Yoko Taro's renowned action-adventure game NieR: Automata is a masterpiece to behold. Pushing the envelope with its story, character development and the depths surrounding the themes, this title captures the imagination, keeps players gripped for hours and begs to be explored from top to bottom for a truly complete experience.With multiple endings and even more side quests, this game can feel a little overwhelming for those looking for the elusive 100% completion mark.
As one familiar with Yoko Taro's games may expect, reaching the "ending" is a little more complicated than just following the story until the credits. There are 26 endings, one for each letter of the alphabet and most are found throughout the game. Some appear if players choose to walk away from the story, some appear if a player fails and perishes, others appear based on what choices the player makes.
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How Long To Beat NieR: Automata
Interestingly, reaching the credits with 2B doesn't mean the game is over. The player must continue, complete the game again as 9Sand then play a type of epilogue run where they take control of a third character, A2, and fight towards the real ending. Finally, there will be an opportunity to jump back into the final chapter as 9S again before being prompted for the true ending (Ending E). Completing the first run with 2B takes roughly 20 hours to beat at a comfortable pace and completing the second run with 9S can take another 7 hours. Finally, completing the last section with A2/9S is the shortest, clocking in at around 5 hours.
That said, there is still a lot of flexibility regarding what you choose to do, how long you spend in conversations and how long it takes you to travel and fight. Leisurely moving through the story and not completing many, if any, side quests can keep the game below 25 hours. As a word of caution, though, Ending E asks that players delete their save file and join with a collective to help others get the best ending. This will delete all save files available and make players start again. It is advised that players only seek to attain this ending after the 100% completion or after the first story run-through so that nothing is lost.
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How Long To Complete NieR: Automata
Full completion requires completing the story, finishing all side quests and collecting all weapons, pod programs and intel. Attaining all of this can take as long as 60 hours. In some instances, it can take even longer as some rarer fish may prove very difficult to locate and players may miss some side quests or items on the initial run. All26 must be experienced to complete the game0; eachending isfound by experimenting with different actions throughout the game, resulting in an ending card marked with a small sentence with a capitalized letter, denoting which ending the player got. i.e., "flowers for m(A)achines."
There are also a total of 60 side quests available for players. Many of the side quests are locked to specific characters, but a comprehensive list can be found to the right of the chapter select screen.Alongside the side quests, the androids' Pod companionshave 17 programs located around the world that must also be collected.Some can be found in shops, some are hidden in the environment and some are received asmission rewards. Some are very easy to miss, so collecting them all requires patience.
Finally, players must gatherintel. A considerable amount of it can be discovered by simply playing the game, butacquiring all the relative intel consistsof gathering entries in six different categories. These categories are Tutorials, which are gathered through completing the game; Unit Data, gathered by defeating one of each enemy type in the game; Weapon Stories, gathered by collecting and fully upgrading all weapons; Fishing Encyclopaedia, completed by catching one of each 41 types of fish; Picture Book, completed while progressing through chapters and Novels, which must be located throughout the game world.
On average, fully completing the game requires an additional 20 - 25 hours, bringing the total to around the 50-hour mark. However, this can vary drastically as some situations, like fishing, are heavily luck-based.NieR: Automata has a fantastic amount of gameplay available for the discerning player. A truly brilliant experience awaits for any wishing to complete this dark and engaging title. Players who yearn to get lost in an incredible story and those who enjoy a thoroughly entertaining hack and slash will each find something special in this game.
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