How important is it to play the original NieR before this?

[Jaymeh]

I have wanted to play this game for AGES and even though i just missed the sale on Steam I can still get it from Humble Bundle.
The issue is I didn't realise til moments before purchase that NieR:Automata is in fact a sequel.
I have skipped a lot of good game franchises such as Wolfenstein because I hate to jump late into a story.
What are peoples opinions about playing this without NieR first?

Thanks.

[󠀡󠀡󠀡⁧⁧the.jester]

Storyline-wise there is very little to connect them - this game is set thousands and thousands of years after the first. You could easily play this game and not realise there was a game in the series before it. There are some NPCs and some lore which which connect the games, however this game explains it well enough that you don't miss anything.

Most people will not have played the first game.

[Jaymeh]

Originally posted by the.jester:

Storyline-wise there is very little to connect them - this game is set thousands and thousands of years after the first. You could easily play this game and not realise there was a game in the series before it. There are some NPCs and some lore which which connect the games, however this game explains it well enough that you don't miss anything.

Most people will not have played the first game.

I've went ahead and brought it, hella excited to play it.
Thanks for the feedback, much appreciated.

[Junoh]

There are glimpses into what happened after the first game but you seriously don't need to know anything about it to enjoy this game. I haven't played the original but this is easily one of the best games I've played in recent years.

[Jaymeh]

Originally posted by Junoh:

There are glimpses into what happened after the first game but you seriously don't need to know anything about it to enjoy this game. I haven't played the original but this is easily one of the best games I've played in recent years.

That's really good to hear, I have 4 days off starting tomorrow so I'm downloading the game right now and cannot wait to give it a try in the morning. Thanks.

[Lord Rojo]

You don't need to know BUT IT IS STILL WORTH PLAYING THE FIRST ONE BECAUSE IT IS AMAZING!

[Jaymeh]

Originally posted by Lord Rojo:

You don't need to know BUT IT IS STILL WORTH PLAYING THE FIRST ONE BECAUSE IT IS AMAZING!

I would love to play the original, however i've never been a fan of emulators and unfortunately that is my best option to play it if i don't own a console?

[Bon❄超変態駄目青年学生退屈日常自己嫌悪克服]

u can just watch first Nier story on youtube.. there will be some (beautiful) twist related to it in Nier Automata
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fishmFc5Ntk

[Jaymeh]

Originally posted by Bon❄自己嫌悪中:

u can just watch first Nier story on youtube.. there will be some (beautiful) twist related to it in Nier Automata
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fishmFc5Ntk

4 Hours! That is actually insane & awesome! This 4 hours covers only the first game? No spoilers for automata?
Side note: You're actually awesome, absolutely solid suggestion. I will give it a watch, thanks.

[TheSeek]

Yes that is only NieR, does not include Automata, but I'd advise against watching that video, and the reason is the same as one of the comments on it says, so I'll just paste it here since i 100% agree with it:

To people who haven't played the game, no I wouldn't recommend to watch this video unless you're really short on time. This is a decent enough summary with all the major points included, but scenes from NG+ are inserted in the middle of this when they were meant to be seen only after having beating the game a first time and many other details (and boss fights) aren't included at all, and as a result you'll be getting a different experience than intended. I recommend either watching a full playthrough or just playing the game yourself rather than watching this as your first experience, I know I regret it.

I would also add that, skimming through the video, it misses a very important part of the story, which is Kainé's memories...they're part of NG+, they're really important and give a lot more perspective and understanding on many events that happen after you see them, but they're completely missing from this video.
They're almost one of the most important things, but they're not there at all.

Not to mention how, the same way as Automata, the gameplay(side quests, comments the character make even during non boss fights, NPC comments, and so on) is part of the story, so watching a video will effectively not give you the full picture at all.

[Jaymeh]

Originally posted by TheSeek:

Yes that is only NieR, does not include Automata, but I'd advise against watching that video, and the reason is the same as one of the comments on it says, so I'll just paste it here since i 100% agree with it:

To people who haven't played the game, no I wouldn't recommend to watch this video unless you're really short on time. This is a decent enough summary with all the major points included, but scenes from NG+ are inserted in the middle of this when they were meant to be seen only after having beating the game a first time and many other details (and boss fights) aren't included at all, and as a result you'll be getting a different experience than intended. I recommend either watching a full playthrough or just playing the game yourself rather than watching this as your first experience, I know I regret it.

I would also add that, skimming through the video, it misses a very important part of the story, which is Kainé's memories...they're part of NG+, they're really important and give a lot more perspective and understanding on many events that happen after you see them, but they're completely missing from this video.
They're almost one of the most important things, but they're not there at all.

Not to mention how, the same way as Automata, the gameplay(side quests, comments the character make even during non boss fights, NPC comments, and so on) is part of the story, so watching a video will effectively not give you the full picture at all.

I very much appreciate you letting me know this, so unless i play the game or watch a play through you'd suggest I just play Automata without prior knowledge?

[TheSeek]

You can safely play Automata without knowing anything about NieR.
Automata is indeed a sequel to NieR, but not a direct sequel, the character are not the same and the story is not a direct continuation of the story from the first game.
The ending of the first game simply sets the basic for the setting Automata takes place in.
In Automata there are literally only 2 and a half characters that are from the first game(and even then, they're not exactly the same), but they're not main characters in Automata, and their stories only reference events from the first game in a vague way, so you can safely consider the two games as two separate stories that happen in the same universe/world, so while the second obviously is the result of the first, there is no direct continuation of stories between the two.

That said, I'd still recommend playing the first NieR(or watching a full playthrough that does include NG+ events in their entirety), but you can still play it after Automata.

[󠀡󠀡󠀡⁧⁧the.jester]

I would personally play Automata with no prior knowledge myself. As I said, it was made on the basis that most people wouldn't have prior knowledge of the first game.

I sort of agree with TheSeek that the video misses some very important elements, so if there is a better video than this source that might be best.

If you want to know about the first game, I would recommend playing Nier Automata first and completing the main storyline, and then watch the video after for context (or a better source).

I ended up buying the first game after playing this game. There were still plenty of plot twists either way.

[Jaymeh]

Originally posted by TheSeek:

You can safely play Automata without knowing anything about NieR.
Automata is indeed a sequel to NieR, but not a direct sequel, the character are not the same and the story is not a direct continuation of the story from the first game.
The ending of the first game simply sets the basic for the setting Automata takes place in.
In Automata there are literally only 2 and a half characters that are from the first game(and even then, they're not exactly the same), but they're not main characters in Automata, and their stories only reference events from the first game in a vague way, so you can safely consider the two games as two separate stories that happen in the same universe/world, so while the second obviously is the result of the first, there is no direct continuation of stories between the two.

That said, I'd still recommend playing the first NieR(or watching a full playthrough that does include NG+ events in their entirety), but you can still play it after Automata.

Thanks for letting me know, to be honest i will play this automata and then maybe look into the other, it's common games release prequels so this can be the case if i felt i want to learn more of the background. Appreciate it, thanks.

[Jaymeh]

Originally posted by the.jester:

I would personally play Automata with no prior knowledge myself. As I said, it was made on the basis that most people wouldn't have prior knowledge of the first game.

I sort of agree with TheSeek that the video misses some very important elements, so if there is a better video than this source that might be best.

If you want to know about the first game, I would recommend playing Nier Automata first and completing the main storyline, and then watch the video after for context (or a better source).

I ended up buying the first game after playing this game. There were still plenty of plot twists either way.

That's a good way to go about it. I really am excited to play it tomorrow so the idea I can just go straight into it and worry about background later on is better. Thanks.

[Pig]

haven't played the original and I don't feel like I missed out on anything during my playthrough of automata