Nier is a 2010 action role-playing game created by Cavia and released by Square Enix for the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360. In Japan, the game was called Nier Replicant for the PlayStation 3 and featured a younger main character. A different version, named Nier Gestalt with an older main character, was released for the Xbox 360. Outside Japan, this version was called Nier for both platforms. A remastered version of Nier Replicant, titled Nier Replicant ver.1.22474487139…, was released in 2021 for PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and Windows.
The game is based on the Drakengard series and follows events from the fifth ending of the first game in that series, which left Earth destroyed. Set over a thousand years later, the story follows an unnamed main character who tries to find a cure for a serious illness that affects a girl named Yonah, who may be his sister or daughter. The gameplay includes elements from different types of video games and sometimes switches between them and the main role-playing-based gameplay.
Production began in 2007, and the game was directed by Yoko Taro, the creator of Drakengard, who was allowed to make many creative choices. The story was inspired by events like the September 11 attacks and the War on Terror, while the gameplay was influenced by the God of War series. Because of feedback from players outside Japan, multiple versions of the main character were created. The music was composed by Monaca, a music studio started by Keiichi Okabe, and several music albums were released.
Nier received mixed reviews when it was first released. Some praised the story, characters, and music, but opinions were divided about how well the different gameplay styles worked together. Some gameplay elements, like side quests, were criticized, and the graphics were considered basic. Over time, the game gained popularity among players and became a cult classic. The original version sold 500,000 copies, while the updated version sold more than 2 million copies worldwide. A sequel called Nier: Automata, developed by PlatinumGames, was released in 2017.
Gameplay
Nier is an action role-playing game where players control a character they name. In Nier Gestalt, the character is a middle-aged man, and in Nier Replicant, the character is a teenage boy. Players see the character from the side and can move the camera to view the environment fully around them. The game world is divided into areas that load between scenes, and players can move freely by walking, running, jumping, and climbing ladders. In some rooms, the camera shifts sideways, limiting movement to a two-dimensional style similar to platforming games. During battles, the camera often moves upward to create a top-down view, resembling shooting games or other genres.
While exploring, players often face enemies such as shadowy figures called Shades, large animals, and robots. Defeating enemies gives experience points, which increase the character’s strength, and money, which can be used to buy items. Weapons can be improved using materials obtained by purchasing, defeating enemies, or finding them in the world. Many types of weapons are available. Players can also use magic spells, which require energy that constantly regenerates. Spells include attacks like projectiles or large shadowy fists. New spells are unlocked by completing specific battles in the first part of the game. In addition to the main story, the game includes side tasks that reward players with experience and money, as well as activities like fishing and farming.
Synopsis
In the middle of the 21st century, during a summer snowstorm in a ruined city, the main character protects a sick young girl named Yonah. Yonah is either the character’s younger sister or daughter, depending on the story version. The character uses a magical book to fight ghostly black monsters, but when Yonah touches the book, she is marked with black symbols that make her illness worse.
The story then moves to over 1,000 years later, when a feudal civilization is falling apart, and the black creatures—called Shades—are becoming more dangerous. The main character and Yonah live in a village built inside old industrial ruins. The character works odd jobs for village leaders named Devola and Popola to support Yonah’s medical care. While rescuing Yonah from a temple where she was searching for a rare flower, the character meets a talking book named Grimoire Weiss. The book suggests they team up to use its magic and find a cure for Yonah’s deadly disease, called the Black Scrawl.
During their journey, they meet Kainé, a hot-tempered swordswoman who speaks harshly, and Emil, a blindfolded boy whose eyes can turn people to stone. Later, the village is attacked by a giant Shade. The battle ends with Emil forcing Kainé to turn to stone to trap the Shade, and Yonah is kidnapped by a powerful Shade leader called the Shadowlord.
Five years later, the situation worsens. The main character and Emil find the power needed to free Kainé and defeat the giant Shade, but this power turns Emil into a skeletal being feared by villagers. With help from Devola and Popola, the group searches for parts of a stone key to reach the Shadowlord. After defeating five Shades and assembling the key, they attack the Shadowlord. Devola and Popola then reveal they have been working with the Shadowlord as part of a larger plan.
1,300 years ago, humans nearly died out from an incurable disease. To survive, they separated their souls from their bodies. Today’s humans are artificial beings called Replicants, while the Shades are human souls—called Gestalts—who are losing their minds because they cannot reunite with their bodies. The Black Scrawl is a result of Gestalts’ mental decline affecting Replicants. The Shadowlord is the main Gestalt used to control other Gestalts, and Devola and Popola are androids who manage the system. The group defeats the Shadowlord, with Emil sacrificing himself. The remaining members defeat the Shadowlord, who is revealed to be the Gestalt version of the main character from the beginning. His goal was to save Yonah by reuniting her Gestalt and Replicant forms. Yonah’s Gestalt form dissolves to save her Replicant version, and the main character kills the Shadowlord after Grimoire Weiss sacrifices itself to weaken the Shadowlord’s power.
If the player starts a new game after the first ending, the story begins just after Kainé is freed. Kainé’s past is explored, showing her struggles with discrimination due to being born intersex and her parents’ deaths. Later, she is partially possessed by a rogue Gestalt named Tyrann. Through Tyrann, players learn the unclear speech of Gestalts. New story parts explain the Gestalt antagonists’ goals, showing they are sentient and fight for their own beliefs.
A second ending shows the main character and Yonah reuniting in the afterlife, and it is revealed that Emil survived. However, the Shadowlord’s death causes humans to face extinction, as Replicants and Gestalts can no longer reunite. In a third or later playthrough, Kainé becomes overwhelmed by Tyrann and attacks the main character. The player can choose to kill Kainé to end her suffering or sacrifice themselves to save her. The latter choice erases the main character’s memory from Kainé and Yonah and deletes all save data.
In the updated version of the game, a fifth ending is added after starting a new game following the fourth ending. This begins after Kainé defeats the Shade enemy Hook. Three years after the Shadowlord’s defeat, Kainé has nightmares about losing something important and fights more dangerous Shades. She investigates a settlement where people were killed by robots emerging from a central tree. The tree’s control unit records Replicant memories and speaks to Kainé through two childlike AI avatars. Emil helps Kainé fight robot copies of herself, and they enter the tree’s mainframe to battle enemies from Kainé’s memories. The final battle is against a stronger version of Hook, aided by the remaining data of Grimoire Weiss. Kainé defeats Hook and the AI, restoring the main character’s young form. All save data from before the fourth ending is also restored.
Development
The idea for the game Nier first came up after the release of Drakengard 2 and the introduction of newer video game consoles. At first, the plan was to make a third game in the Drakengard series. As the project developed, the original ideas changed, and the game became a separate story from the main series. However, the game’s director, Yoko Taro, still considers it the third Drakengard game. Different reports mentioned the game’s planned platforms. One early report said it would be made only for the Xbox 360, but later it was also planned for the PlayStation 3 (PS3). Yoko later explained that the PS3 version was the original plan because the PlayStation 2, which Drakengard 2 was made for, was becoming less important. The total development time, including planning, was three years, with two years focused on creating the game. It started as a small project but grew into a full role-playing game.
Cavia handled the development with help from Square Enix, the publisher. Square Enix had little influence over Yoko’s vision for the game’s story and atmosphere, giving him creative freedom. Nier is set 1,000 years after the fifth ending of Drakengard. In this story, the main characters, Caim and Angelus, travel to another world to fight a monster. After defeating it, they are killed by a fighter jet. Their introduction of magic leads to research that causes the Black Scrawl. Yoko wanted to focus on themes like friendship and teamwork after the dark story of Drakengard. The game was inspired by events like the September 11 attacks and the war on terror. Yoko wanted to show how both sides in a conflict believe they are doing the right thing. The term “Replicant” came from the movie Blade Runner, but Yoko did not explain the origin of the name Nier.
An artist known as D.K. designed the characters. Two versions of the main character were created for Nier. The developers thought Japanese players might prefer a younger protagonist, while non-Japanese players might like an older one. Only the protagonist’s appearance and some dialogue were changed between the two versions. Other characters were altered or removed during development. Originally, there were thirteen Grimoires, but only three—Weiss, Noir, and Rubrum—remained. Emil’s character was based on a female character named Halua. Kainé was originally more feminine but later became intersex to match her story. Yonah’s name came from the biblical name Jonah, but it was changed for localization. Kainé’s intersex identity caused some reactions outside Japan, though the team did not plan this. The cutscenes were made by Studio Anima.
The game’s combat was inspired by the God of War series, which Yoko and Saito enjoyed. The team wanted to include different battle styles to appeal to players in Japan and North America. Changes in camera angles and movement were meant to highlight the difference between real-world settings and fantasy. The game aimed to attract older players, with a main character in his 30s for the international version. It also included more mature content than typical Square Enix games. The mix of gameplay styles was a tribute to older game genres.
The soundtrack was created by MoNACA, led by Keiichi Okabe, and Cavia’s Takafumi Nishimura. Okabe worked on the music from the game’s early planning until its release. The music was made separately from the game’s development and used different themes throughout. Yoko wanted the music to include many vocal pieces. The soundtrack features melancholy songs with vocals by Emi Evans, who also wrote lyrics in futuristic languages. Evans created words in languages like Gaelic, Portuguese, and Japanese, imagining how they might sound after 1,000 years.
Square Enix released a soundtrack album titled Nier Gestalt & Replicant Original Soundtrack on April 21, 2010. It reached number 24 on the Japanese Oricon charts and stayed there for 11 weeks. Two mini-albums were included as preorder bonuses. Another album, NieR Gestalt & Replicant 15 Nightmares & Arrange Tracks, was released in December 2010 and reached number 59 on the charts. A tribute album, NieR Tribute Album -echo-, came out in September 2011. A piano arrangement album, Piano Collections Nier Gestalt & Replicant, was published in March 2012.
Release
Nier was officially introduced in June 2009 at the Electronic Entertainment Expo 2009 for the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360, along with its developer and publisher. The game was translated into English, French, and German during development so all versions could be released at the same time. This allowed Cavia and Square Enix to gather opinions from players in North America and Europe to improve the game for audiences outside Japan. Because of its high level of violence, the game received a CERO D rating in Japan. In Japan, two versions were released: Nier Gestalt for the Xbox 360, which featured an adult main character, and Nier Replicant for the PlayStation 3, which used a young main character. Outside Japan, the Gestalt version was released on both platforms under the name Nier. The PlayStation 3 version had a Japanese voice cast, while the Xbox 360 version used an English dub. Nier was released worldwide by Square Enix in April 2010: Japan and Australia on April 22, Europe on April 23, and North America on April 27.
A supplementary guidebook, Grimoire Nier: The Complete Guide + Cels, was released on May 28, 2010, by ASCII Media Works. The guidebook included details about in-game elements, interviews with developers, and stories about characters and a post-game ending. On May 11, Square Enix released downloadable content titled "The World of Recycled Vessel." This expansion added fifteen battles against a version of Nier not present in the player’s specific game version. Players access these battles through a diary in Nier’s house within a dream world. The expansion also added new costumes and weapons. A CD drama, NieR Replicant Drama CD The Lost Words and the Red Sky, was released on April 27, 2011. The CD included stories related to the game’s background and characters.
An updated version of Nier, titled Nier Replicant ver.1.22474487139…, was announced in March 2020 as part of the 10th anniversary celebration for the series. It was planned for release on PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and Windows. The console version was released in Asia on April 22, 2021, and globally the next day. The Windows version was released worldwide on April 23. The game was available in standard and limited "White Snow" editions, with the latter exclusive to Square Enix’s online store. Pre-orders included a digital soundtrack and art-based bonuses specific to each platform. An updated version of Grimoire Nier was released in Japan in 2021 and in English in 2023.
Yosuke Saito returned as producer, Yoko Taro remained as creative director, and Saki Ito became the game director. Development was handled by Toylogic. Takahisa Taura of PlatinumGames supervised combat changes, as he had worked on the sequel Nier: Automata. Toylogic was chosen because Yoko Taro knew its founder, Yoichi Take, from their time at Cavia. Kazuma Koda, who worked on later Nier projects, created promotional artwork. Ito described his work on combat and graphics as preserving the original design while creating something that would please fans of Nier: Automata. Character designs were redone by Akihiko Yoshida, Toshiyuki Itahana, and Kimihiko Fujisaka. All three had worked on earlier Nier and Drakengard projects and were brought in at Yoko Taro’s request. Yoshida redesigned the young protagonist, Kainé, Yonah, and Emil; Itahana redesigned Devola and Popola; and Fujisaka redesigned the king of Facade, his queen Fyra, the father protagonist, and created new character Louise.
The game included new story content, material that connects it to its sequel, and content that was removed from the original version. For the remaster, Yoko Taro chose to use the brother version of the protagonist, as he had originally intended. The father protagonist, who received mixed reactions outside Japan, was included in the "15 Nightmares" content, which was released as DLC called "World of Recycled Vessel." The Mermaid story, featuring Louise, was planned for the original game but cut due to budget limits and later rewritten into a novella. Yoko Taro included it in the remaster but did not add other novella material, as those were original stories rather than removed content. A feature called "Weapon Stories," used in the Drakengard series and Nier: Automata, was also added. The fifth ending, originally a backup plan and later written into a novella, was included due to a request from Yosuke Saito and the budget to do so. This ending includes elements of advanced technology that tie into later parts of the series.
ver.1.22474487139… includes new Japanese voice work to make the game fully voiced and new or rearranged music. The score was arranged by Okabe, Hoashi, Ryuichi Takada, Kuniyuki Takahashi, Shotaro Seo, and Oliver Good. Okabe and Hoashi composed new tracks. Evans returned to perform vocals with Saki Nakae. The chorus work was done by Evans, Nakae, Okabe, Shotaro Se
Reception
Nier Gestalt sold more than 12,500 copies in Japan during its first week of release. Replicant sold more than 60,000 copies in the same week and was the most popular video game in Japan that week. By the end of May 2010, Replicant had sold over 121,000 copies in Japan. By the end of 2010, it had sold more than 134,000 copies in Japan. In 2019, Yoko estimated that Nier had sold about 500,000 copies worldwide. Yoko also said, "we weren’t really in the red, but it wasn’t exactly a success either."
Nier received mixed reviews from critics. Some reviewers criticized the game’s graphics. Ryan Clements of IGN said, "one of Nier’s greatest flaws is its visuals." Kevin VanOrd of GameSpot described the visuals as "flavorless" and the environments as "lifeless." Dustin Quillen of 1UP.com said the game "looks downright primitive." Adriaan den Ouden of RPGamer gave the game a higher score than most but noted that "the environments are bland and poorly rendered." The music and voice acting were praised by many reviewers. Clements said, "both are quite excellent." Den Ouden called the soundtrack "absolutely fantastic." Chris Schilling of Eurogamer said the music had "memorable themes." One of the four reviewers for Japanese Weekly Famitsu called the music "a cut above."
Reviewers had different opinions about the game’s variety of gameplay styles. Seth Schiesel of The New York Times said the game combined different styles into a "coherent, compelling whole" and praised a section of the game that used only text. Patrick Kolan of IGN Australia said the different styles were "interesting" but suffered from poor execution and left the game feeling "disjointed." Clements said the developers’ ideas sometimes "outshine the actual implementation," but he still found the gameplay elements enjoyable. Den Ouden called the variety of gameplay the best part of the game, comparing it to a buffet table, but noted that none of the sections were "amazing" on their own.
Regular combat was described as solid but not exceptional. Quillen said the side quests were "numerous" but "mindless," and VanOrd called them "a series of monotonous events." A Famitsu reviewer said the side quests "didn’t see much purpose." Clements said the combat had "a fair amount of satisfaction" but warned players not to expect "anything too extraordinary." Kolan called the combat "moderately deep." Critics generally praised the plot and characters. VanOrd liked most of the characters but found the story "soggy." Schiesel called the story "provocative" and "profound," saying it "succeeds at fostering an emotional investment in its characters and in its world." Quillen said the plot had "fascinating and truly original turns" and praised the supporting characters. Schilling said the story made the game "difficult to dislike." A Famitsu reviewer called the multiple endings "blown away" and said "nothing like it’s been done in gaming."
In 2015, Jeffrey Matulef of Eurogamer said Nier was "the rare game that gets better with age." Despite "poor sales and tepid reviews," he wrote, the game had gained a small but dedicated fanbase due to its "sense of wonder" and unique storytelling.
By June 2021, Replicant ver 1.22474487139… had sold over 1 million copies worldwide, double the original version’s estimates. By November 2022, it had sold 1.5 million copies. As of February 2026, it had sold over 2 million copies.
Famitsu praised the gameplay improvements and visual upgrades but noted the lack of fast travel and some design quirks. Mollie L. Patterson of Electronic Gaming Monthly liked the young version of the protagonist and praised the reworked gameplay. Jason Guisao of Game Informer said the visual upgrade was inconsistent but praised the narrative and mechanics. Michael Higham of GameSpot was generally positive, praising the narrative, new elements, and music but found the gameplay and world outdated.
Mitchell Saltzmann of IGN noted repetition in later areas and side quest design but praised the graphical and gameplay updates. Julie Muncy of PC Gamer praised combat and movement improvements but said the original’s pacing issues remained. Chris Plante of Polygon enjoyed the slow narrative pace and combat but disliked the outdated design and some parts of Kainé’s storyline. Malindy Hetfeld of Eurogamer said the game had flaws but noted that updates made it playable for modern audiences.
Replicant ver 1.22474487139… won the "Best Score/Music" category at The Game Awards 2021. It also received nominations at the 2021 NAVGTR awards for "Outstanding Animation, Technical," "Outstanding Game, Franchise Role-playing," "Outstanding Original Dramatic Score, Franchise," and "Outstanding Song, Original or Adapted."
Legacy
Nier was the final game created by Cavia before the company was taken over by its parent company, AQ Interactive, in July 2010. Square Enix executive producer Yosuke Saito later said that several projects related to Nier were being planned, and an announcement might happen in 2011. The only announcement made that year was not for a new Nier video game but instead for a live concert called "Nier Night ~ Evening of Madness," which occurred on October 28, 2011.
In March 2011, Yoko and Takuya Iwasaki, who was one of the original producers of Drakengard, planned to create a version of Nier for the PlayStation Vita at Iwasaki's company, Orca. This version would include content from both versions of the original game. However, when Orca was chosen to help develop Dragon Quest X, the project was put on hold. Later, some of the key staff members who worked on Nier, including director Yoko and Okabe, reunited to create a new game called Drakengard 3, which is part of the Drakengard series from which Nier originated.
A sequel called Nier: Automata, developed by Square Enix and PlatinumGames for the PlayStation 4, was released in Japan on February 23, 2017, in North America on March 7, 2017, and globally on March 10, 2017. The PC version of Nier: Automata was released on March 17, 2017. The Xbox One version came out on June 26, 2018, and the Nintendo Switch version was released on October 6, 2022. Yoko, Saito, and Okabe returned to their previous roles in the project. Other team members included Yoshida as the lead artist and Atsushi Inaba as the producer.
A mobile game titled Nier Reincarnation, produced by Applibot, was released on February 18, 2021. Yoshida returned to design the characters for this game. Because of the success of Nier: Automata, the original Nier game was reprinted for the PlayStation 3 in PAL territories in April 2017.