The fate of the NieR game series appears to hinge significantly on the enduring presence of its creative director, Yoko Taro. As indicated by the game’s producer, this beloved action RPG will continue only as long as Taro is alive.
Yoko Taro and series producer Yosuke Saito recently made an appearance at the G-STAR 2023 event in South Korea to discuss the development of NieR: Automata. In the course of their presentation, as per reports from 4Gamer, Saito briefly touched upon the future trajectory of the NieR series.
According to Saito, new installments in the series will be rolled out as long as Taro is still alive.
While this revelation may excite fans, Saito did temper expectations, mentioning that the process might take some time due to their involvement in another project distinct from the NieR series. The nature of this undisclosed project was not revealed, with Saito expressing a desire to share details sometime in 2024.
NieR series Producer Yosuke Saito said that while Yoko Taro is still alive they will release a new entry in the NieR series!
But it won’t be soon as he & Yoko Taro are working on a project seperate from the NieR series that they hope to talk about next year! pic.twitter.com/yNb2dPph7D
— Genki✨ (@Genki_JPN) November 19, 2023
In addition, during the panel presentation Saito revealed that NieR: Automata, released in 2017, has sold 7.5 million copies. Despite that, Taro expressed skepticism about replicating the same level of success, considering it “impossible.”
He attributed the unexpected success of the game to its unconventional narrative featuring a “gothic Lolita girl wielding a Japanese sword,” originally anticipated to cater to a niche audience outside Japan.
The pair doubts that any future Nier game could repeat the cult following of Automata, which they attribute to having a well-balanced team. Saito adds that “it’s not easy” to find a similar level of success. Taro echoed this statement, saying, “it’s a lie that things will go well” even with the best team possible.
NieR: Automata became the breakout title for the series, surpassing global sales expectations. Initially released on PC and PS4, the game initially sold 1.5 million copies, with the majority of sales happening outside of Japan. Subsequently, it was released on the Xbox One and later ported to the Nintendo Switch.
Automata received stage plays and novels, expanding the game’s universe. The game also received an animated adaptation produced by Square Enix and Aniplex. Taro co-wrote the script while Saito served as an executive producer. The 12-episode series Nier: Automata Ver 1.1a was released earlier this year on Crunchyroll. A second part of the anime was announced in July.
It will be exciting to see what Taro and Saito have in store for the series. The presentation offers hope to fans that a sequel may be released in the next few years. Until then, we will be replaying the game until we get all 26 endings.
