NieR 10th Anniversary Livestream Details

Additional information has just been released regarding the up-coming livestreams for the NieR 10th Anniversary scheduled for March 29.


Please note that all times are listed in Japan Standard Time (JST).

View the Schedule in Google Docs.

NieR:Theatrical Orchestra 12020 Concert – Talk Corner

  • Page Open: 3:00pm
  • Time: 3:30〜5:00pm
  • Free to Watch: Yes

NieR:Theatrical Orchestra 12020 Concert

  • Time: 5:00〜7:30pm
  • Free to Watch: No
  • View on Demand: Only the beginning of the concert will be accessible to those without a Net Ticket:
    • Premium Members: 4500pts
    • Standard Members: 5000pts
  • The concert will include vocals by Emi Evans and J’Nique Nicole with new recitation dramas by the following voice cast members:
    • Yusa Kouji – Older Brother Nier
    • Nonaka Ai – Yonah
    • Ishikawa Yui – 2B
    • Hanae Natsuki – 9S
    • Akiyama Kaoru – Pod153
    • Yasumoto Hiroki – Pod042, Beepy

YoRHa Ver.1.3aᵃ Stage Play – Talk Corner

  • Page Open: 7:30pm
  • Time: 7:40〜8:00pm
  • Free to Watch: Yes

YoRHa Ver.1.3aᵃ Stage Play

  • Time: 8:00〜11:00pm
  • Free to Watch: No
  • View on Demand: Only the beginning of the concert will be accessible to those without a Net Ticket:
    • Premium Members: 2500pts
    • Standard Members: 3000pts
  • Will include an “after talk” segment after the performance
  • Watch on NicoNico Douga

YoRHa Ver.1.3aᵃ Stage Play – After Talk

  • Time: 11:00pm〜11:55pm
  • Free to Watch: No
  • This segment is only available to those who purchased a Net Ticket for the Stage Play.

NieR 10th Anniversary – Talk Corner

  • Time: 11:59pm〜1:30am
  • Free to Watch: Yes

NieR 10th Anniversary Late Night Talk

  • Time: 1:30am〜
  • Free to Watch: No
  • This segment is only available to NicoNico Premium Members.
    There is no Net Ticket for this segment.

The final free-to-watch segment of the Anniversary livestream will likely be around 5 hours and function as a typical talk show like we’ve seen the crew do in the past. It’s currently unknown exactly what will be discussed during this segment, but there’s always a possibility they will drop something important on us (perhaps something about Yoko’s New Project?) We shall see…!

Santa Saito’s Christmas 2019

Saito Yosuke is hosting his annual Christmas special on NicoNico again today. It will start at 7pm (JST) at the following link:

“Yosupi Santa” –Spending Christmas Eve with Game Creators Born in 1970–

Known guests include:

  • Saito Yosuke (MC/Director)
  • Anzai Takashi (SQEX)
  • Kamiya Hideki (Platinum Games)
  • Sakurai Masahiro (SORA)
  • Fujisawa Jin (Story Note)
  • Yoko Taro (Bukkoro)

For a little bit of insight on what may be discussed during this program, here is my recap from last year’s event.

Continue reading

Square Enix Registered a New Trademark for NieR

According to Chizai Watch, Square Enix has registered a new trademark under the single-word title “NieR”.

This is important because SQEX never had a registered trademark to cover the entirety of the NieR series, including NieR Gestalt/Replicant, NieR:Automata, and all the other related off-shoots. This trademark would remedy that.

Please note that this announcement does not reveal any up-coming release for the series, merely that SQEX wants to combine all previously registered trademarks under a single franchise. This will be easier to manage it as a whole as we move into the future. What this does suggest is that SQEX is clearly thinking about the future of the series and that we will likely continue to see new releases and additional merch, although I doubt we’ll ever get a NieR themed Mahjong set. This is merely to help SQEX cover their bases. lol

  • Public Announcement Date: December 17, 2019
  • Gazette Classification Release – Publication of Registered Trademark
  • Business Application Number: 2019-150734(T2019-150734)
  • Application Date: Reiwa 1, November 29 (November 29, 2019)

Categories

  • Class 9: Machinery and Appliances
  • Class 16: Paper
  • Class 28: Toys
  • Class 41: Education / Entertainment

Product Services

  1. Ornamental magnets
  2. Software for commercial video game consoles
  3. Programs for commercial video game consoles
  4. Telecommunications mechanical equipment
  5. Cell Phone Straps
  6. Other Telecommunications Equipment Parts and Accessories
  7. Computer Software
  8. Computer Software
  9. Computer Gaming Software
  10. Virtual Reality Game Software
  11. Electronic Circuits, Magnetic Tapes, Magnetic Disks, Optical Disks, ROM Cartridges, and Other Storage Mediums that Store Computer Programs
  12. Mouse Pads
  13. Flash Memory Cards (Unrecorded)
  14. Memory Card Cases
  15. CD case
  16. Computer keyboards
  17. Computer joysticks
  18. Other electronic application mechanical equipment
  19. Electronic application machinery parts and accessories
  20. Home video game toy software
  21. Home video game toy programs
  22. Video game software
  23. Home video game software
  24. Electronic gaming programs
  25. Electronic circuits, magnetic disks, optical disks, ROM cartridges and other storage devices that save files for home video games
  26. Gaming software for mobile devices
  27. Gaming programs for mobile devices
  28. Electronic circuits, magnetic disks, optical disks, ROM cartridges and other storage media that save files for gaming mobile devices
  29. Recorded magnetic data recording media
  30. CDs with recorded music
  31. Recorded CDs and other recorded recording media
  32. Downloadable music and voice
  33. Downloadable ringtones for mobile phones
  34. Downloadable music (including ringtone music for mobile phones)
  35. Downloadable audio (including ringtone audio for mobile phones)
  36. The audio recordings of previously recorded music, fictional stories, and/or other recorded media on optical discs, magnetic disks, solid-state memory devices
  37. The video and audio recordings of previously recorded music, fictional stories, and/or other recorded media on optical discs, magnetic disks, solid-state memory devices
  38. Video discs with music and / or fictional stories
  39. Video cassettes with music and / or fictional stories
  40. Video discs and other recorded media
  41. Downloadable images (including video games, animated characters, card games, computer games, comics, novels, magazine art, text, graphics, and photo images
  42. Downloadable wallpaper image data for computers and / or mobile phones
  43. Downloadable screen saver data for computers and / or mobile phones
  44. Downloadable video footage
  45. Receiving and saving images that can be used on the Internet
  46. Electronic publications in the field of computer games, video games, comics, and entertainment
  47. Other electronic publications
  48. Office and household glues and adhesives
  49. Paper packaging containers
  50. Paper flags
  51. Card collection albums
  52. Stationery
  53. Trading cards
  54. Picture postcards
  55. Sheet music
  56. Song books
  57. Collection of photographs/images
  58. Calendars
  59. Posters
  60. Catalogs
  61. Pamphlets / Brochures
  62. Information and guides in magazines, manuals, and books on commercial games
  63. Information and guides in magazines, manuals, and books on computer games
  64. Information and guides in magazines, manuals, and books on home video games
  65. Information and guides in magazines, manuals, and books on games for mobile devices
  66. Comics and novels
  67. Magazines that cover material in comics
  68. Other Prints
  69. Calligraphy
  70. Photos
  71. Picture Frames
  72. Amusement park machine equipment and its parts and accessories
  73. Commercial home video game consoles
  74. Commercial gaming devices
  75. Commercial game robots
  76. Home video gaming toys
  77. Mobile device gaming toys
  78. Mobile device gaming toy storage case
  79. Game console joysticks
  80. Card game toys
  81. Other toys
  82. Dolls
  83. Board games
  84. Items to play Go
  85. Utagaruta
  86. Items to play Shougi
  87. Dice
  88. Sugoroku
  89. Dice cup
  90. Diamond game
  91. Items to play Chess
  92. Items to play Checkers
  93. Items for magic tricks
  94. Items to play Dominos
  95. Playing cards
  96. Japanese Hanafuda playing cards
  97. Yuugi cards
  98. Mahjong tools
  99. Pachinko machines and parts and accessories
  100. Pachinko slot machines and parts and accessories
  101. Yuugi equipment
  102. Items to play Billiards
  103. Trading card games
  104. Trading card game cards
  105. Professors to teach knowledge of the arts and/or sports
  106. Provision of online comics
  107. Provision of online magazines featuring computer games, video games, comics, and other entertainment
  108. Provision of electronic publications
  109. Planning, operation or holding concerts or music shows
  110. Provision of images and video using communication
  111. Provision of music and audio using communication
  112. Musical performances
  113. Providing information on musical performances or movie screenings
  114. Planning, operation or holding of events related to games, comics, animation, and movies
  115. Screening, production, and/or distribution of movies
  116. Provision of computer games using communication
  117. Provision of video games using communication
  118. Provision of virtual reality game centers
  119. Virtual reality using telecommunication devices (including mobile phone)
  120. Provision of recreational or amusement facilities for virtual reality using computer graphics technology
  121. Provision of information and guides on computer games and / or video games via the global communication network
  122. Provision of games through telecommunication
  123. Provision of game centers
  124. Provision of entertainment facilities
  125. Provision of computer games, video games, card games, entertainment information on animation, comics, novels, and magazines
  126. Providing information on the provision of games
  127. Provision of education and entertainment through membership
  • Applicant: Square Enix Co., Ltd.
  • Agent:
  • OCR text: Ni eR

YoRHa Ver.1.3aa and More!

Tonight’s live stream with the creators of NieR Gestalt/Replicant and NieR:Automata for the first bit of fanfare for the 10th Anniversary, we’ve received a bunch of new, juicy news:


NieR:Theatrical Orchestra 12020

TOKYO: Tokyo International Forum Hall A

Saturday, March 28
Evening – Open: 5:00pm / Start: 6:00pm

Sunday, March 29
Afternoon – Open: 11:00am / Start: 12:00pm
Evening – Open: 4:00pm / Start: 5:00pm

  • Composer: Okabe Keiichi
  • Voices:
    • Yusa Kouji (Older Brother Nier)
    • Nonaka Ai (Yonah)
    • Ishikawa Yui (2B)
    • Hanae Natsuki (9S)
    • Akiyama Kaoru (Pod153)
    • Yasumoto Hiroki (Pod042/Zinnia)
  • Vocalists:
    • Emi Evans
    • J’Nique Nicole
  • Conductor: Oi Takeshi

OSAKA: Osaka International Convention Center

Saturday, April 25
Afternoon – Open: 11:00am / Start: 12:00pm
Evening – Open: 4:00pm / Start: 5:00pm

  • Composer: Okabe Keiichi
  • Voices:
    • Yusa Kouji (Older Brother Nier)
    • Nonaka Ai (Yonah)
    • Ishikawa Yui (2B)
    • Hanae Natsuki (9S)
    • Kadowaki Mai (Emil)
    • Yasumoto Hiroki (Pod042/Zinnia)
  • Vocalists:
    • Emi Evans
    • J’Nique Nicole
  • Conductor: Oi Takeshi

Please be aware that the above scheduled performers are subject to change.

  • S Seats: 10,780 yen
  • A Seats: 8,580 yen

>> GET TICKETS HERE <<


YoRHa Ver.1.3a/A2

This is a fan-made photo-manipulation pic that I made myself, aka it’s not official.

The all-boys cast from YoRHa Ver.1.3a will be making a comeback in this second rendition of the stage play that so effortlessly won our hearts this year!

TOKYO: Shibuya Cultural Center Owada, Sakura Hall – 4th Floor
March 12-15, 7 performances

The YoRHa Ver.1.3a stage play will be coming back for a new version, bringing back the all-boy’s cast in the so-called YoRHa Ver.1.3aᵃ aka A2 stage play next March!

Tickets go on sale tomorrow!!!

The afternoon and evening performances on March 14 will be broadcast live on NicoNico, so stay tuned for the link to those pages in the future. You can purchase single tickets for 2500 points or 4000 points for both!

Visit the newly updated official YoRHa website here!!!

The entire cast from YoRHa Ver.1.3a will be returning, all except for Matsubara Rin, who played Anemone. Because of this, the entire character will be replaced with Jackass, as played by Kurotaka. Although the website hasn’t updated an image of him yet, you can view a couple shots of him on his agency’s page.

There will be recorded voices performed by:

  • Akiyama Kaoru: Voice of Pod153
  • Yasumoto Hiroki: Voice of Pod042/Zinnia

Like the previous Ver.1.3a stage play, the following talented musicians will be returning:

  • Guitar: Goto Takanori
  • Violin: Shirasu Kon
  • Percussion: Fukuoka Takashi

Along the same lines music, both Akaba Yukino and Nagaya Mikoto from GEMS COMPANY are listed in the credits for the “image songs”, so this is likely referring to their updated version of “Normandy” and “Gualdalcanal”.


This page will be updated in the event any
additional information on these events is released.

NieR:Automata x TSUKUMO x GEMS COMPANY 2nd Mini Event

Today was the 2nd NieR:Automata x TSUKUMO x GEMS COMPANY mini event in Akihabara, Tokyo. Saito Yosuke, Yoko Taro, Koda Kazuma (@Lownine), and Akaba Yukino from GEMS COMPANY were present and lead the talk event through two main segments.

TSUKUMO is a company specializing in computers and various computer parts. Their online shop can be found here.

GEMS COMPANY is an off-shoot of the DearStage idol company produced by Iwasaki Takuya, former member of Cavia and college friend of Yoko Taro. GEMS COMPANY, however, is produced by Saito Yosuke from Square Enix utilizing music composted by Okabe Keiichi and others at MONACA. There are several smaller groups within GEMS COMPANY.

The event was sold out within 5 minutes upon release, but I still managed to be the 24th person to order a ticket to the event…!!! YAYYY!!!

But, as it turns out, that didn’t matter in the slightest! xD

Arriving at the venue, you had to draw a lottery number, which would then be your admittance number. Before entering the actual hall, we were given special Guest stickers to slap on ourselves somewhere noticeable for people to know that we’re actual guests to the event!

The first segment comprised mostly of a question and answer session with questions already prepared by attendees ahead of time (I don’t recall them asking for questions, but it’s possible that I missed it entirely). The first couple questions were for Koda Kazuma, since he was mostly busy sketching the live drawing for the duration of the event. He was asked what sort of input he received to make the YoRHa:Dark Apocalypse key visual as seen below:

He said that Yoshida Naoki actually posed for him… and to this I can attest because he actually did this in photos he took with people at TGS this year!

Once Koda’s questions were finished, he continued working on a preliminary sketch that he started the day previous (to get ready for this event!) but he wasn’t able to finish it… So, while he continued sketching, Yoko was asked some very tasty things to feast your Yokoverse-loving hearts on!

Yoko was asked whether the “Dragon” weapons mentioned in the year 6230 have anything to do with Drakengard, and he said, “They are related.”
This would confirm my suspicions that something occurred during the war with the aliens in the Kingdom of Night to cause a temporal anomaly, thus creating a link to the year 856 and effectively causing the very Cataclysm that screwed everything over in the first place. But in usual Time-Space insane shenanigans, it’s nearly impossible to know which came first: the chicken or the egg.

I wrote about some of this in the past as to how SINoALICE fits into the overall Yokoverse, and there is some interesting “blending” of Drakengard and NieR going on with in it… You can read all about that here.

A “Singularity” also exists in NieR:Automata.
Singularity: A special person, place, or thing that triggers a shift within the [Multiverse]. This phenomenon is triggered when a certain amount of Maso is gathered in an area and all other conditions are met.

As you can recall, Zero in DOD3 was first dubbed a “Singularity” due to her connection with the Flower entity which spelled nothing but doom and gloom for the rest of the world. It’s because of this that caused the timeline to fracture, creating multiple other possible futures.

As far as Automata goes, there could be several candidates for “Singularity”:

  • A2 – Related to the different endings in C and D.
  • 9S – Choosing to stay or go on the Ark.
  • The Pods, specifically Pod042/Zinnia – It was Zinnia’s job to develop the YoRHa prototypes, and although he had more of a Teacher/Student sort of relationship with the other YoRHa, since Pod042 shares his personality data, I think it’s much more of a Father/Child sort of thing… and because of this, he went against his programming (as Pod) to help them, even if that choice would be detrimental to himself. Its his intervention that sort of gives us a happy ending.

Saito seemed interested in creating a NieR:Automata anime…!?
It’s been suggested before with Yoko’s “Thou Shalt Not Die” and considering his connection with Moriyama Daisuke, who has already had anime released for several of his manga series… We all know about the fake anime genga and layouts that were created for the DOD 10th Anniversary Inside World book by Yakou Hiroshi (矢向宏志)… It would be absolutely amazing if they could get him on board for a Yokoverse related anime project at some point!! But agreed, I would much rather see a TSND anime than a NieR:Automata one at this point.

The idea of a NieR Gestalt/Replicant remake was brought up again, and Saito seemed very positive about such a prospect. I’m not sure anything like that would be possible for the 10th Anniversary… but it may still be possible at some point…?

The “Last Secret” in NieR:Automata has still not been discovered.
Yoko was very coy about discussing this, but he still seemed very shocked and relieved that this hasn’t been discovered by anyone yet.

How does the all-boys version of the YoRHa Ver.1.3a stage play fit into the timeline?
Yoko didn’t necessarily say that it’s NOT “canon” but that it’s more like a parallel world.

What does the “P” in 2P’s name mean?
Yoko mentioned that it has another meaning besides merely “2nd player”, which was first used for the SoulCalibur VI collaboration, but he’s not able to discuss it at this time because YoRHa:Dark Apocalypse hasn’t concluded yet. Apparently divulging this information would be pretty spoilerish…? That in itself is pretty interesting.

Why do the main trio in Automata all have white hair?
Yoko said it was purely a design choice. The white hair seemed balance the best with the black YoRHa outfits. Koda Kazuma also mentioned that he remembered 9S originally being blonde…

Since there’s been a musical version of the YoRHa stage play, could it be possible for the all-male cast to do something similar?
I don’t think anyone gave a straight answer for this, but I’m extremely intrigued. The all-boys casts have gotten a HUGE response from fans…

How are the Healer and Scanner types different?
Yoko said it’s much like changing the OS of your computer. It still basically does the same things, but it’s equipped better to handle specific tasks. The same is true for when Operators switch over to Battler type units.


During the 20 minute intermission, we were able to go up to the front panel where Yoko left his mask, and as you can see, this is actually the older version that unfortunately had a rough time at Tokyo Game Show 2016 when it dove head first into the ground…

It was after this incident at TGS 2016 that yoshi, the artist who created the mask, tried to fix it, giving it a nice scar sort of aesthetic with three bolts holding it together… but unfortunately, the middle bar is missing… 🙁


The second half of the event was mostly dedicated to a presentation by AMD, Ryzen, and Radeon followed by a lottery giveaway drawing. Since I’m not a PC gamer, I sort of zoned out during the presentation…

But the next bit was dedicated to a free giveaway, lottery drawing for the attendees of the event! Naturally, the first portion was determined by several rounds of ROCK SCISSORS PAPER! I was trying out a theory that most people leading these games *do not* continue with Rock. For example, the Japanese style first begins with Rock, then the next is different… but they almost NEVER continue with a second Rock thereafter… which is weird. haha Every time, I started with Rock, so every time, I sat down after the first bout. RIP

The prizes for the Rock Scissors Paper portion included a couple Pod/Machine keychains, a Hacking Space T-Shirt, and several other Gems Company related goods.

The next portion was entirely a lottery drawing using our seat numbers that we drew to enter the venue. There were about 20 free giveaways for signed autograph boards and other goods, and those who already won something were illegible to win again. Unfortunately, I both sucked at Rock Scissors Paper as well as random drawings.

But still, those who weren’t able to win anything were given a random mini-shikishi on the way out, so that was a lot of fun! I’m sorry to say that I originally got one signed by Saito Yosuke, but since I already have many things signed by him, I traded it for Koda Kazuma’s! I didn’t have anything signed by him thus far, so I was really excited to add that to the collection!! Thanks so much!!


Lastly, the official Gems Company Twitter account uploaded Koda’s illustration, so you can view that below!

Saito Yosuke also posted a couple photos from the event! From the left to right are:

  • Koda Kazuma (he doesn’t show his face in photos like Yoko, either!!)
  • Yoko Taro (he’s just holding the mask in front of his face!)
  • Saito Yosuke

There will be two more collaboration events like this held in Fukuoka and Osaka later in the year, and apparently Piroshi from CyberConnect2 will be joining the cast for the one in Fukuoka! Oh, boy!! I hope everyone has fun!!

By this time it’s really late, many hours after the event, so I may have forgotten some other interesting points. Should I remember anything more, I will further edit this post to reflect those additions!

Thanks to everybody who set up this event! I always have a ton of fun and I’ll be looking forward to the next one, although I can’t go to the next two TSUKUMO events! Here’s to hoping there will be something at the end of the year or… maybe later next year for the 10th Anniversary of NieR!!