Should one start with this game or NieR Replicant as 1st game to play?

[Vlakabaka]

Recently grabbed Nier Automata and it looks great!
Still havent played it so im wondering if one should start with Replicant first or not?

What would be the "best" order to play them for a better experiance i mean?

Thnx in advance!

[spy]

The stories of the two games are interconnected, but there is no direct continuation or prior relationship.

[TheSeek]

Originally posted by Vlakabaka:

Recently grabbed Nier Automata and it looks great!
What would be the "best" order to play them for a better experiance i mean?

While this game is not a direct sequel to Replicant(as in, it's not a direct continuation of its story, does not feature the same characters, etc), the 2 stories are connected in a "cause and consequence" way, and Automata does contain heavy spoilers about Replicant, so the best way would be to play Replicant first, even cause it came several years before this(the 1.22 came after, but it's still a remake of the original from 2010), and playing Replicant first you'll get all/most of the connections and callbacks.
Some people might say that Replicant also contains Automata spoilers, but they're referring to either one of two things: the first is actually just some visual reference with literally no story related spoilers, the secon is something that is actually not a spoiler but the natural knowledge you'd have by playing the first game first and the second one after.
Also, in terms of pure gameplay and overal game design structure, Automata is an evolution and improvement of what Replicant did before, so playing Automata first and Replicant after can feel like a step back, while playing Replicant first and Automata fter will allow you to feel the improvements.

That said, the stories in these games can still be experienced on their own without any previous knowledge of the other games, but still Automata contains spoilers about Replicant, so while playing either of them first will not necessarily and completely ruin the experience, the best way is obviously one which is entirely void of spoilers, and that's Replicant first and Automata after.

[Vlakabaka]

Well ty for the great answer and info TheSeek, i shall go with Replicant 1st then for a better experiance overall.

ty ty!

[Aoukar]

Most people dislike replicant

[GODKaiserOs]

Originally posted by 1% Aoukar:

Most people dislike replicant

no, replicant sits at 20k positive and 2k negative reviews. most people like replicant and only a small minority doesnt.

[Kaldaien]

Inideed, it's the better of the two games. So much so that they made it twice.