NieR Re[in]carnation

 iOS
User Score
5.9

Mixed or average reviews- based on 17 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 6 out of 17
  2. Mixed: 5 out of 17
  3. Negative: 6 out of 17
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  1. preter
    Sep 23, 2021
    7
    Weapon stories so adored by fans of earlier entries in the franchise have been expanded into a collection of playable narratives. You roam around an environment, collecting a litany of these weapons. However, in order to do so, you must experience the tragic back story associated with them. It's a fun slice of NieR one can take on the go, but no substitute for the mainline console games.Weapon stories so adored by fans of earlier entries in the franchise have been expanded into a collection of playable narratives. You roam around an environment, collecting a litany of these weapons. However, in order to do so, you must experience the tragic back story associated with them. It's a fun slice of NieR one can take on the go, but no substitute for the mainline console games.

    Record: Pure Hills, the NieR Replicant crossover, offers a quaint, yet powerful side story. A young girl is constantly reprimanded by her parents for walking about with her birthmark in full view. It's quite large, covering around half of the girl's left leg. She's frustrated with her parents' demand as she equates their order to conceal her birthmark to concealing her very identity. She's proud, lacking in any and al insecurity, so she pays them no mind and runs outside, visible birthmark and all. She comes upon the peak of a grassy hill where Kaine is resting after a long-fought battle. The girl, unaware of this female warrior's identity, notices bandages covering her leg, yet no other clothing meant to conceal it. She admires this and expresses how she'd love to be just like her. Kaine turns to her and dismisses the girl, stating that "There's no good in life such as mine." Taken aback, the girl ventures home, confounded. Once she returns, she overhears her parents worrying about her safety, recounting the fact that years ago, a girl much like their own daughter had large black mark covering her leg, indicating that she was partially possessed by a shade. She was bullied relentlessly in this very village. The parents believed the same cruel treatment would find their daughter if the villagers mistook her birthmark for the black scrawl disease. Overhearing this, she realizes the tortured girl they speak of is the female warrior from the hill. With this bit of wisdom finally imparted onto her(albeit indirectly), the daughter finally comes to terms with her parent's pleas and goes on to wrap her birthmark in bandages, not only for the sake of symbolizing the love her parents have for her, but as recognition for the admiration she holds for Kaine. Those bandage won't be with her for long, as she resolves to remove them once she's capable of defending herself from the ignorance of others.

    NieR Automata's crossover however... was pathetic. 2B & 92 are on a mission to clear out a group of enemy machine lifeforms. 9S, distracted from his fiending after 2B, fails to notice that machine lifeforms are cloacking themselves, inadvertently leading himself and his partner into a trap! As 2B engages the enemy, she's hit with a logic virus, scrambling her senses. In a desperate bid to save her, 9S hacks into 2B's mind. As he must traverse her mind in order to track down the virus and kill it, 9S happens upon his death, not once, but dozens of times, all by the object of affection. 9S finally realizes what the audience of NieR Automata had known for the past 4 years, that 2B has been trapped in a repetitious cycle of meeting, fighting alongside, and ultimately executing him for years. An amazing writing opportunity is presented here. 9S is presented with knowledge he shouldn't have access to, just as he did in the original campaign. What will he do with this new info? What choices will he make? Will this event warp his perspective on the world and his place in it to the point he loses mind? Or will he confront this with resilience and resolution in hand? Neither. He just accepts his fate. He doesn't ask 2B why she had to do it, why he's been reset so many times, why they continue living out the same tragic act. No. He's fine with it, just so long as 2B holds him in her memories. What a pathetic fanfiction.    … Expand

Awards & Rankings

24
#24 Best iOS Game of 2021
8
#8 Most Discussed iOS Game of 2021

Critic Reviews

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Metascore
58

Mixed or average reviews - based on 8 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 2 out of 8
  2. Mixed: 5 out of 8
  3. Negative: 1 out of 8
  1. Siliconera
    Sep 13, 2021
    60
    It’s strange to say that I will more than likely continue to play NieR Re[in]carnation, despite already understanding that I could potentially cultivate an unhealthy relationship with the game. The story has drawn me in, in a way that no other mobile game, or even console title, has in a very long time. I love learning about these characters and I love this world, even if I’m barred from progression. However, there is no doubt in my mind that this game will become exceedingly difficult for new players to get into once the double rate up banners and experience point boosts disappear. If you’re looking into playing NieR Re[in]carnation, for better or for worse, now is your time.
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  2. RPG Fan
    Aug 20, 2021
    70
    It’s a bit ironic to me that NieR Re[in]carnation is a game about memories, about being trapped, and about trying to break free, but that it’s a gacha game. All of those overwhelming, overbearing elements that loop you into a grind are all surrounding a beautiful game that presents a world of isolation and oppression. It’s a package of things I love about NieR, chained to another package of things I really dislike. It feels deliberate, but in a way, that’s more frustrating and overbearing than in Replicant and Automata. Yet it all sounds basically perfect for a Yoko Taro game, doesn’t it? Maybe this is a faultless encapsulation of the NieR experience, and my grievances are exactly what the developers are going for.
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  3. Eurogamer Italy
    Aug 17, 2021
    70
    Quotation forthcoming.
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