For the longest time, people have been speculating that there’s some sort of deeper connection between No2 (A2) and Kaine. I may have been the culprit for this with my initial speculation after going to the original YoRHa Ver.1.0 stage play in 2014, whether that’s accurate or not, I don’t really know, but there was one line in which the titular character mentions her “false memory” of growing up on a farm with her grandma that stuck in my memory at the time. I initially thought this detail was unusually specific and drew some connections to Kaine, who also grew up with her grandma, although the details were quite different.
Over the years I grew to distance myself from this speculation, but it seemed like the overall fanbase liked this correlation between the characters, so no matter how much I might suggest people only view this as speculation, it seemed to make people believe it all the more. Whether this is actually what happened with the fanbase or not, it doesn’t really matter, but for me, I tend to dislike it when people state this obvious speculation as absolute fact. It’s one thing to have a fun head canon and another to preach to others that it’s the only correct outcome.
Additionally, it seems like some folks are getting a little carried away with this speculation, so allow me to address some silly comments recently made on 4chan, which you’re free to have your own opinions on the medium… But since they mentioned me by name, I felt it was my responsibility to respond, although indirectly with this post.
▶︎ The Comment
“Kaine did not live on a farm with her grandmother.
The original human Kaine lived in a mansion and she was an experimental weapon made from Curly’s genetics and Legion DNA. This is in the Drama CD.
Replicant Kaine lived in that place outside the Aerie and it is most definitely not a farm. Moreover, she is a Replicant so they wouldn’t have used her memories.
A2’s original personality is the one we see in the stage play and in episodes 6 and 17 of the anime. She is an innocent cheerful girl and that is why they named her Freesia. She only became vengeful after the betrayal and loss of her family. Her story arc in Automata is about her regaining her humanity and opening herself up to others (she is the opposite of 9S), so we barely see her vengeful self at all, especially in the anime (though the game localization kind of messed up her personality imo).
This entire theory was created by Rekka because she sloppily thought it matched up. She has since said that it was an incorrect theory and asked people to stop spreading it because it was wrong.” ー4chan
So, first of all I’d like to remind people of the timeline of these events.
The first YoRHa stage play debuted in October 2014.
If we’re to tackle the localized interpretation of her character, you’re going to run into some issues because there are clear actors who want to equate A2 to Kaine, but there is actually very little connecting the two. The issue is the distance between the original game and the localized English version, which lends to what we see in the localized version of the anime… There are many aspects that are altered or slightly skewed for whatever reason. The fact is that neither version is entirely 1:1 accurate and you sort of need to make your own acceptance with this incongruity.
All that to say that A2 is HARDLY on the same personality level as Kaine. She began as an extremely timid girl and was sharpened into the slick blade that she became due to her harsh experiences of being used as a mere tool that can be discarded and losing her dear friends under her own watch. That alone will change a person, and that is exactly what happens to her. That doesn’t necessarily mean that she becomes a completely violent person with a vile mouth. That’s not A2. That’s Kaine. That is where these two characters differ greatly. Of course, you could draw some similarities if you wanted, but I honestly don’t seen enough that would absolutely solidify this, that A2 and Kaine are essentially the same person, as fact.
What it seems like the main hang up that people have is the difference between speculation and reality. Granted, these ideas that I initially had, no matter when I first posted them, were cultivated from what I learned at the initial YoRHa stage play in 2014. This was when the YoRHa idea and NieR had ABSOLUTELY NOTHING to do with each other.
And yet I still speculated some ideas here and there. One of my ideas was largely based on a singular line by No2 that distantly resembled the past of Kaine from NieR. You can read more about this here.
▶︎ Scene from the YoRHa Ver.1.2 Musical
No2: Our memories… are pseudo memories. No4: They’re false memories programmed in order to promote diversity and evolution on the battlefield. No2: In my memories, I lived in the country with my grandma. No4: In my memories, I hung out a lot with my friends at school. No2: Everyday, grandma and I would tend to the farm and knit… The cold of the rain, the ferocity of the storms. The silence of the snow. The gentle warmth of spring… No4: After school, we’d go eat the most delicious things, have fun dressing up, playing games… No2: Since we lived in the country, I couldn’t have everything I wanted. But because the other villagers looked out for me, including my grandma… strangely, it wasn’t so hard. No4: As long as I had my friends, I could endure my studies. We’d laugh day after day; no matter what hardships came our way, we were able to overcome them. No2: ……My grandma taught me “kindness,” a gentle heart to cares for others. No4: ……My friends taught me “hope”, a strong heart to laugh even in the face of difficulty. No4: Holding tightly onto these false memories, we fight. No2: But they are also our precious memories. No2 & No4: The time… draws near… No2 & No4: Our final moments… are about to begin…
Although the above blurb comes from the YoRHa Ver.1.2 Musical, which debuted in 2018, this setting also existed in the original play penned by Kaoru Asakusa in 2014, so that alone might be an important factor. We don’t necessarily know how far Yoko’s setting extended and where Asakusa created on his own; although it’s more likely that Yoko made this setting from the very beginning.
But whether this speculation is accurate or notー that’s sort of not the point because that’s what speculation is. We merely bring up interesting or odd coincidences and try to make sense of them, drawing from what we already know.. That doesn’t necessarily mean these speculations are accurate or correct in any way.
So, it would be nice if people could separate speculation from 10 years ago from what we currently know as fact… Personally, I think it’s perfectly okay to believe whatever you want as your own headcanon, but it’s also important to acknowledge the facts a little bit and to weigh everything against each other in order to come to a reliable assessment.
In the end, what you want to believe is up to you, and that’s totally okay, but for me personally, I’d greatly appreciate it if people could please leave me out of this situation. 10 years is a long time to have stated a simple bit of speculation for people to still be believing it as fact or blaming me for its inaccuracies. It’s about time to move on… xD
We’ve been getting some exciting new material to better flesh out the overall Penny Blood IP recently by the creators! This is the 3rd, and I believe the final, part that will be included in the up-coming Inheritors novel.
Below is a list of sections in that novel along with their corresponding author:
Hello, everyone. This is Machida from Studio Wildrose.
This week, I’m excited to introduce Penny Blood: Hideseeker, one of the three stories included in the Penny Blood Inheritors Story!
Hideseeker is a dark horror novel set in Europe in 1924.
The story follows Emilia Dawson, an agent of the British Intelligence Service (SIS), and Matthew Farrell, a Federal Bureau of Investigation (BOI) agent from New York who has come to assist her. These two protagonists also appear in the main story of Penny Blood.
Their partnership began a year earlier, in 1923, when they joined forces to stop a world-threatening invasion from another realm. Since then, Matthew and Emilia have been active in their respective home countries. Now, in Hideseeker, they reunite to confront a mysterious new case.
* Please note that there are some typographic inconsistencies in the following images. It should be corrected later down the road.
“So… let me hear the details. It’s our territory, right?” “Yes.”
Their reunion marks the beginning of a battle to protect the world from a new threat.
“Leave the rest to me.”
The scars of the 1923 battle remain—literally. Matthew’s face bears a mark that appears when he transforms.
“I’m glad you’re happy!”
Meanwhile, Emilia fights fiercely to protect the peace of ordinary people.
“Matthew Farrell. Emilia Dawson. I’ve been looking forward to meeting you.”
But those from another world, targeting the awakening world, may already be closer than anyone realizes.
▶︎ Production Notes
Hideseeker draws inspiration from infamous historical murder cases and incorporates elements of the Cthulhu Mythos, continuing the legacy of dark storytelling established by the Shadow Hearts series and carried forward into Penny Blood.
The game-like narrative structure of Hideseeker is designed to give readers a taste of the rich, dark, and heavy atmosphere of Penny Blood. It showcases the characters’ personalities, their interactions, and their battles with monstrous foes.
Every effort was made to highlight the characters’ unique charms, not only for the protagonists but also for supporting characters. Some unexpected personalities even bring comical moments into the mix, adding a lighter touch to the dark tale. Personally, I’m very fond of these elements and hope readers will enjoy them too.
The story also introduces key terms like Inheritors, the World in Between, and the Awakening World, offering glimpses of future story developments and a cosmic horror-inspired worldview. Fans of history or the Cthulhu Mythos may recognize certain elements, while newcomers can enjoy unraveling the mysteries as they go.
Interestingly, the name Hideseeker signifies a “hideout” or “secret base,” adding a layer of intrigue to the story.
With the release of information about Hideseeker, all three stories included in the Inheritors Story are now revealed. Each tale is unique, contributing to the world of Penny Blood while offering its own distinct appeal.
We hope you’ll look forward to the Penny Blood Inheritors Story!
So, this is going to be another editorial type of post, focusing on a recent post on Twitter. We’re going to explore the complexity of quote translations and how some venues like to rework them to suit a specific purpose, which is more likely than not pure clickbait or engagement farming.
Before we get into the details, let’s review the original post that kicked this off:
The first thing to notice with this post is how sensational it is intended to be viewed, but on closer analysis, you’ll see that this statement not only includes several unsightly typos but also several nonfactual statements:
▶︎ TYPOS
The title of the series: Neir → NieR
by the idea → but the idea
▶︎ NONFACTUAL STATEMENTS
“Yoko Taro initially wanted to add an intimate sex scene between 2B and 9S in the Neir Automata anime” → Yoko did not absolutely state this. This is purely based on a singular interpretation of a redacted statement.
[but] the idea was rejected by the Aniplex Producer who argued that “9S would not do that”. → This statement was not from a producer from Aniplex but rather the original NieR:Automata game designer at Platinum Games, Takahisa Taura.
The most problematic portion of this post is the steadfast, apparently factual statement that any of the Devs confirmed the copulation between two main characters, which… hold on for a bit, they absolutely did not.
A major issue dealing with issues like this involves Japanese to English translation as well as dealing with the plethora of Japanese context/nuance which cannot be translated via Google or any other free-based machine translation tool. You have to know the language to fully understand the overall context, to know when or where people are just shitting you, and to grasp the underlying nuance.
So, first let’s examine the translation that was initially presented here:
Note: My beef isn’t necessarily with this interpretation as much as it is with representing it as absolute fact, which it absolutely is not. It’s another example of folks placing words in people’s mouths, often with a specific motive, whether it be clout, engagement, or whatever else.
Additionally, it’s not necessarily wrong to use Google Translate or other machine aided translation programs, but you need to already have a certain level of proficiency in the target language to understand the remaining linguistic nuance and context.
Next, I’d like to examine a short passage in a recent interview by Famitsu.
(Please note that the following is my translation, done for editorial purpose for this piece.)
ー No matter what, it takes time for the anime team to fully grasp the original game. By the way, Yoko-san, you were in charge of the series structure, but what exactly did that involve?
Yoko: It started with the script—or rather, the plot—that was presented to me. When I reviewed it, I felt it was a little too similar to the game, so I suggested making some changes.
My first idea was rejected for various reasons, but they began incorporating my ideas from the next one. That’s when they asked if I’d focus on the series structure.
In the early stages, we aimed to stay true to the game, closely following its storyline, but I personally felt there was little merit in simply retelling the same story. Fans would likely expect something new and different in the anime, so we decided on a balancing out the strengths of the game with original elements unique to the anime.
Producer Matsumoto prioritized staying true to the rules of the game, while I tend to break them, preferring to take a step back and approach things differently. That was the sort of balance we came to. The so-called “9S●● incident” caused quite a stir within the team; it was rather something.
ー “The 9S●● incident?!” Could you elaborate on that?
Yoko: At one point, I included a scene in the plot where 9S and 2B do ●●. However, Producer Matsumoto intervened, firmly stating: “9S doesn’t do ●●.” As a result, the scene was cut (laughs).
He was concerned that fans might not react positively to it. I believe that creative works, whether games or anime, ultimately belong to the audience. I understood that Producer Matsumoto, who approached the project with the audience’s perspective in mind, had valid concerns about it, so I decided to scrap the scene.
ー I see. Was there another reason why you chose avoid making the content of the anime identical to the game?
Yoko: I’d actually like to hear Taura-san explain why I didn’t make it the same as the game.
Taura: What?! Why should I answer that? (laughs) Well, it’s like… you know? Even though the way you express things is different between the two mediums, I imagine you wouldn’t want to just recreate something you’ve already made. If you were to do it again, you’d want to change a lot of things, right?
Yoko: That’s true, but I was hoping for something more direct, like, “Yoko-san is just that kind of creator.”
Taura: Yoko was in his 40s when he directed the game and in his 50s when working on the anime. It seems like something changed for him as he entered his 50s.
Back in his 40s, Yoko would never have considered letting 9S do ●●. The fact that he included it this time likely means he’s become better at capturing the essence of ●●● (character) engaging in ●●●●●● (action).
Yoko: I guess I didn’t fully understand what ●● was until I reached my 50s.
Taura: Yoko had a long adolescence—it took him a while, but he finally reached adulthood.
Yoko: Now that you mention it, I haven’t written anything about ●●. Even if I had, it probably would’ve been rejected (laughs). It’s tough to figure out where it fits.
ー Regarding yourself, Taura-san, you were the main planner and designer for the game. What are your thoughts on 2B and 9S’s actions in the anime?
Taura (Yoko): Clearly, it’s not enough.
Taura: Why are you answering for me?! (laughs)
Yoko: Wha, am I wrong?
Taura: Uh, I’m not saying it’s not enough at all.
Taura (Yoko): I really wish there was a ●● scene.
Taura: Knock it off (laughs).
Seriously speaking, games and anime are quite different mediums. In games, players can explore and enjoy actions from any angle based on how they play, while anime relies on dynamic, stylish scenes to captivate the audience.
When making the game, I had a specific image in mind, but through the anime, I was able to rediscover and highlight the cool elements and ideas that weren’t expressed in the game. I’m truly grateful for that opportunity.
The above passages should demonstrate that, since the specific words were omitted here, no definitive answer was given from the devs themselves. Granted, we can still take meaning from the remaining context, but that is a subjective interpretation; it’s your opinion rather than fact. Whether it’s right or wrong, the devs are not about to say one way or the other; therefore, it’s impossible to state which is absolute fact.
But within this context, you have to understand how Yoko works, how he speaks. He is a major cheeky bastard who likes to fuck around, so it makes it difficult to know his real intentions, what he actually means. But it should at least be clearly evident when he’s hotly in Yokoism-fuckery mode, especially in this passage. It doesn’t necessarily translate very well if you’re not aware or are just using machine translation, and it absolutely matters if you’re making a secondary translation from an already translated piece. It’s like making a photocopy from the copy of a copy; it gradually looses definition and quality.
This is often where context and nuance goes to die often for no other reason than to simply save time (and money). This is also how many game localizations are handledー generally the English translation is made first from which other languages such as Spanish, French, German, etc. use this 1st gen translation to base their own rather than going back to the original Japanese script. This clearly can cause significant problems if you’re not referencing back to the original Japanese.
Additionally, it might be important to see how actual native Japanese read and interpret the article. if you don’t believe the J-E translators, you should be able to believe actual Japanese people understanding the contextual meaning of their own native language, right?
・If you read the original article properly, you'll understand. ・It doesn't necessarily mean sexual intercourse. ・Even if you don't know what ⚫️⚫️ is about, it's fun to imagine what it means. ・The NieR team spoke respectfully to each other in the audio commentary.
What I find a lot of consumers don’t have a great understanding about what regulations actually restrict businesses from expressing certain ideas and/or imagery. You can view this sort of censorship as you may, but it’s not possible to simply ignore it. I am not an expert on every area of these regulations, but I do have direct, professional experience translating within these regulations to be able to effectively speak on it.
What’s interesting to know is that people do not willingly determine what rating a game or anime receives; it’s solely based on the content that exists within the product. Typically speaking, game companies want to release their games to reach the highest number of consumers, so if their product hits too many marks on the mature end, they have no choice but to scale back and self-regulate their own work in order to reach a more desired ranking. Again, you can view this part of the business as you will, but it’s merely a fact that must be dealt with. You wouldn’t get ANY product if creators/developers willy-nilly rejected these regulations and just did whatever they wanted. At the end of the day, this is a BUSINESS, pure and simple. That’s why it may be helpful for consumers to get a better understanding of the business related to their favorite fandom.
Additionally, it may be helpful to understand Taura’s role regarding the NieR:Automata Ver.1.1a anime produced by A-1 Pictures via ANIPLEX. Much like games, anime also have certain regulations. I’m not as versed on this end as I am with games, but I can imagine that ANIPLEX and/or A-1 Pictures weren’t looking to produce a show with explicit or even suggested adult content.
A little more detail on the actual regulations manual… and yes, it’s a giant manual that we have to consult regarding the content that we express within the product. Again, this is mostly based on the gaming industry, but I assume other industries like the anime side has something similar.
This manual describes specific content and verbiage for each rating level. If you have more swear words, it’s going to throw it up into a higher rating. If you have certain depictions of violence, that’s also going to add to the overall tally that could throw your ranking up a level. This manual is very detailed, so even flipping through it to see what you can and cannot do is a rather taxing job.
What’s also important to understand here is that… Takahisa Taura has no sway on what is decided on the anime. He was the director if the previously released video game NieR:Automata and his role ended there. He may come on for a little consulting here and there, but that is entirely related to the game design and possibly how to express that within the anime medium. He has absolutely no say on what is or is not put into the anime.
And, I get the feeling that more often than not, folks misinterpret the relationship between Yoko and Taura– they are almost always portraying the traditional TSUKKOMI duo; one plays the dunce and the other plays the straight and narrow, often chastising the dunce. It’s much more complex with a long history than what I’m giving it here, but if you understand a little bit of that, you might understand the dynamic between those two. They’re largely playing off the other in humorous, cheeky tones. A lot of this could be misinterpreted as fact when it was actually said in jest; you entirely need to have a higher level understanding of Japanese context to understand what they’re actually saying, it’s not entirely clear cut or can be translated via machine translation.
So, if you remember anything from this, please let it be that fan interpretations of click-baity translations released by the usual sources (sensational headlines should be a red flag that they’re just farming for views and clicks) may not actually be based in the real world. You’d be amazed how a simple statement can be misconstrued and spread so far that it becomes a collective fact. It’s the Telephone Game in the modern age.
And that’s where my dumb idea of changing this cheeky censored word to “playing hopscotch” comes in because it’s both absurdly ridiculous and funny at the same time, at least in comparison to the general fanbase’s hyper fixation on sex.
So, here. Enjoy a round of hopscotch with 9S & 2B.
Yoko: The so-called “9S hopscotch incident” caused quite a stir within the team; it was rather something.
ー “The 9S hopscotch incident?!”
Yoko: At one point, I included a scene in the plot where 9S and 2B play hopscotch. However, Producer Matsumoto intervened, firmly stating: “9S doesn’t play hopscotch.” As a result, the scene was cut (laughs).
Taura: Back in his 40s, Yoko would never have considered letting 9S play hopscotch.
Yoko: I guess I didn’t fully understand what hopscotch was until I reached my 50s. Now that you mention it, I haven’t written anything about hopscotch. Even if I had, it probably would’ve been rejected (laughs). It’s tough to figure out where it fits.
Taura (Yoko): I really wish there was a hopscotch scene.
Slightly amused perhaps?
Maybe not.
In all honesty, I don’t see that they’re talking about sex necessarily, but could be teasing something similar to what was done in YoRHa Ver.1.3a/aa when Accord shows the crew a rather… interestingly shaped lie detector. I can kinda imagine 9S wondering how to attach this sort of thing to his android frame and how it’s supposed to be used. lol It could be funny rather than raunchy or romantic… and I think that would be more Yoko’s style with these characters.
Also, simply because they called this the “9S ●● incident” and not the “9S & 2B ●● incident” or anything else, I imagine that the focus is more solely focused on 9S rather than the two as a pair, even if they may have been referenced one time in this passage.
That being said, for anyone who was around when NieR:Automata was first released in 2017, people were and still remain super, hyper-fixated on the following…
This bleeped out word has never been officially revealed because they want you to imagine this on your own, to place your own meaning into it, essentially making the story your own.
Yoko: I believe that creative works ultimately belong to the audience.
Therefore, there are no wrong answers here, but the majority of people like to imagine that the word that fits here is “fuck”. Because of course.
Here’s a short list of possibilities that are included but not limited to:
Kill
Fuck
Save
Free
However, whether it’s a hint or not, it’s stated in the NieR Re[in]carnation collaboration with NieR:Automata that this could also be “free,” as in to free 2B from this shitty world.
“However, 9S secretly wished to free 2B from this endless cycle of war.”
So, I’ll reiterate this line from Yoko:
Yoko: I believe that creative works ultimately belong to the audience.
He has said similar things multiple times, but what it means is that he’s not going to hold your hand and tell you what he means, or how to “correctly” interpret any particular line, phrase, or scene. That’s your job to imagine and place meaning. But that doesn’t necessarily mean that what one person imagines is wrong while another’s is right. There is no right or wrong, so it’s really pointless to argue the point. However, there are more plausible outcomes than others, so I suppose you could argue that with your fellow NieR peers.
In the end, there is no correct answer, so everyone’s interpretation is valid. This is not to say that fan interpretations are wrong–please, by all means, have at you! I just feel like things get out of hand at times, where the facts get blurred to suit a specific narrative or fan fantasy. If you want to believe this omitted word was of the sexual nature, you’re free to do so, but please don’t state definitively that this was the one and only interpretation, because it’s not. If anything from this article sticks with you, please let it be that.
A 528-page memorial archive celebrating the completion of NieR Re[in]carnation, including character designs and illustrations, Weapon Stories, and other stories that weren’t implemented in the game will be released on November 28 and is available on Amazon.
Title: NieR Re[in]carnation Complete Guide -The Story of “The Cage” and Prayers (Official English title not decided)
Content: A memorial archive commemorating the conclusion of NieR Re[in]carnation. The book contains character visuals, weapon stories, and stories that had not been implemented in the game.
▶︎ COMPLETE TABLE OF CONTENTS
Content Details:
NieR Re[in]carnation – Guidepost of Those Memories and Recollections
Character Visuals and Settings
Main Story, Dark Memories, Recollections of Dusk, Weapon Memories, Character Stories, Hidden Stories
One of the unreleased Weapon Stories to be published in this book will likely be the Si’F-00 story that was revealed in a previous livestream. You can read my translation of it here.
Service for NieR Re[in]carnation ended on April 29, 2024 after a little more than 3 years from its time of release on February 18, 2021.
【重要なお知らせ】
2024/4/30（火）15:00をもちまして、「NieR Re [in] carnation」はサービスの提供を終了させていただきます。
