Nier: Automata Is Right To Change Things Up For The Anime

thegamer.com:

Square Enix and A-1 Pictures have unveiled our first look at the upcoming Nier: Automata anime. Known as Version 1.1, the adaptation is coming in January and aims to retell the game’s story while also expanding upon it. Game director Yoko Taro has said that copying the existing narrative exactly - which so much anime tends to do - would frankly not be very interesting. Chances are some big changes are on the horizon, and that’s awesome.

Automata is a modern classic largely thanks to its storytelling. It tells a subversively tragic tale of what it means to be human in a ruined world completely devoid of humanity. There is nothing left, with our main characters abiding by tasks for masters who perished decades ago. We are drawn into a false sense of security, and forced to ask harsh questions about the actions of our characters and whether leaving behind their strict hierarchy in search of something better is really worth the risk. Even now, the final ending makes me choke up.

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Even if the anime aimed to be faithful to each and every line of dialogue it would have been a treat to witness, even more so with so much talent behind it, but unlike other adaptations the non-linear nature of Yoko Taro’s creative direction means that choosing not to shake it up would almost feel like a missed opportunity. For decades the man has been surprising with stories that push the medium forward, often bordering on the distasteful with characters designed to make us feel disgust, anger, empathy, guilt, and everything in-between.

Drakengard is the perfect example, and even today I can’t believe the PS2 classic got away with so much. It had us slaughtering innocents, taking