“Nier: Automata” is the sequel to the 2010 game “Nier,” which is a Japanese action role-playing game that released on March 7, 2017. The game is developed by Platinum Games and published by gaming giant, Square Enix.

The first play through of “Nier: Automata” opens up with androids 2B and 9S clearing out the hostile machines for the local resistance. That’s about as far as I can go without starting to reveal heavy plot points that would start ruining the story for those who want to play the game for themselves.

“Nier” is a bit different from other action RPGs because each subsequent play through, up through the fifth one, offers a different perspective on the story or an entirely different story set in the same main plot.

The game is wonderful to look at and controls surprisingly well for an RPG. Often times there is so much content in an RPG that menu interface and character controls take a bit of a backseat but that’s not the case this time.

It’s not often that a game’s voice acting can truly be praised but the non-playable-characters, main characters and robots scattered throughout the game feel very full of life or lifeless, accordingly. The robots that don’t want to fight beg you to please stop attacking them or tell jokes as you pass to put you at ease. The player is, however, totally free to annihilate their robo-dreams.

The game controls very well, however, I can’t seem to find a lock on mechanic; sometimes there will be wild swings that just miss an enemy but it’s so easy to recover from a missed attack that it isn’t a big deal. If you mess up an attack, don’t worry, there’s a handy dodge that can basically be spammed for eternity, allowing you to spot dodge over and over until a weakness is found in the enemy.

The art style is similar to that of a 3D anime with the cut-scenes looking more traditional. Nier runs very smooth and all the environments feel very unique, though there is always going to be some rehashing of assets.

There aren’t a lot of technical problems with the game, at least that I have encountered in the few hours I spent playing, but the game lacks that draw-in-and-want-you-to-keep-playing feel. Maybe I’m just not far enough in to be captured by the story, and I’m really hoping to find it because I want to love this game. Everything is there to make a wonderful title.

Epic boss fights and interesting characters aside, “Nier: Automata” is a fun game that might be lacking a bit in the deep story and total scope, but if you’re interested in the Japanese RPG, it’s worth a play at a lower price point.

“Nier: Automata” gets a three out of five stars.