Play NieR: Automata Before the Release!

As promised earlier this year, Square Enix is releasing a playable demo for NieR: Automata! Starting on December 22, you will be able to download the demo from the PlayStation Store and explore an abandoned factory and complete 2B’s mission to destroy a massive enemy weapon that lies within.

Nier: Automata will be releasing on March 7, 2017 (North America) and March 10 (Europe) for PlayStation 4 and early 2017 for PC. At release there will be available two versions, Day One and Black Box – a collector’s edition including a YoRHa 2B Figurine, a hardback artbook,  a Steelbook Case, Original Soundtrack featuring 13 live recorded songs from NIER and NieR Automata, Collector’s Box and bonus digital content.

Square Enix has also announced a collaboration with Final Fantasy XV as well. As part of the collaboration, the Protagonist 2B will be able to wield Noctis’ iconic Engine Blade in the battlefield. When equipping the Engine Blade, it will alter the evasion effects and damage display to match the style of Final Fantasy XV.There are also plans to feature content from the NieR series in Final Fantasy XV Further updates will follow at a later date.

Automata follows a story where invaders from another world attack without warning, unleashing their secret weapon: the machines. In the face of this insurmountable threat, the human race is driven from the earth and takes refuge on the moon. The humans develop an army of android soldiers to fight back against the mechanical horde, but succeed only in slowing its advance. To break the deadlock, a new breed of android infantry is sent into the fray: the YoRHa squad. In the forsaken wasteland below, the war between the machines and the androids rages on. A war that is soon to unveil the long-forgotten truth of this world.

NieR Automata‘s development team consists of producer Yosuke Saito (DRAGON QUEST X / NieR), director Yoko Taro (Drakengard / NieR), character designer Akihiko Yoshida from CyDesignation, Inc. (FINAL FANTASY XIV /BRAVELY DEFAULT), game designer Takahisa Taura from PlatinumGames (Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance), and composer Keiichi Okabe from MONACA, (TEKKEN / Drakengard / NieR). The game is developed in collaboration between Square Enix and PlatinumGames, which is said to be “amplifying the action-oriented combat and building a beautifully diverse visual experience that will fully harness the graphical power of the PlayStation 4”. You may already know PlatinumGames from critically acclaimed titles such as Bayonetta, Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance and Vanquish.