Nier: Gestalt

Speaking of prancing about in one's neglige, a while back I got Nier. Unfortunately, as Jou laments, American audiences only get the Gestalt version, not the Replicant version with a cute main character. The short review is that the game is made of awesome. My only complaints are the FUG main character and the aforementioned neglige. Don't get me wrong, I loves me some neglige, but in making Kainé badass they went a bit over the top. The shit that comes out of her mouth will make anyone's ears burn —the "anti-femininity" of which is a beautiful counterpoint to the standard of demure virgins and super-femme harpies you usually get in Japanese RPGs— but it's hard to suspend one's disbelief and take the trash talking seriously when she's in her undies. C'est la vie.

In some ways the genre is a fairly standard 3/4-view medieval action with a dose of puzzle jumper. But a better description is if you took 3/4 medieval action and crossed it with danmaku. I've been meaning to play some danmaku for a while, and the danmaku aspect makes the game truly unique among 3/4 medieval action games. So if you like action games with puzzle elements to the boss fights, then this is right up your alley.

The plot is amazing. On the surface it's a typical series of fetch quests, but the real plot lies in the character development and the mystery of figuring out how the world got to be the way it is. And while you're first given to think that the plot is about figuring out the world, in truth it's all about the characters, about who we are, and about what it means to be whoever we are. That plot is unveiled slowly, layer by layer. The details are given with subtlety, first with just outlines that leave you to connect the dots, and then with color and shading as the complete image comes into focus. It's a glorious respite from most games which just beat you over the head with every plot twist and let you know right away who're the villains and who the heroes. The slow and steady sketching leads to a depth and richness that puts it in league with the best RPGs, far surpassing the standard RPG baseline. And once you beat the game you can re-play through the second half, unlocking new cutscenes that give the story from the perspectives of secondary characters, heroes and villains alike.

While I loved the plot, like Wanda and the Colossus, it's all about how much you bring to the table. It's an story you must engage, like a novel, not a story that spoon feeds you like Hollywood blockbusters. If you just run through the quests without exploring the world or doing side-quests, then it's a fairly short game and you'll miss much of what it has to offer. This is the reason, IMHO, for the mixed reviews you may find out there. Don't listen to them; listen to me :)