Holy shit, that's pretty awesome. I envy you
*kills Dunan and swaps places with him*
Nobody will ever notice...
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"You're a WHAT!?" Nier Gestalt|Replicant |OT|
- Thread starter Adam Blade
- Start date
Holy shit, that's pretty awesome. I envy you
*kills Dunan and swaps places with him*
Nobody will ever notice...
So I went to the Nier Piano Collections concert -- it was great!
Only about 200 people got selected, and they mentioned that the ratio of applicants to selectees was really high, but they didn't give exact numbers. (I've posted quite a bit here and on GameFAQs about how much I like Nier, and was one of the translators in the Grimoire Nier project, but didn't do this with my real name, so I don't think SE/Cavia was rewarding me or anything; it was probably random.)
People who got picked received just the one ticket -- unlike a lot of movie previews and suchlike where you get a pair -- so it felt little weird getting to the concert hall and waiting on line; each person was there alone, so it's not like with most events where you're talking with your friends and then you turn to talk with the people around you and you get a good buzz going. No, here each individual was separate, so the line was eerily silent as we waited 10-15 minutes to get to the front and show our tickets (and ID with your real name on it; they didn't want people reselling the invitations, I suppose).
As we file in they've got a big screen in front showing the title: ピアノコレクションズ ニーア ゲシュタルト & レプリカント発売記念イベント：トオク、チイサク、ハカナイ、ピアノ, which means roughly "Nier Gestalt & Replicant Piano Collections Commemoration Event: A far-away, small, evanescent piano", and OST music is playing in the background -- the awesome "Shadowlord", among others.
I didn't recognize it right away because I've only played the game in English, but the high-pitched voice of Mai Kadowaki, who voiced Emil in the Japanese game, suddenly come in telling us to take our seats, and in what approaches a very vulgar and nasty way -- Emil is relaying an order from Kaine, you see, and can't quite being himself to say what Kaine actually said!
Then the three musicians come on the stage: Keiichi Okabe, Keigo Hoashi, and Kumi Tanioka. They start chatting and Mai Kadowaki talks about how she put in an entry to go see this concert (really? they didn't just give her one) but then she got called on to host it. After more talk, Mr. Hoashi sits down at the piano and plays "Song of the Ancients" and "Emil". Good stuff.
The format ends up being piano pieces punctuated by talk sessions. They discuss all kinds of stuff -- Okabe and Yokoo knew each other in college; Hoashi thinks "Emil" is perfect for piano, etc.
Taroo Yokoo is in Los Angeles, they say, so they've set up a life-sized dummy made of black fabric and put it in a seat. Taro is on the phone (it's 3 AM out there) and there's sometimes a short delay before his voice comes through, on a microphone connected to the dummy.
Keigo Hoashi and Kumi Tanioka play more songs -- Hills of Radiant Winds, Grandma, Gods Bound By Rules, and Kaine -- interspersed with chat sessions. After "Kaine" they take questions submitted by the audience.
Director Yosuke Saito comes out and talks. Three hundred thousand people are watching live on Ustream, he says -- no, wait, that's a joke; it's more like 1500, in addition to the close-to-200 who are there seeing it live.
(Back-of-the-envelope calculation from me: a quarter of people in Japan live near Tokyo, so if that proportion would have been able to get to this concert, and thus applied to go see it, that's 400 or so applicants and 200 tickets. 50-50 odds of getting a ticket, which is pretty good.)
He thanks everybody for supporting Nier over these last two years and coming to all the events they've held, and mentions that this event will be the last one. But, he opines, he still wants to continue Nier in some form -- maybe a new game? He can't promise.
They give away some presents and are about to wrap up, and after the hosts exit the stage, someone (surely planted by SE) starts chanting "encore!" and clapping. The audience -- all of whom had come singly, remember -- had to be prodded keep it going!
The hosts then come back out (this next part was planned from the beginning, of course), and as they're thanking us for applauding them, Taro Yokoo himself appears -- he wasn't in LA; he'd been behind the stage the entire time. He tells a couple of stories, revealing that this Shinjuku i-Land Hall was in fact the place where they did the motion capture for the game.
The conversation then turns to how Mr. Okabe hasn't played anything on the piano today despite being one of the composers, so he sits down to play "Yonah". He makes a few mistakes, starts over, and then gives up after about a minute.
They joke about how Nier-like it would be if the concert ended right there (do it!), but Hoashi steps in and performs the real encore, which is "Shadowlord". Awesome stuff, and with that they really are done.
Following this, the three musicians sign a limited number CDs for people who bought them at the event, but we don't really get to talk with them much. I really wish Saito and Yokoo had been available! I inquire with a staffer as to whether the song lyrics are printed under the notes in the piano score that they published (and sold out of quickly!), and as she's getting up to ask, a youngish guy in a Square-Enix jacket brusquely tells her that they're not available. They want to hurry people out of the venue, so I didn't get to ask about how to get in touch with the producers or with main songwriter Emi Evans, who wasn't there.
And that's about it -- the CD has several more tracks that didn't get played during the show ("Snow in Summer" and "The Wretched Automatons"), and I'm listening to it now. It's great, though I admit that I like the OST more. I also picked up the drama CD, and it fills in still more backstory for the years leading up to the events of Nier. Both are worth having.
I liked the event but really wish they'd let you bring a partner or friend; it would have livened up the atmosphere quite a bit. And I wish they'd taken live questions from the audience!
Hopefully Saito wasn't just blowing smoke when he said he wants to do more with Nier! The events are good, but a game would be even better.
Only about 200 people got selected, and they mentioned that the ratio of applicants to selectees was really high, but they didn't give exact numbers. (I've posted quite a bit here and on GameFAQs about how much I like Nier, and was one of the translators in the Grimoire Nier project, but didn't do this with my real name, so I don't think SE/Cavia was rewarding me or anything; it was probably random.)
People who got picked received just the one ticket -- unlike a lot of movie previews and suchlike where you get a pair -- so it felt little weird getting to the concert hall and waiting on line; each person was there alone, so it's not like with most events where you're talking with your friends and then you turn to talk with the people around you and you get a good buzz going. No, here each individual was separate, so the line was eerily silent as we waited 10-15 minutes to get to the front and show our tickets (and ID with your real name on it; they didn't want people reselling the invitations, I suppose).
As we file in they've got a big screen in front showing the title: ピアノコレクションズ ニーア ゲシュタルト & レプリカント発売記念イベント：トオク、チイサク、ハカナイ、ピアノ, which means roughly "Nier Gestalt & Replicant Piano Collections Commemoration Event: A far-away, small, evanescent piano", and OST music is playing in the background -- the awesome "Shadowlord", among others.
I didn't recognize it right away because I've only played the game in English, but the high-pitched voice of Mai Kadowaki, who voiced Emil in the Japanese game, suddenly come in telling us to take our seats, and in what approaches a very vulgar and nasty way -- Emil is relaying an order from Kaine, you see, and can't quite being himself to say what Kaine actually said!
Then the three musicians come on the stage: Keiichi Okabe, Keigo Hoashi, and Kumi Tanioka. They start chatting and Mai Kadowaki talks about how she put in an entry to go see this concert (really? they didn't just give her one) but then she got called on to host it. After more talk, Mr. Hoashi sits down at the piano and plays "Song of the Ancients" and "Emil". Good stuff.
The format ends up being piano pieces punctuated by talk sessions. They discuss all kinds of stuff -- Okabe and Yokoo knew each other in college; Hoashi thinks "Emil" is perfect for piano, etc.
Taroo Yokoo is in Los Angeles, they say, so they've set up a life-sized dummy made of black fabric and put it in a seat. Taro is on the phone (it's 3 AM out there) and there's sometimes a short delay before his voice comes through, on a microphone connected to the dummy.
Keigo Hoashi and Kumi Tanioka play more songs -- Hills of Radiant Winds, Grandma, Gods Bound By Rules, and Kaine -- interspersed with chat sessions. After "Kaine" they take questions submitted by the audience.
Director Yosuke Saito comes out and talks. Three hundred thousand people are watching live on Ustream, he says -- no, wait, that's a joke; it's more like 1500, in addition to the close-to-200 who are there seeing it live.
(Back-of-the-envelope calculation from me: a quarter of people in Japan live near Tokyo, so if that proportion would have been able to get to this concert, and thus applied to go see it, that's 400 or so applicants and 200 tickets. 50-50 odds of getting a ticket, which is pretty good.)
He thanks everybody for supporting Nier over these last two years and coming to all the events they've held, and mentions that this event will be the last one. But, he opines, he still wants to continue Nier in some form -- maybe a new game? He can't promise.
They give away some presents and are about to wrap up, and after the hosts exit the stage, someone (surely planted by SE) starts chanting "encore!" and clapping. The audience -- all of whom had come singly, remember -- had to be prodded keep it going!
The hosts then come back out (this next part was planned from the beginning, of course), and as they're thanking us for applauding them, Taro Yokoo himself appears -- he wasn't in LA; he'd been behind the stage the entire time. He tells a couple of stories, revealing that this Shinjuku i-Land Hall was in fact the place where they did the motion capture for the game.
The conversation then turns to how Mr. Okabe hasn't played anything on the piano today despite being one of the composers, so he sits down to play "Yonah". He makes a few mistakes, starts over, and then gives up after about a minute.
They joke about how Nier-like it would be if the concert ended right there (do it!), but Hoashi steps in and performs the real encore, which is "Shadowlord". Awesome stuff, and with that they really are done.
Following this, the three musicians sign a limited number CDs for people who bought them at the event, but we don't really get to talk with them much. I really wish Saito and Yokoo had been available! I inquire with a staffer as to whether the song lyrics are printed under the notes in the piano score that they published (and sold out of quickly!), and as she's getting up to ask, a youngish guy in a Square-Enix jacket brusquely tells her that they're not available. They want to hurry people out of the venue, so I didn't get to ask about how to get in touch with the producers or with main songwriter Emi Evans, who wasn't there.
And that's about it -- the CD has several more tracks that didn't get played during the show ("Snow in Summer" and "The Wretched Automatons"), and I'm listening to it now. It's great, though I admit that I like the OST more. I also picked up the drama CD, and it fills in still more backstory for the years leading up to the events of Nier. Both are worth having.
I liked the event but really wish they'd let you bring a partner or friend; it would have livened up the atmosphere quite a bit. And I wish they'd taken live questions from the audience!
Hopefully Saito wasn't just blowing smoke when he said he wants to do more with Nier! The events are good, but a game would be even better.
Stories about the event from the Japanese media:
http://game.watch.impress.co.jp/docs/news/20120321_520071.html
http://www.4gamer.net/games/098/G009809/20120321050/
(You can see the dummy that replaced Taro in that second story.)
http://game.watch.impress.co.jp/docs/news/20120321_520071.html
http://www.4gamer.net/games/098/G009809/20120321050/
(You can see the dummy that replaced Taro in that second story.)
I wonder if someone could help me regarding the soundtrack. There's a song from the game that sounds a lot like Snow in Summer, but it's different. I think it was all vocals. It's not Cold Steeled Coffin or Shadowlord or Ashes of Dreams either. Anyone have an idea of its name? Thanks!
Heh. I've got it randomly stuck in my head and I haven't played the game/listened to the soundtrack in about two months.
edit: Ah, I found it. It's The Incomplete Stone, but the version from when you're not fighting in the Lost Shrine. I guess there's no percussion-less version on the released soundtracks? Bummer.
edit2: Here it is.
Heh. I've got it randomly stuck in my head and I haven't played the game/listened to the soundtrack in about two months.
edit: Ah, I found it. It's The Incomplete Stone, but the version from when you're not fighting in the Lost Shrine. I guess there's no percussion-less version on the released soundtracks? Bummer.
edit2: Here it is.
Tribes of Trusty
Member
So I picked up this game for a tenner, and it's been sitting on my shelf since...I decided to play it waiting for Mass Effect 3.
What can I say ? If feels very "Drakengard" in the sense the game isn't the most polished in the Square Enix catalogue, and there's some roughness in the game mechanics.
The graphics are average and the mooks not very interesting to fight.
The boss fights and the music is awesome though.
Can't wait to see if the story is up to its hype.
What can I say ? If feels very "Drakengard" in the sense the game isn't the most polished in the Square Enix catalogue, and there's some roughness in the game mechanics.
The graphics are average and the mooks not very interesting to fight.
The boss fights and the music is awesome though.
Can't wait to see if the story is up to its hype.
The story is good, IMO, especially the second half. Strap on your seatbelt for NG+, as even more revelations are made that ties it all together.
Tribes of Trusty
Member
Oh god the music that plays
...so beautiful *_*
when Nier comes back from the robots mountain to see the boys and announce them their mother's death
Tribes of Trusty
Member
Mounting a boar is so awesome.
I arrived at the forest of dreams...WTF ?
That's..a pretty unique way to do things.
I arrived at the forest of dreams...WTF ?
That's..a pretty unique way to do things.
Combichristoffersen
Combovers don't work when there is no hair
Can't say I liked the Forest of Dreams, but it was definitely a rather unique thing to put in there.
And damn I want Nier 2.
Tribes of Trusty
Member
This game keeps getting weirder/better. I arrived at the mansion...I almost regret not playing Drakengard 1 and 2.
Is there any interest to do all the side quests ? is it necessary to get all the achievements ? Do you have to do them all to unlock all the endings ?
Is there any interest to do all the side quests ? is it necessary to get all the achievements ? Do you have to do them all to unlock all the endings ?
The sidequests are all optional. While some of them are 100% worth doing and have some rather interesting stories to them, there's many that are just grind-fests and are rather boring. It's up to you whether you want to do them or not, but they have no affect on the main storyline or ending.
You might think that, but no, don't. Drakengard 1 and 2 are just complete shit. The only redeeming factor of Drakengard 1 is how horrible and fucked up its story is. #2 doesn't even have that much. There's a good let's play of 1 over at somethingawful if you're ever that curious about them (and to see Nier's connection to Drakengard 1). I'd just pretend #2 doesn't exist. Nier's developers did as well.
Tribes of Trusty
Member
I played the first one for 3 hours before abandonning...the gameplay was too debilitating and dull for me to continue...but I know of the infamous Tokyo Ending and the overall WTF-ness.
It's too bad for the 2, as it seemed decent gameplay-wise.
Robot Pants
Member
Tribes of Trusty
Member
This piece of music is so awesome : Kainé - Salvation.
I had the feeling gaelic is the language to go if you want One Womain Wail songs when I first heard "The Best Is Yet To Come", but this just confirms it.
I had the feeling gaelic is the language to go if you want One Womain Wail songs when I first heard "The Best Is Yet To Come", but this just confirms it.
The language in Nier music was created for Nier. It's not Gaelic.
EatChildren
Currently polling second in Australia's federal election (first in the Gold Coast), this feral may one day be your Bogan King.
Yeah. If I recall correctly, Emi Evans was given directive to write gibberish lyrics stylised after different languages (Gaelic, Japanese, Italian, etc) and how they might sound many centuries from now.
This was posted a while back, I think, but it's an interesting interview with the singer Emi Evans. She talks about the made up languages, among other things.
Ventilaator
Banned
Linking to music from Nier is the equivalent of linking to TVtropes for me. Suddenly I don't want to do anything else except keep on clicking on related stuff.
Tribes of Trusty
Member
Good thing I did both !
Ventilaator
Banned
And the good thing about music is that it can be experienced while actually doing something else. Too bad that something else is reading TVtropes
Tribes of Trusty
Member
Fuck this game is just a series of punches in the groin. "Think it's gonna be happy ? NOPE"
I fear the ending.
I fear the ending.
Which one?
Tribes of Trusty
Member
I only saw the A one now.
New game plus is like " let's make you feel like the biggest asshole ever - the video game."
New game plus is like " let's make you feel like the biggest asshole ever - the video game."
It may be old news, but I just noticed this is back on the itunes store. $15.99 for the album, with many of the tracks available to buy individually.
Tribes of Trusty
Member
Ok finished ending B.
Overall the NG+ was quite well done : easier than the first playthrough, the revealed secrets kept me hooked and entertained. The ending B in itself ? Meh, it was satisfying on an emotionnal level, but story-wise ? Nope. It didn't resolve all the hanging questions that were left.
I hope the endings C and D are good, but as I've been playing this non-stop since saturday, I think I'm going to make a little pause. I dread getting all the necessary weapons in order to unlock these endings...
Overall the NG+ was quite well done : easier than the first playthrough, the revealed secrets kept me hooked and entertained. The ending B in itself ? Meh, it was satisfying on an emotionnal level, but story-wise ? Nope. It didn't resolve all the hanging questions that were left.
I hope the endings C and D are good, but as I've been playing this non-stop since saturday, I think I'm going to make a little pause. I dread getting all the necessary weapons in order to unlock these endings...
If you don't want to replay the game two more times you can just watch those two on youtube. I don't think there's any new story content in them except the endings themselves. Also, definitely read Grimoire Nier when you've seen all the endings. There's a fan translation. It has a developer interview and some short stories and other stuff that explains all of the story and what happens after the game.
Tribes of Trusty
Member
Gave up on getting all the weapons and YouTube'd the C and D endings. Well, that was underwhelming.
Hope Grimoire Nier will be interesting to read...
Hope Grimoire Nier will be interesting to read...
slaughterking
Member
Ending D is pretty good when you play it for yourself.
Tribes of Trusty
Member
I don't know how I'd feel about that. Yeah the "erasing the book" passage was quite nice, but frankly, the game warns you several times you will erase your saves...and then so what ?
Also, what is considered the canon ending ? (even if "canon" isn't really a word CAVIA seemed to like). I liked the B ending because it deepened the A one. Here ? Well...
I dunno, it's just that I didn't find those ending particularly satisfying. I'm glad I didn't spend god knows how many hours on weapons-fetching.
Also, what is considered the canon ending ? (even if "canon" isn't really a word CAVIA seemed to like). I liked the B ending because it deepened the A one. Here ? Well...
I dunno, it's just that I didn't find those ending particularly satisfying. I'm glad I didn't spend god knows how many hours on weapons-fetching.
Okay I read a bit of Grimoire Nier, I'm stopping for now because I'm feeling too depressed reading it.
Also it would've been nice to include even a fraction of the content this books contains in the actual game, I think it would've improved the experience.
Clear
CliffyB's Cock Holster
There is only one ending in terms of story/events. A and B are complimentary with the choice offered at the C/D ending being the only point of departure. And that's really a morality decision through which the player can express their feelings on the meaning and ramifications of the game's events.
Actually, from what I remember
D is the true ending. Grimoire Nier (in Ending E) goes into more detail about what happens afterward, and it's surprisingly uplifting. Sort of. I mean, their (Kaine, Nier etc.) little story is uplifting/happy. What happens to the entire world in the future is still a giant kick to the balls.
Actually, no, scratch that. It's not that happy. Yonah is still dying of the disease.
Clear
CliffyB's Cock Holster
Well, the problem with ending D is...
As what happens is that Tyrann and Replicant Nier magically expunge themselves and their actions from history, the world is somehow reformed without their existence but into a new shape that isn't ever defined.
Its a huge mindfuck in a narrative sense because it doesn't really work on any level other than the emotional. Like the rest of the story it only hangs together with "dream logic".
I mean if you assume that the Shadowlord is still dead and everything is going to hell in a handbasket (a prerequisite for ending "E" in Grimoire Nier), who exactly killed him? Nothing is substituted in its place, its simply omitted, yet things carry on as if they have occurred as we've seen.
At heart Nier as a morality play about man's inhumanity to man, and how simplistic heroic myths can enable atrocity when the "enemy" is sufficiently dehumanized. Looking deeper is almost futile because around this basic premise is a hall-of-mirrors of allusions, metaphors, and moral uncertainties.
C/D offers a moment of catharsis upon understanding the magnitude of the error the game has tricked us into. Saving Kaine is a moment of pure altruism through sacrifice; The lunar tear symbolizing "the good deed done", at last.
Its a huge mindfuck in a narrative sense because it doesn't really work on any level other than the emotional. Like the rest of the story it only hangs together with "dream logic".
I mean if you assume that the Shadowlord is still dead and everything is going to hell in a handbasket (a prerequisite for ending "E" in Grimoire Nier), who exactly killed him? Nothing is substituted in its place, its simply omitted, yet things carry on as if they have occurred as we've seen.
At heart Nier as a morality play about man's inhumanity to man, and how simplistic heroic myths can enable atrocity when the "enemy" is sufficiently dehumanized. Looking deeper is almost futile because around this basic premise is a hall-of-mirrors of allusions, metaphors, and moral uncertainties.
C/D offers a moment of catharsis upon understanding the magnitude of the error the game has tricked us into. Saving Kaine is a moment of pure altruism through sacrifice; The lunar tear symbolizing "the good deed done", at last.
Tribes of Trusty
Member
I finished reading Grimoire Nier and Ending E.
Punch in the balls : The Video Game
Punch in the balls : The Video Game
This ending talk reminds me of how bummed I was when I found out some quests were locked to the first half of the game and if you miss them there's no way to play to completion. I would have done everything in the game if it had the option of starting a new game+ from the beginning, but it only lets you start at the second half. No way I'd do everything from scratch after all that.
I know why you start at that part but I would have welcomed the option in a third or fourth playthrough (or a point-of-no-return message before that certain boss). Big oversight imo.
I know why you start at that part but I would have welcomed the option in a third or fourth playthrough (or a point-of-no-return message before that certain boss). Big oversight imo.
Is that in english?
The way I see it, their actions weren't expunged, just any living memory of them. Ending E seems to allude to the fact that this leaves Kaine all kinds of confused, as she really can't explain WHY she did any of the stuff over the past several years, and can sort of sense the gaping holes in her memory. (If I remember correctly, it's been a while since I've read it.)
First and foremost, Ending D is supposed to make YOU, the player, feel some sort of sacrifice. You stick around long enough to see your wish granted, and the immediate, tragic consequences. If they had let you watch events much longer, then the tragedy would have become more tenuous. Kaine and Yonah would naturally have a lot of big questions about the huge holes in their memory, which would reaffirm your existence in the game's world, if only by acknowledgement of your absence.
First and foremost, Ending D is supposed to make YOU, the player, feel some sort of sacrifice. You stick around long enough to see your wish granted, and the immediate, tragic consequences. If they had let you watch events much longer, then the tragedy would have become more tenuous. Kaine and Yonah would naturally have a lot of big questions about the huge holes in their memory, which would reaffirm your existence in the game's world, if only by acknowledgement of your absence.
Assuming you're not talking about the Japanese version, they are basically the same. The 360's video apparently has slightly worse compression. Personally, I'd buy whichever is cheaper, unless you have a strong controller preference.
The Awesomest
Member
So, I just started B-playthrough. I got to the junk heap and watched the cutscenes. I couldn't do it. I'm glad they gave me the memory alloy right off the bat, instead of having to do the entire dungeon, but when I left, it made me watch another cutscene. I couldn't take it any more, so I played Space Channel 5 part 2 instead, and that made me feel better. I swear, Nier just finds the most ways to depress me.
Also, I did the Forest of Myth thing. I'm curious about the tree...
Also, I did the Forest of Myth thing. I'm curious about the tree...
Is it some sort of supercomputer that stores memories to put back into people when the project succeeds? And the people can't go near it because they'll get filled with memories they aren't supposed to have, or something like that?
The game doesn't go into specifics about it but yeah, that's it.
I don't think it's supposed to put memories back into people though. The Shades/Gestalts retain their memories after they're awake (as long as they don't relapse), so I assume that would carry over after they were inserted in their corresponding Replicants. The tree seems to be mostly some sort of backup/storage record for the project.
just got this game for super low price. Anything I should be warned about? Also excited because there seems to be a large fanbase despite the low reviews.
Sucks that I spoiled the soundtrack of this game. I listened to it on youtube a couple months back and it made me intrigued.
Sucks that I spoiled the soundtrack of this game. I listened to it on youtube a couple months back and it made me intrigued.
PixyJunket
Member
Play a New Game+ at least once. That's all I can say.
PixyJunket
Member
Well, it's interesting that I saw this thread and decided to check the #NieR tag on Twitter, which actually provided some news.
Apparently, Grimoire Nier has continued to sell so well, they're making a second edition.
But perhaps somebody can check to see if the Japanese contains any additional details.
Apparently, Grimoire Nier has continued to sell so well, they're making a second edition.
But perhaps somebody can check to see if the Japanese contains any additional details.
https://twitter.com/#!/SaitoYosuke_Z/status/200392556805230593Yosuke Saito said: