An Impossible Port of a Genre-Defying Game – NieR:Automata The End of YoRHa Edition Review

When NieR:Automata The End of YoRHa Edition was announced for Nintendo Switch, many were cautious about if it would run well on the system. Many ports of fan-favourite games had been announced for Switch and hype abounded, only for the game’s Switch port to disappoint. So with this concern in mind, it is so amazing to see a truly impossible port become a reality.

NieR:Automata The End of YoRHa Edition is a game that defies classification, combining character action elements, RPG elements, side-scrolling sections, vertical shmup elements, bullet hell elements, and twin-stick shmup elements and mixes them all together into something unique. The game stars the android 2B in an adventure to defeat the machine lifeforms that have invaded earth, and the resulting experience is something only Yoko Taro and PlatinumGames could have thought up. Everything here should not have worked but the overall experience is amazing.

What makes NieR:Automata The End of YoRHa Edition stand out among other Stylish Action games is that it keeps bringing something new. The RPG elements manage to create a much deeper experience than games like Devil May Cry 5 and Bayonetta 2, while the shmup elements add a very different aspect to the gameplay formula. You constantly have multiple different ways to attack and dodge in true PlatinumGames style, but the game never feels like it is trying too much.

With over-the-top bosses fighting on the ground in one section, and in the air the next, NieR:Automata constantly throws something new in your direction. The bullet hell aspect of the game must also be emphasized, as dodging in this game is heavily based on shmups, complete with enemy attacks reminiscent of some of the genre’s best. One area that the game does have some trouble with is the limited save sections, especially at first, but this gradually becomes less of an issue.

You will be constantly surprised while playing this game, to the point that you will constantly wonder how else you can be surprised. This is not limited to the gameplay either, as the story is some of the best seen in an action game and makes for a truly involving experience. The multiple twists and turns will start almost immediately and yet you never feel let down.

The plot will not be touched upon in this review, because of a desire to not reveal anything that could ruin the experience. What will be mentioned is that the ending is not the end of the game, and there are multiple routes to take in the game, each of which expands the story and experience further. This does not mean replaying the entire game each time, however, and the process actually draws you in and makes you excited to keep going.

What must be discussed here is the performance of the game on the Nintendo Switch. While the game runs at a framerate of 30 FPS rather than 60 FPS and the texture quality has been reduced, the overall experience is still here to a large extent. There are framerate drops that occur when facing some bosses, especially in the latter areas, the experience is mostly consistent and is far from the nightmare we all expected.

NieR:Automata The End of YoRHa Edition on Switch contains all of the previously released DLC and even some new costumes as well, making this an ideal way to play the game, especially on the go. This is a port that simply should not be and yet is. What we have is a game that defies classification in a port that defies expectations, and that seems most fitting in the end.

Disclaimer: A review key was provided