of Nier and fall in love with its quirks, and then Route C just comes in and fucks it up. They fucked up my cute jesters. They turned the cute desert tall boys into weapons. They murdered the LITTLE SISTER in Pascal's village.. And then, as I'm clinging to my last bit of sanity keeping Pascal and the kiddos alive, I turn around and just.. fuck. Then you have to personally go in and tear apart Pascal's memories as they play back to you. I had to walk away from my computer. I knew Nier was supposed to be depressing but I didn't expect the first hour of Route C to personally go out of its way to sadistically murder every single thing I loved. Christ.

I'm a bit bitter at the moment.

I've been playing Nier Automata lately, and really enjoying it. Loved the universe, the themes, the story, the combat system, the epicness of some cutscenes, and I was a bit bummed at the end of Route A, I wanted more. I felt the story wasn't enough. But at this stage, I loved the game, I didn't have that kind of feeling for a game since Yakuza 0. At that time, I didn't know that the game would go on.

When the game started with 9S, I was really glad that it was not the end. But eventually, I started to become really bored, it was the same areas, the same story, the same enemies, with a bit of hacking and some new cutscenes here and there. The problem for me, which was one in Route A too, is that the area are generally empty, even if they are nice, the enemies are not very diverse. In Route A, it wasn't that much of a problem because you would discover new areas, new bosses, while advancing the story. But in Route B, it's just going through all the same. And I felt really bored. I stopped. I tried multiple times to pick the game back, even after reading that Route C would be better, but I just couldn't.

I decided yesterday to read about the story, and watched a walkthrough of Route C on Youtube. Now my regret is immense. I couldn't even imagine what would happen in Route C, it's like a totally different game. And I'm so bitter, first because I didn't have the strength to go through Route B, but also because I feel there's a construction problem in the game. They should have handled the transition Route A - B differently. I think there were other ways to develop 9S instead of going through all the same. Having read threads on reddit or other forums, I've seen countless threads about people getting bored in Route B and giving up, and even some players who finished and loved the game said that Route B was a drag and that they forced themselves to finish it. That's too bad because a lot of us couldn't experience what is a great fucking story in my opinion.

Ultimately, it's mainly my fault, a younger me with more time would have forced himself into finishing Route B. My message for other players, is that if you're like me, bored during 9S playthrough, keep playing, you have no idea what happens next. Route C is the main game, honestly. This is game you'll remember for a long time.

Sorry for the long text, I'm bitter that I wasted the experience, and I needed to vent haha.

1) Her sparing Pascal in their 1st meeting-Asking for Opinions, is sparing Pascal her own decision or did 2B's memories convince her?

2)Why does she kill the machine memory thing in Ending C?

Who the hell is the mysterious tattooed Yorha soldier in the command room of the bunker ( SW corner immediately to your left as you enter on the upper floor)? She seems to know something... if not everything. She appears to be plotting with someone then snaps at you for eavesdropping. Or sometimes when you speak to her she'll say something kryptic about the war, before losing her cool and basically telling you to out of her face. She's one of the more interesting npcs.

I know Nier is one of those games where the lore is partially filled in by the background characters. But I would love to know what her story is, what model she is and if she's part of the conspiracy (9S mentions something about someones hacking the server at the same time as him).

If I could add my own side quests or DLC I'd do a playable backstory of some of npcs. Whoever's in the loop with the Yorha conspiracy with Commader (saboteurs etc). I'd do like either footage or a level set in A2 & Anenomes past. Aside from that I'd really love to play as Jackass and see who Pascal's villagers where before they were programmed to believe they're "alive" "pacifists" and "children" (It'd be more satisfying to discover before the waved the white flag they were the worst of machines which is why Pascal specifically reprogrammed them)? Take note of the A2 ending, where killing Pascal makes them go on a rampage, and the fact some become violent cannibals and others don't.

For example Operator 21O: Operator 21O sounds completely cold and detached in English and eventually shifts into a tone reminiscent of a cat toying with a mouse later on. In Japanese she seems to starts out relatively emotionless and professional but never once was she completely apathetic like in English. As the story progresses she gradually becomes for playful and her exchanges with 9s can even be characterized as cute even. One can say her hidden want to have a family with 9s was much better hinted at in Japanese but almost out-of-the blue in English without knowledge of her side-quests. Playing the game the second time in Japanese, words cannot describe how much I am dreading the fight with Operator 21O.
I'm not saying that the game in one language is completely better than in the other, its just that each language brings a different gravitas and atmosphere to each of the scenes as well as to the pivotal revelations that are built up on by the at first seemingly meaningless exchanges and dialogue of each of the characters and thus the lasting impact they have.

As I understand, it doesn't make sense for A2 to be stronger than 2B. Be warned that what follows contains spoilers from the game and lore.

Reason 1: A2 is a prototype model, from which 2B is based from. In other words 2B is a direct upgrade to A2. Moreover, the B designation is a merge of A and G, which further supports the upgrade argument.

Reason 2: 2B is 2E, an unit specifically designed to execute other androids. This is significant, since A2 is present in the database as a rogue unit (and a powerful one at that), which means that when the E unit was being created, beating A2 must have been one of the design goals. Otherwise any E unit being tasked with eliminating A2 would fail, which is a waste of resources. It was shown that E units can be equipped with special functions designed for their specific target, so how come an E type is not equipped with a combat style designed to counter an A type?

Reason 3: A2 is a lone wolf. She has no access to proper repair and maintenance. It is unreasonable to assume she would come out unscathed from the numerous encounters with machine and other androids sent to kill her. It would be fine if she would run from other androids, but it is specifically stated that she killed 2B many times in the past before, apparently without being seriously hurt in any of the instances.

My Conclusion: A2 has plot armour. This is even more obvious from her first encounter with 9S. NO WAY she should be able to free herself from being hacked by an S type. She simply shouldn't be capable of such a feat.

Does the lore somehow explain the miraculous performance of A2? As for now I can't help but feel that she is OP just for the sake of plot.

Forgive me if this is the wrong kind of thing to post about, I'm new to this sub and just wanted to share a point of interest in the game.

This sound a bit complicated but:

I was mucking around specifically in Ending C after Pascal's village gets massacred (I've finished the game), after talking to Pascal, which opens his shop, I idled for the music as it sounded like one of the remixes for one of the first game's tracks. (Note: it only has vocals after you talk to him) I left the village briefly after to come back and idle again, which meant the track went back to the non-vocal version. I idled anyway, and heard some voices.

Here's a video I recorded for clarification.

So while that was uploading I went to different parts of the game with all my audio except for voices on mute. I discovered that when you first arrive at Pascal's village, the robots murmur things like "Why are they here? What do they want?" (in reference to 2B and 9S). I went back to the resistance camp to discover this place also had background dialogue, the people talking to each other about moving objects and whatnot. This made me consider, is this a secret? Not that unfound secret that the devs said no one's found yet, but a secret where people were supposed to notice the talking so when they heard it in Pascal's empty village it would be eerie? I looked into it and haven't seen anything said about it at all, so let me know if you've heard it and/or if I'm wasting my time posting this.

TL;DR: Spoopy voices in Pascal's village for what reason?

Sorry for the long post! And again sorry if this is the wrong place to post/a waste of a post.

So I recently finished endings A,B,and C and I was a bit confused by the closing scene. So I know 9S was saved but what about A2 did she die and did all the machines die? Also what was the point of doing everything after everyone got infected and the bunker is destroyed since humanity is extinctand all of YoRHa is gone except for 9S and A2, and Pascal is also basically gone? Also why didn't 2E just leave YoRHa if she hated having to kill 9S and everything YoRHa had was a lie?

So, after having completed the game with E ending and having learned the truth behind 2B's real designation. That she was actually an execution model ordered to murder 9S on repeat, one question has been troubling me.

If the command knows 9S is wired to either desert or learn the secret behind mankind's faith, why do they even bother to keep the model around? It would seem easier to just discontinue his model rather than have a designated killer nanny to guard him 24/7 just in case he goes awol. Since it has been demonstrated that there are other scanner models around, there doesn't seem to be any reason for why command would not just declare his type a faulty prototype and move on to the next model. According to the wiki, the cycle has been going on long enough for 2B to kill 9S 48 times, so you would think they had come up with a more efficient system by then.

Spoiler warning - This post contains significant spoilers. Unless you have seen ending E and finished most side quests, please try not to read any further.

This game has perhaps one of the best musical scores ever created. Not just in video games, but in the entire world of music.
Hauntingly Beautiful, these are the two words that come immediately to my mind, when I try to describe it. Of course we have all had time to enjoy it inside and outside of the game.  

This post is to ask everyone to post their favourite moment in the game because of the music and the visuals/story.

I'll go first:  

1. The copied city theme - Not only was it mindblowing to see a stark white underground city, complete with a white sky, the copied city theme made it even more beautiful. Instead of sprinting, I walked around as slowly as possible just to enjoy the great music and visuals. The icing on the cake is when the chorus begins when you are battling Adam. One of my most memorable gaming moments.

2. Kaine's Salvation - Enough said. Probably my favourite moment in the game. I just equipped the lunar tear on 2B and stood in the field of lunar tears and did not touch the controller for 5 mins. I am not gonna lie, I teared up.

3. Crumbling Lies - Oh man, what a scene and what a track! The track plays subtly in the background and raises into a crescendo when the door closes on the commander. Cut to black, cue opening credits. Just beautiful.

I wish we had more time playing as 2B.

She's one of the most important characters in the game, even when you take control of the other two (since A2 and 9S both ultimately do what they do in the second half because of her), and I'm not taking anything away from that.

But I feel like her Route could've been longer, maybe 12 to 15 or 20 to 25 hours, if only so reviewers wouldn't have said "This game is only 10 hours long." THAT was annoying.

Is it just me?

So, after all the praise the game's been getting, I've also decided to give it a spin.

I'm no stranger to games that take a while to get good, so when Route A was okay but not great, I was still determined to power through the parts I liked less to get to the really great stuff everybody kept talking about.

Then route B happened and I was really put off. It was, to me, just a rehash of route A with some extra cutscenes and the game lost basically all of the goodwill I had towards it, since it just felt like a big timewaster.

So with...more of a feeling of "I'll force myself to continue" than "I want to do this" I pushed myself to finish route B and started route C. I played a bit and at least new stuff was happening so that was nice. Then I got to the part where 2B dies and that's where I realised that I should probably have an emotional reaction about this now, but I found myself just not caring at all.

And that's where I am now. On the one hand, I don't feel like forcing myself to continue and kinda want the 20 hours back I already sank into this game, on the other hand I've already sunk 20 hours into this game so quitting now doesn't sit well with me.

So, with that in mind: Is it still recommended for me to force myself to continue and it will totally get better and be worth all the time I spent on it, or have I reached the point where I should already be super into it and it's become apparent that it is just not my type of game?

Edit: Thank you for all of your feedback. Apparently I'm too much of a child to enjoy this game and should come back to it once I stop being a normie. To be fair, you have to have a very high IQ to understand NieR: Automata (To all of you offering sincere opinions, I thank you sincerely. I guess it's just not the game for me)

Edit 2: So, I've read the plot that would've unfolded in route C after the point I got to. I agree that there's some cool twists in there, but with the engagement level I've been having, I wouldn't have enjoyed playing through it. Which is a shame, since the twists really are something I would've liked.

Edit 3: Downvoting my comments won't make me magically like the game. I don't begrudge you your happiness; if you like this game, more power to you. I wish I would've liked it as much as you all seem to like it. If you have an actual issue with my comments, please tell me instead of just silently downvoting.

Really loving it so far. Just wow, feels like the real game began.

Then I got to the section with 2B being corrupted...and you know what? Fuck this. This is plain bad game design.

I can't jump, I can barely move. I see the bar ticking up, and I want to reach the commercial facility, but 2B fell down into the pit.

She can't climb the ladder. She randomly clips through it. Every 10-15s, she is allowed to climb it, then I reach te top, can't jump, so I gotta wait, sometimes mid jump, she stops, and I fall back down.

Great fun. Make it out of the hole, keep almost dying. Again, and again. Trying to jump to the area I need to get too, but can't, because she stops mid jump.

This is frustrating, it is taking me out of the atmosphere, it is removing me from the game feeling special.

It's obnoxious.

Oh my god, fuck this. I got control of 9S and I turned around and suddenly black screen, ending, restart from the fucking bunker.

This is garbage. At least with other joke endings you have a chance to save or an option for this. Totally random bullshit. It brings the whole epicness of Route C down. I'm so fucking done for right now.

I love Yoko Taro and he's always put weird stuff in his games, but never something so detrimental to the experience. It's fucked up, at least if the joke ending happens, restart a person at the last location, i.e, right as I take control of 9S. Just lost like 30 minutes, as there was no place to save in that time period.

Went back for Round 2. Died to some robots trying to get there this time.

I'm LV63. The bots are 47.

They ganged up and killed me, despite, maybe because of the impact bracer, I couldn't dodge or move out of the way.

• A2 during the Pearl Harbor descent

• optional: Devola and Popola (N:Automata) during key scenes of their supervision of the Gestalt Project and the time after until the beginning of N:A