This last broadcast was for the most part uneventful, but there were some interesting moments, I suppose.
First, we’re introduced to a pre-recorded video with Yoko Taro, Saito Yosuke, Taura Takahisa in which they played an early prototype version of the demo. They weren’t able to participate in the live broadcast this time due to a double-booking error that co-producer Ehara Jun’ichi explains later in the broadcast.
Yoko Taro first states that Square Enix asked them to present more about the game, but at this point there’s very little they can show without spoiling the story or other contents of the game, so they decided on showing off a little bit of the prototype demo. Taura says he’s a little embarrassed to show it, however.
* Note:I’m not translating what they’re saying word-for-word, nor am I translating everything they talked about.
I had recently set up a Twitch account to live stream the NieR:Automata demo, but unlike many lets players out there, I’m very retro. I don’t have the proper setup nor the necessary knowhow to make high quality vids like them.
But that’s not really my goal, anyway. All I really want to do is have some fun and connect with the fanbase. In this case, advanced video/audio editing is not necessary, right?
Anyway, I just got the idea to schedule an up-coming live broadcast for anyone who’d like to come laugh at my pitiful gameplay skills, interact with other fans live in the Discord chat, and maybe ask me whatever the hell you feel like live.
I’m thinking this coming Friday at 1:00pm Tokyo time would be good for me.
By now you’ve probably already played through the demo, or have watched others play through it. The goal with this little event is to connect with fans of the series, get some discussions going, and just have fun with a live stream. For the past couple of live streams I’ve done, it was mostly one-sided, me just talking to myself, basically. This time I want to kind of open up the basket for more discussion.
Just a note for those who are new to my channel, I don’t have the best equipment to do nice, HQ live streams. I don’t have a face cam (like who’d really want to see me anyway!), and I can only upload through the PS4 Share option to directly stream to Twitch. If you’re coming here expecting to see the same standards of your favorite lets player, then… *shakes head* I’m really sorry…
So, if anybody’s interested to watch me suck at a game on Normal mode… or chat with other fans on the Discord channel… or just ask me whatever questions you feel like, I’ll stream for around for about an hour or so.
Here’s a recap of the Square Enix Presents 2nd Live Broadcast featuring NieR:Automata. I’m mostly going to translate some of the funny banter that they had throughout the broadcast, but I’ll also try to cover some of the new material that we learned about the game in this broadcast. You can view the broadcast in its entirety below!
Now, there’s not too much meat to this post as much as there is translations for the fun and interesting bits that the guys said during the broadcast, so this will be pretty bare bones. First of all, let’s introduce the MCs for this broadcast!
▲ Saito Yosuke ▲ Taura Takahisa
▲ Yoko Taro ー “People kept telling me that you can’t hear me when I’ve got the mask on, so I’ve decided to stop wearing it for all eternity.”
▲ Isobe Keiko ▲ Negishi Isao
Yoko: I haven’t cleared the Very Hard mode yet, either. It’s impossible.
▲ Yoko: If I remember right, Operator 6O is the one on the bottom right of this image.
Saito: It’s a rule for these androids to not express emotion, but Operator 6O is a relatively emotional character.
Isobe: I thought I had many lines that sounded pretty human in terms of emotion.
Taura: The section of the game that I worked on included a lot of her lines (Operator 6O), so from the beginning of the day as I worked and listened to those lines, I thought, “Alright! I can do this!”
Saito: What lines were they, for example?
Yoko: “I will destroy you!”
Isobe: I never said that!
Taura: Whoever would get off listening to that is a freak.
Saito: So, what was the actual line?
Taura: It was a line where she says, “Hang in there!” Just the nuance or intonation of that line felt really good to me.
Yoko: Okay, I’ll be sure to delete those lines, then. I’ll change it to something like, “I’ll fucking kill you!”
Saito: But who really cares if they were pants? It’s alright.
Taura: No, it’s a leotard…
Isobe: Wow, it’s like… You [Taura] really know how to play!
Saito: Of course.
Yoko: I’d be really surprised if he didn’t…
Taura: Okay, I’m going to take out some of these enemies.
Isobe (in Operator 6O’s voice): “Taura, hang in there!”
Taura: Stop that! Stop it! I’m going to die…!
Yoko (in a deep voice): “Taura, I will make you wish you had never been born!”
Taura: Okay, now I’m back to normal…
Yoko: I’ve seen it here and there on YouTube, but some people have made it to some weird location that I’ve never seen by dashing and jumping and stuff.
Saito: It’s really something.
Yoko: Who at PG was responsible for that?
Taura: That was me.
Saito: That’s different from the script that I’ve got here… It was you? You made that blunder?
Taura: Well, not me exactly. There was another guy who did it. And we’ve called him in today: Platinum Games, game designer, Negishi.
Negishi: Hello, everyone, I’m Negishi. I just stopped by after working out a couple bugs.
■ Sub Quests
Saito: We’re progressing a little fast here, so you can totally go through this part slowly.
▲The above conversation with Anemone, who is a returning character from the YoRHa stage play, is HUGE in giving us more information to prove who A2 really is. You can view my speculation on that here. But beware of potential spoilers!!
???: You people…… No2……
9S: Huh? Do you know 2B?
???: ……No, I got word from the Bunker. My name is Anemone. This area is a safe haven for those in the Android Resistance. I’ve heard everything from the Bunker. It seems as though you are in charge of investigating this area. I’m sure there are others around with more knowledge than me. You don’t need my permission to come through here, so ask whomever you like.
Weapon Shop: Ah…… You’re the YoRHa Squad, huh? I’ve heard about you. I collect weapons. What would you like to sell? I also like to tinker with old weapons and make them shiny and new. Just right now, some of my tools are broken. If this one tool in my tool box could be fixed, I’d be able to open my shop to you guys, but……
Look in the tool box…
9S: Yeah…… This is pretty well broken.
Weapon Shop: I know, right? As you can probably tell, I’m not great at fixing complex devices like this.
Help.
→Ignore.
Weapon Shop: Hmm… If I can’t fix this device, there’s no way I can stay in business.
→Help.
Ignore.
Weapon Shop: Wha-what…… Are you serious? Man, that’d really help me out!
9S: It looks like a mechanism inside the devise has shorted out. We’ll just need to scavenge four “Complex Robotics” to fix it. Is there a place around here where we can find the necessary parts?
Weapon Shop: Yeah…… I think I’ve often seen them around the inner area of the Factory Ruins, but there are all sorts of crazy machines running around in there…… It’s dangerous in there, so you can’t get very close.
■ Sub Quest Status
Sub Quests have been updated.
For more information, access the Quest tab from the System Menu.
＊ “Weapon Shop’s Request” has been updated.
▲ Weapon Shop’s Request
The Weapon Shop in the Resistance Camp is having a rough time since their maintenance device is broken. If they could gather the necessary parts to fix it from the inner area of the Factory Ruins, it could be fixed, but… Due to an infestation of dangerous Bio-machines in that area, no one can go near it.
Gather the following items in the inner area of the Factory Ruins for the Weapon Shop: ― Complex Robotics:0/4
▲ These screens show you where to go to complete your quest.
▲ 9S: This area is overrun by vegetation now, but at one time this used to be a sprawling city, huh? This is the area the Weapon Shop told us to check out, but… I’m only registering Bio-machines here. In fact, it looks like they’re preparing to attack.
▲ 9S: That’s all of them. Let’s get these back to the Weapon Shop.
― Deliver the gathered items to the Weapon Shop.
9S: ……Great, you can fix your tools with this, right?
Weapon Shop: Oh! Thank you! I can finally open shop with this!
9S: That’s great to hear. We look forward to it.
Weapon Shop: Leave it up to me! I will make the best weapons to protect my friends! But, you know…… I get to thinking sometimes.
■ The Cypress Stick from Dragon Quest!
▲ With the Cypress Stick equipped, it will change the design of all the treasure chests to resemble those in Dragon Quest. This color scheme may be handy to help you spot hidden treasure chests in hard-to-see areas, too!
Negishi: Why is it that when you equip the Cypress Stick that the treasure boxes change?
All: ……
Saito: It has a mysterious power.
Yoko: Did you make 2B kick the treasure chests open them because that’s what you like?
Taura: …not exactly.
Saito: It’s just the particular movement.
Taura: It’s nothing that strange, so…
Yoko: It seems like she’s a little on the violent side.
■ The Engine Blade from Final Fantasy XV!
■ The NieR Novel Included in the Japanese Black Box Edition
The Boy’s Chapter ー Page 36
The first time he was called to work at the Seafront was about half a year ago. He helped deliver urgent letters, tulip bulbs to the flower shop, and buy natural rubber for the material shop.
With the thought of leaving Yonah alone at home weighing heavily on his mind, he quickly slipped passed a large Shade visible in the distance. The first time he set eyes upon the ocean he thought it was such a beautiful sight, but he was utterly dumbfounded how the entire town reeked of fish so putrid. Just by walking around for a short while, his hair and skin grew sticky from the fishy air that it often made him feel ill. It was the girl at the flower shop that told him this was because of the salty sea breeze.
After purchasing the bulbs and materials he was asked to fetch, he set upon a large house that spanned an entire city block. The path leading there was always packed with pedestrians, making it difficult to reach the house itself. Finally succeeding in the task he set out to do―to deliver the letter―he hardly had the energy left to find his way back.
Maybe it was due to the time of day, or maybe it was the people who lived in that area who didn’t particularly care to have discussions with strangers walking through town, but he felt like he couldn’t even ask for directions. He was so completely lost, with no inclination on how to get anywhere, that he didn’t even know what to do. With fatigue setting in, he decided to rest near the front gate of a nearby house.
“Hey, what are you doing over there?”
Entirely startled by the voice, Nier jumped to his feet and moved slightly away from the front gate.
“You’re not from around here, are you? Are you lost?”
▲ As it turns out, a portion after the segment that I translated above had to be cut from the novel due to…reasons. If you have read the novella “The Red and the Black” you will know that brother Nier was selling his body to someone in Seafront in order to get money to care for Yonah. It is highly probable that this is what the publisher wanted to remove from the novel.
■New NieR Merchandise!
▲ Presenting the new Emil head pillow! It’s apparently really soft and squishy! The actual design may change a little for the final product.
Yoko: This is a great item for your to throw when you’re pissed off girls in order to feel better.
Taura (to Negishi who’s apparently doing something on his phone): What do you think you’re doing on your cell phone at a time like this? We’re live, you know?
Negishi: Yeah, you’re right… But have a look at this!
How to obtain Plug-in Chips ● Buy them at shops
● Find them in treasure chests
● Defeat enemies that drop them
● Complete certain Quests
Create Plug-in Chip ● You can create chips that will be given a random cost value. You can have fun trying to create your own chips for the perfect total cost value.
Miscellaneous Info ● There are lots of hidden items and areas all around. You may discover some stronger enemies in these areas. ● There’s a Plug-in Chip to automatically pick up items on the field when you walk near them.
● When you leave and come back to an area, enemies will respawn.
Dengeki had their first Live Broadcast showcasing the beginning portion of the up-coming NieR:Automata demo last night. I was busy at a dinner party with people from work, so I apologize for the delay in this post.
Beginning the broadcast, we are introduced to the cast on the show:
Dengeki Writer Tadatsugu and Ishikawa Yui
Voice of “heroine” 9S Hanae Natsuki & “DJ” Saito Yosuke
Platinum Games Producer Nishimura Eijiro
■PS4 Vs. PS4 Pro
The first topic of choice was comparing the differences between the PS4 and PS4 Pro versions of the game:
Motion Blur – This feature is meant to be demonstrated in actual motion, but the PS4 Pro adds a little bit of motion blur to make movement more realistic.
Light/Shadows – The beams of light and details of shadows are more clearly defined.
Detailed Shadows – The PS4 Pro version has a much higher defined shadow.
For me, I don’t need these added details in order to enjoy the game. In my current financial situation, I would much rather go with the PS4 instead of the Pro.
■Difficulty Levels
Next we were shown the Difficulty Select menu. As it was stated before, the player is able to change the level of difficulty at anytime during the game. According to these screens, there are a total of four difficulty levels: Easy, Normal, Hard, and Very Hard.
The descriptions for each difficulty level is pretty entertaining as well… Probably.
Another thing to keep in mind is that the Auto Mode is only accessible from the Easy difficulty setting. Just like the rest of the difficulties, you are able to enter the Auto Mode at any time. The System Message also details exactly what areas the Auto Mode will help you with.
■The Demo: Setting
We’re shown very briefly a screen of text which details the setting of the demo. I had originally thought the demo would be merely a YoRHa training simulation on the Bunker (which is may still be), but the events that take place here appear to follow along with the clips of the Opening Sequence Conte that I translated before.
First off, let me translate the setting screen:
243rd Descent Mission
Mission Dispatch Date: March 10, 11945 Target to be Destroyed: Enemy Massive-scale Weapon (Various specifications confirmed) Active Units: 1D (Captain), 2B, 7E, 4B, 11B, 12H
Mission Details:
According to the information gathered by the Intelligence Squadron, it is clear that “there is Bio-machine activity with a large-scale weapon in the Factory Ruins in which Mankind has sent you”. Additionally, the Analysis Squadron reports that after thorough inspection of the Bio-machines’ activities and the amount of materials they’ve gathered, it has been concluded that “it is highly probable that they are building a weapon of massive proportions.”
The objective of this Assault Mission includes the dispatch of a 6-unit squadron to the enemy territory (the Factory Ruins) to gather intel of the area and the large-scale weapon in order to destroy it. Unit 9S from the Intelligence Squadron is scheduled to rendezvous and assist with the mission.
End of transmission.
It was stated that the B Type of androids is an all-rounded “Battler” model series, whereas the S Type is the analytical, information gathering “Scanner” model series. I entirely forgot that an old page detailing information on the YoRHa idol group from DearStage listed additional android types. So, here’s what each type is likely to stand for, including the discontinued type designations:
A – Attacker (Discontinued)
G – Gunner (Discontinued)
S – Scanner
B – Battler
D – Defender
E – Executioner
H – Healer
Edit: September 2, 2018. As a little aside here, I’ve been misinterpreting the “Cancellers” as a stand-alone YoRHa Type Model–the Type C–but this was a headcannon that apparently I made so long ago that it solidified as fact in my brain. After confirming with Yoko, he states that the YoRHa Type C models have not been revealed thus far. This is likely a system built into the aerial flight units to help shield them from enemy fire as they descend through Earth orbit.
Continuing with the information from the Opening Sequence Conte, 2B is flying in her “Ho229” aerial suit (the mech) and it eventually receives massive damage before 2B has to jump from it. This is where Pod042 quickly states the situation:
Pod042:
Ho229 equipment has received massive damage. Abandon operation. General communication system down. Booting the Laser Communication System. Scanning terrain……long-distance. Transferring control to FCS. Transferring control to IMU. Booting FFCS. Signal from 2B’s Black Box confirmed. Booting NFCS. Beginning secondary assessment sequence of 2B’s vitals. Beginning short-range camouflage pulse. Booting close-range battle parameters. Enemy response, massive numbers detected.
2B:
I can see that.
In this sequence, we see 2B battling some Lv1 Bio-machines of small to medium sizes within an enclosed area.
When she defeats the larger machine:
Pod042: Enemy destruction confirmed.
2B:
Not yet…..
And that’s when the gigantic saw busts through the wall.
And we’re presented with a warning screen that lists the enemy’s name in classic Angelic Script format, which reads “Mars”.
When 2B first engages in battle with this huge machine, she wonders if this is the “Massive-scale Weapon” that they were charged to destroy, but Pod042 tells her that it is, unfortunately, not their target.
Eventually, 2B thinks that she’s defeated the gigantic machine, but it comes after her with another saw. This time, she gets a little help–and scolding–from 9S.
“It’s dangerous if you don’t make sure it’s dead…”
9S:
You’re 2B, right? I’m 9S. I’ve been instructed to assist you.
2B:
I understand.
9S:
So that big can opener was the “Massive-scale Weapon” we were after?
2B:
No. It seems like it was just a defense mechanism.
9S:
Then… I guess we’ll have to look for it.
I’ve got an aerial suit, so I’ll take a look around out here.
2B:
Alright. I’ll search the area inside.
■Merchandise: YoRHa / 2B Hoodie
This is the new hoodie that will first become available at Jump Festa this weekend at the Square Enix booth. This item will also be available from the Japanese SQEX e-STORE at a later date.
■NieR Music Concert & Talk Live Blu-ray
The very nice Blu-ray of the NieR Music Concert & Talk Live event that was held this past April was just released on December 14. This also became the present for a lucky viewer on the NicoNico side of the broadcast; the blu-ray would be opened and signed by the hosts of this broadcast.
■The Resistance Camp, Items, and Weapons
As it had been shown in past live streams of the game, the Resistance Camp is populated by many different types of androids, some very human-like types and others that clearly resemble tin robots. Devola and Popola also reside somewhere in the camp.
Within the camp are item and weapon shops, people to talk to and even some who will enlist your help in the form of quests. Here’s a quick glance at the Item and Weapon Shops:
Producer Saito Yosuke mentions that you are able to obtain new weapons from the shop or by discovering them out in the field. Weapons can also be upgraded with the use of items that you gather from defeating enemies. Weapon upgrades can be done in the Weapon Shop menu:
Buy
Upgrade
Sell
Of course, Weapon Stories are back in Automata, so you can expect to see the typical 4-step story progression for each weapon. And with the collaboration with FFXV, Noctis’ Engine Blade will be a usable weapon in Automata along with its own Weapon Story.
Speaking of weapons, another type of weapon was announced during the PSX events in the US and Mexico: the spear! Here is a quick look at the names of these weapons:
■Other Playable Characters & The Open World
At about 39 minutes into the live broadcast, Saito says that at some point in the game, 9S will become a playable character. He wouldn’t elaborate on that any further before Tadatsugu followed up with another question regarding the “Open World” aspect of the game. He went on to say that each area connects seamlessly (no loading time necessary), but there are parts of the story in which some areas are closed off to you…possibly making this definition of “Open World” a little less open. Perhaps it’s more like FFXV in which the majority of the world is free to roam as you like…up until a point. I guess we’ll have to wait and see.
■Android Report – Multiplayer?
During the gameplay footage, one of the hosts playing the game died, which displayed the “Android Report” screen…which they didn’t want to release just yet.
As far as the YoRHa stage play goes, upon the destruction of the androids, their remaining data is uplinked to the Bunker to be used in the creation of future, more advanced androids. Could this be the function that would utilize multiplayer aspects? Maybe this is a sort of scoreboard in which you can view when and how players DIED. lol
■Further Collaborations and More!
A weapon or other equipment from NieR:Automata will be in PSO2! (Expect to see Emil’s head)
▶︎ The collaboration with PSO2 will include the following items from NieR:Automata:
Costumes and hair designs of 2B, 9S, A2
Accessories
Weapons
Lobby Actions
Mag: “Pod”
Theme Song Music
A weapon or piece of armor from NieR:Automata will appear in Monster Hunter Frontier Z! There will even be a related original quest as well! (Expect to see Emil’s head)
A “visual summary” of the game detailing its artwork, additional text by Yoko Taro, and more will be released on the same day as the game (Size: B5).
Dengeki has been the publisher of the these giant collections known as the “complete guide” for these games, and they plan to release their next work for NieR:Automata sometime toward the end of March! (Size: B5, Pages: Roughly 300 pages)
Regarding the release of the guidebooks, Hanae suggests that the publisher release enough books since it was very difficult for him to even find one to buy! Let’s hope they listen to him!
Credits:
All translations and photo edits on this page were done by me. Photos from the Dengeki 1st Live Broadcast were taken from the YouTube version of the broadcast.
