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@Tanjou21 that's fine, thanks for clicking on the video and giving it a "view"!

@Tanjou21, what's the point of your comment? Just watch the video, and don't be an ass unless it's actually warranted.

@andrewtarasenko2976 never heard of them before, if their stuff sounds like that then I'm very afraid lol

@1cegrim they've been making a very (VERY!) long music in different genres in creative ways (gifs, images, zip files, heck, they even made music that lasts *negative* amount of time). Their longest one, 310 one, sounds just very repetative and something like that (but maybe I am just imagining)

I apologize if I may have told something wrong

@andrewtarasenko2976 no, it's all good. That sounds really interesting. How do you make something last negative time?

@thomashinde961 I'd be totally down for a remake. I think with some modern ground and air combat (and maybe some clearer differentiation between the routes) it could be a really cool game to play

@Justlildude the goal is to cover every drakenier game eventually

​@@1cegrim Nice , i like the way you narrated in this one , i hope you cover side materials of DOD3 in Drakengard 3 video too(Like Novels and Manga , it is kinda Drag to talk about all of them , but they got good charm , adds good depth , Like "Story Side" Book and Utahime Five manga )

@@baziworld i want to talk about a lot of the side stuff for both Drakengard and Nier, i just need to find a good way to fit them into videos

​@@1cegrim Good Luck with your project , Accord library had tones of side materials which no longer is available if you liked , i saved them, i shared them in my last short video , if you liked it check it(It has Links of Story Side Drakengard 3 Book and short Novels which was in Accord Library but their links are right now in my last short video, which adds a really good depth to story)

@baziworld oh snap, I'll have to keep that in mind when I get around to any later Drakenier videos

@kristofclaus7460 when in our lives we played the game probably makes a massive difference our opinion of it. I played DoD1 back in '21 and have been measuring it compared to all the NieR games, other ps2 action games from that era (kh, dmc, etc), as well as the 20 years of game design that followed it I see nothing wrong with enjoying DoD1, but all of that is probably why we have such different opinions

@1cegrim truth

@@LastExpellian i totally understand that sentiment lol

@ThePantafernando I've played DoD2, it's actually a playable video game. The character writing for Nowe and Manah is pretty damn solid, and I think the game does a better job at characterizing Caim than DoD1 does

​@1cegrim How is Caim "better characterized" in DoD2 when he's the exact same person but angrier (Somehow)? Literally, the only difference between DoD1 Caim and DoD2 Caim is that he officially wants to see the whole world burn thanks to Mana stabbing him in the eye and the order purposely torturing Angelus by unnecessarily "strengthening the seal" (thanks Verdelet, you PoS). He's quite literally the villain (that we all root for) until he tells everyone to piss off and willingly dies to be with his dragon girlfriend. Also, neither Mana nor Nowe are solid characters. The former is a self-righteous idiot who causes more harm than good through the game and Nowe is an ignorant and an idiot who somehow manages to not know ANYTHING of the world he lives in or the order he works for despite having living in society for at least 6-10 years. Seere, freaking Seere is more solid and helpful than the two idiots who almost ended the world. Again.

@Cinderpelt09 the plan is to eventually cover every Drakenier games, but right now I need a break after taking all that psychic damage

@@1cegrim a well deserved break for sure!! Have a good rest king

Damn, harsh lol Was this at the beginning or all throughout the video?

@oriongold395 there's a very specific subset of the DrakeNier community that ONLY likes Drakengard 1, and kind of resent the rest of the franchise. By using the specific pairing of title and thumbnail I have, they probably assume I have no idea what I'm talking about and just clicked on the video to dislike it. I assumed this would happen lol

​​​​@@1cegrimI think it has more to do with the very ignorant and inflammatory (probably on purpose to bait engagement from people and fans) title you put on the video, especially when Drakengard is the OG that has been mostly overshadowed and forgotten by NieR, or rather Automata, since a lot of people ALSO think Replicant is a prequel made AFTER Automata when it's the very reason it exists in the first place. Probably doesn't help that you seem to hold Drakengard 2, a game so hated by the whole fandom many simply pretend it doesn't exist thanks to being Drakengard in name only, in high regard despite being, well, NOT-Drakengard, simply because you seem to find it "more palatable" (specifically story wise) than the first one because it's "not as dark" or as "confusing/vague" as the first, all these being the reasons why the first game is liked and remembered FOR despite it's may flaws. Doesn't help that you genuinely give the impression of not having made much research into the series or it's history (in-game and meta-wise) or more than the barebone basics through reddit while barely paying attention to what's shown in-game. it also probably doesn't help that youtubers like Mr. Clemps and ValkyrieAurora have already made videos like yours thoroughly explaining the series as whole as FANS of the series rather than a newcomer who, no offense, seems to have been coddled by narratives who never challenge their worldview or morals through the use of dark fantasy tropes or even taboo topics and is, again, no offense, unwilling to engage in it and prefers to just avoid it all while still talking about the topic as if you know or even understand the purpose of these tropes or events.

@refinant6298 hey thanks for the response. Before I respond in kind, I want to express that, as a smaller channel, I genuinely do appreciate feedback on my videos and your comment is appreciated. We seem to agree on the first point. The title and thumbnail of the video ARE intentionally confrontational. It's really hard to get someone's attention in this fast moving era we live in, and certain choices need to be made in the pursuit of success with the algorithm. That being said, you have touched on why I chose to label Drakengard as a "Nier game" despite it clearly not being that. The general online population is far more aware of Nier (specifically automata) than any other game Yoko has made, especially Drakengard. By marketing the video as being on a Nier game it guarantees a much larger pull. That said, after the very beginning of the video I don't bring up Nier again, electing to focus entirely on DoD My appreciation for DoD2, comes mostly from two key differences. First, as you mentioned, the story is far clearer and straightforward. It's not that DoD2 is more "palatable", just that it respects the player’s time and presents it's narrative directly. All the rest of the Drakenier games do the same, even with their respective route differences and subtle (or even hidden) lore and story I have no issue with dark content and mature subject matter, I take issue when said content isn't presented with any intention of discussion, introspection, or critique. Berserk is a narrative rife with atrocities and horror barely within human comprehension, but Miura never included any of it simply to shock the audience (at least after black Swordsman arc). DoD1 introduces countless reprehensible characters and disturbing subject matter and doesn't bother to interrogate any of it, simply presenting it as “look how fucked up this is” content Regarding my understanding of the series: I can see you're combing the comment section reading my responses, so I hope I've been able to get across how much time I've spent reading and researching all the content available for these two franchises That being said, this was intended to be an exploration of Drakengard and only Drakengard. That's why I limited how much supplemental material I referenced, and why I didn't draw many connections to the subsequent games. My intention was to review the game, as a game, in the current year. As you saw, I didn't enjoy my second playthrough of Drakengard, and I didn't feel it did enough to justify its dark tone, ominous vibes, and confusing storytelling I’m also not really sure what more you'd like me to talk about from a meta standpoint, I don't really think there's a whole lot more I can cover about the game's development While I think claiming that Clemps and Valkyrieaurora are truer fans of the series than I am, and that I'm unable to handle darker stories and media is a bit out of pocket, I will admit that I mostly reviewed DoD1 so I could justify reviewing the rest of the series. I find every other game in this franchise a lot more interesting, and I personally think the questions and themes they present are more thought provoking Regardless, thanks for watching the video and for leaving a comment, I'll keep what you said in mind as I work on my future projects

​@@1cegrim 1) Regarding your third point; Here's where my (and probably many others) impression of you not understanding or paying attention to what's shown or implied comes from, and my comment of you not understanding the meta perspective of the game. Nothing is there just "for the sake of it". Caim is a Musou/Warriors protagonist who is a mass murderer because, as Yoko Taro explained during interviews as to why he made him like that, only a violent mass murderer would commit as many atrocities as he does through the game. And despite being such a horrible person, he has loved ones in Inuart, Furiae-even after the revelation of her incestual feelings toward him-and eventually Angelus, who he cries for during ending A. Something he never does for anyone else, not even Furiae. There's also a reason as to WHY he is like that besides being a meta commentary as to what kind of person one would need to be to kill as many people as a Musou/Warriors protagonist would, that being the Black Dragon a.k.a. Legna having killed his parents during a raid of the empire, which is also why he is so protective of Furiae. Not because she's the goddess keeping the watchers at bay, but also because she's all the family he has left. He's like a Guts who never improved as a person and only became more and more violent as the story progressed because that's the only way he knows how to live anymore. Furiae is another meta character who was actually made as a parody/deconstruction of a damsel in distress or another trope Yoko Taro hated. She's essentially useless in her inability to do anything at all to help or change her fate, yet everything depends on her being alive and keep the watchers sealed away, She's Caim's main motivation to fight. The only reason he doesn't become even worse than what he already is is simply because his hatred and rage has a focus (Mana) and someone to share all his bloodlust with (Angelus). Inuart is the most hopeful and optimistic of the two. He's quite literally the heart of his group, but that is meaningless to him when he seems incapable of doing anything worthwhile to help besides being essentially the cheerleader. That's why his downfall can be a bit tragic, because he wanted to help which made him vulnerable to the manipulations of the watchers. Angelus is a cyinic who has grown to hate humanity after witnessing their cruelty and desire for death and destruction for millennia. She's apathetic to the world because she sees no value in it or it's inhabitants. It will all disappear either by the will of the gods or by humanity's self-destructive nature. And despite that, as implied by her acceptance of making a pact with Caim, she either wants to live regardless or simply refuses to keel over death at the hand of creatures she sees as inferior to herself. It's through all this that, even though she hates humanity and is even disgusted and downright horrified by Caims hatred and lust for blood and violence, she comes to respect him because of his own determination to keep going; his strength and refusal to bow to anything, be it a dragon like herself or the gods themselves. It definitely helps that she became ludicrously powerful through their pact, to the point of felling a legendary wyvern/dragon that she herself feared (second to last mission of route A, I believe). It's, despite the romance being inserted by another writer (hallowed be their name), the perfect, toxic, symbiotic relationship between two beings who end up bonding through their hatred of pretty much everything and their refusal to accept neither death nor judgement from so-called "higher beings". Leonard is, quite ironically to some, the kindest and objectively "best person" in the group despite being born with an attraction that would make many want him dead despite having done nothing wrong besides existing and doing everything within his power to avoid committing a truly unforgivable crime. He's the one who, despite seeing the good in Caim and trying to "guide him" to a better path, still is horrified by and calls out his most monstrous acts (like the infamous child massacre mission). He's not a monster for being born a pedophile, he's a person that knows that what he feels is wrong and is doing his best to be good and not harm others. Which ironically got his siblings killed, so gold star for effort I guess. Arioch lost her family and was driven insane for it. And the only way she has to cope with her pain and trauma is her broken "logic" to try and "protect" other children from suffering the same fate as her own family. Which ends in a "poetic/ironic" end where she's devoured by "children". She's not a monster by choice, infact, she's like a Casca who, instead of ending comatose after The Eclipse, simply went insane and developed an extremely unhealthy coping mechanism to deal with her pain, not helped by her pact partners who seemingly try to drive her further into madness by encouraging her to indulge into it. All of this, besides Yoko Taro's commentaries, is information found within the game. It's not even remotely different from Berserk besides everything getting worse ending after ending, which makes your comparison feel, quite honestly, very disingenuous and quite hypocritical, because Caim IS criticized by literally everyone and everything around him; Inuart does it, Leonard does it, Verdelet does it, even ANGELUS, the human hating dragon criticizes his violence, Caim simply doesn't care for any of it because he doesn't want to be better, or perhaps can't after indulging all of his violent tendencies for so long. And the rest of the characters can't be properly criticized because they either can't help themselves (Furiae, Arioch and Seere), are already doing everything they can (Leonard and arguably Inuart) or just don't care (Caim and Angelus). None of this is because Drakengard is "darker and/or edgier" than Berserk and using these tropes for shock value, this is all because YOU, the player, is trying to make things better but only end up ruining it all even further despite already getting the best possible result at the beginning (Ending A). To make a Berserk comparison; it's as if you as the reader inserted yourself into the story and tried to change it's bleakest moment, The Eclipse, by giving the Behelit to someone "purer" than Griffith (Mana), like Casca (Furiae), which ends up causing ending B where she becomes an even worse monster; mindless and insane, with a drive to destroy it all. All of this is the reason why I and other viewers have the impression that you weren't paying attention to the story or the dialogue, because nothing of what I just said or explained is hidden away in some dark corner of some random extra material released ten or so years after the game came out. And why people (me included, admittedly) are quite dismissive of your seeming preference for 2 story-wise; because that game doesn't explain things to you, it spoon-feeds you to the point of being condescending and infantilizing. I still have nightmares of the many times Nowe makes stupid questions of things he should already know, or how many times he repeats how "Caim, the one-eyed man, is the one who killed his father, Oror" whenever he appears or is mentioned. Or the obviously evil guardians of the seals who are purposely made like that to make Mana look like she has a point or is justified in doing what she does despite EVERYONE who played the first game knowing what she's doing is dumb and dooming the world to be destroyed, killing any possible nuance because only a person who's 100% new to the franchise and is starting with this game would think that what they're doing is a good thing. Anyway, I digress: 2) Talking about the meta stand is important because Drakengard is, by itself, a deconstruction of a genre of videogames known for fulfilling a power fantasy of mauling armies of enemies, or the the fact that ending E-besides being an EoE reference-IS a meta plot point represented by Angelus asking out loud if our world (or the future) was "the land of the gods" which it technically was. It may not make the game better or more enjoyable, but it is a key part as for why so many do enjoy it despite it many, many flaws. 3) The point of my comments in regards to bringing up Mr. Clemps and ValkyrieAurora's videos wasn't to say you were "less of a fan" for not liking the game or something, to each their own, but rather that, again, you are very obviously a newcomer who, again, seemed to not have paid any attention to the game or it's story and has a preference for a sequel that almost every person who's into Drakengard as whole for being what it is, dislikes and dismisses for very good and valid reasons-like the fact Yoko Taro didn't really participate much if at all during it's creation-while those two are veterans of the series who have pretty much scrutinized every little detail from the games themselves, additional external content not withstanding. It paints a picture like you only played the Drakengard games out of a sense of obligation to make an apparently poorly researched video rather than an honest interest for the origins of the NieR series. All of which, AGAIN, is not helped by everything I pointed at the start of this comment, or the inflammatory title that you yourself have just admitted to have done on purpose to bait people into engaging with your video. I want to reiterate that I don't mean to offend or attack you, but there's not really any kinder way to explain WHY I and other people have reacted negatively to your video and opinions other than everything I pointed out, or comparing your video to that of two passionate veterans of the DrakeNier franchise. And I hope none of this discourages you from making more videos of the series or any other franchises you like.

@@refinant6298 Thanks again for commenting! Before you read whatever nonsense I type in response, I think it’s important to acknowledge something super important. I don’t think either of us is ever going to fully agree with the other; especially considering that from what I can tell, from your perspective I’m an ignorant newcomer who only wants to discredit and slander a game you really care about. That’s fine! It isn’t fair to assume that we’re going to be able to fully agree with everyone we meet, and I don’t want you to feel any need to read any response I have if you don’t want to. There’s no way to convince you that I’m not only well aware of the analysis you’ve presented in your response (which is very good), or that I’ve been a member of the Drakenier community since 2019. Regardless, I think our key disagreement comes from how each of us is approaching Drakengard. You, along with most of the critical comments I’ve read over the past week appear to be approaching the game primarily as an art piece, focusing on DoD’s use of gameplay, soundtrack, and storytelling to explore what kind of person could bring themselves to take that many lives. It really is a “war is hell” presentation, and the combination of uncomfortable gameplay and abrasive music really bring that point home. Additionally, while the main cast does contribute to Yoko Taro’s quest to depict all different manner of people in his games, it also adds to the idea that a person like Caim, devoid of most empathy and regard for others, would invariably end up surrounded by a group of people who similarly exist on the fringes of society (albeit for a host of different reasons). There’s absolutely nothing wrong with this approach, and in fact I think it’s the most positive lens with which to view Drakengard, especially if considering it as a part of a greater whole. My intention with my video was to approach Drakengard primarily as a game experience. While I do think there is value in non-traditional video games, I have a very limited amount of free time as a fully employed person. I bring this up because the prevailing feeling of the game not respecting my time throughout my entire playthrough certainly colored my opinions of it. This is why, while artistically I see the value in the gameplay, as a player returning to the game after 5 years, I find it inexcusable. My feelings on the gameplay aside, I don’t agree that the main cast being meta-commentaries is enough for what this game is trying to explore. Caim’s violent nature is what almost entirely defines him. His inability to speak makes him incapable of engaging with such a dismal world in any other way. While the relationship between Caim’s pact and his ability to express himself is an interesting dynamic, he severely lacks many other defining traits. The most notable of these are his care for Furiae and Angelus; neither of which we see much of until the plot demands it. While Caim’s desire to protect his only remaining family member is a surprisingly mundane thing in a world of extraordinary hardship and tragedy, it’s only really seen in the cinematic fight against Inuart and when he finds her dead later. Similarly, his relationship with Angelus is not one we see naturally develop over the course of any of the routes, instead becoming something, we’re made aware of during the fight with the Wyrm in chapter 9. In the video I accuse Caim’s muteness of being the key culprit behind this (and I still believe that to be the case), but I also think the game having very few slow moments to be another cause. Most of the between-stage cutscenes are reserved for character introduction, exposition, or to set up a stage/conflict. Rarely, if ever, do we have a moment where any of the main cast simply interact with one another. Of course, this is because outside of route D, Leonard, Arioch, and Seere don’t actually exist, but there isn’t really a good reason why Caim and Angelus couldn’t have interacted more. Drakengard 3 does this pretty well. While the game is campy as all hell, the between-stage campfire time gives you a chance to interact with each party member and hear their thoughts on the world, the ongoing story, or simply whatever is on their mind. Similarly, the in-stage dialogue between characters gives you a lot about their interpersonal relationships even if sometimes the conversations are a bit poorly timed. The Nier games are even better about this, but I don’t really want to get to lost on this point. On the subject of Furiae: I don’t think the game does nearly enough to deconstruct the trope the “damsel in distress”, mostly because that’s really all she is throughout the game. While her role as the barrier preventing the Watcher’s incursion being tied to whether she is alive or dead is an interesting twist on the trope, the fact remains that she is treated, both by Caim and by Inuart, as a prize to be won. Her disdain for her role or the life she’s been forced to live isn’t even hers to explore, instead Manah stepping in and stating all of her flaws as a method of torment. Even her single moment of agency, taking her own life, is framed as a reaction to Caim rejecting her incestuous feelings towards him. Her entire world and life revolve around how men treat and perceive her. Arioch is significantly worse, she’s basically just a tragic backstory. Even in her own sub-story she doesn’t do anything besides sink the ship of captured civilians. I treated it as a joke in the video, but I probably should have been more serious about how miserable it is that Arioch’s entire character revolves solely around her as a mother. She is entirely defined by her ability to be a mother, with her breaking point being losing that ability. Motherhood is important to some people, but I don’t think it’s a very good look if your only female characters don’t have much going on aside from the tropes associated with women. For the rest of the cast, we seem to be fairly aligned on both Inuart and Leonard (even if I choose not to humor him because I don’t feel inclined to pity a pedophile), and I’ll admit I regret not taking more time to break down more of angelus, although I still don’t think the game does a very good job of characterizing her during the bulk of the game. Regarding the cast criticizing Caim, I did touch on that while talking about the different route’s way of presenting the story. Yes, most of the cast chastises Caim for his violent nature, but they also ENCOURAGE him multiple different times to slaughter his enemies without remorse. The only character who doesn’t goad Caim on is Leonard, and that’s because there’s only one stage where he comments on Caim’s bloodthirst and it’s specifically concerning child soldiers. The sparse character writing, and occasionally contradictory characters aside, another issue I have with how Drakengard tells its story is how it puts a vast amount of the storytelling responsibility on the stage-start screens. So much of Caim’s motivations, and even some of character’s relationships, are found on these screens. Also, I don’t really understand why this is a prevailing theme, but I’ve noticed a lot of people holding a lot of negative sentiment towards Seere and Manah is if they aren’t very explicitly the victims of an incredibly abusive home life that forced both of them to become the people we see in game… also they’re both like 6. While I agree that a meta-analysis of Drakengard is important, and provides a lot to unpack and explore, my review was not a metatextual analysis of the game. While I know this aspect is very important to a large portion of the fandom, I think it has led to a large group of people no longer wanting to engage with the game on a craft level. Storytelling is incredibly important to me, not only in terms of what the narrative is trying to say, but how the narrative is constructed and presented. What Yoko Taro presents in DoD1 is interesting on paper and in discussion, but I think the frame it resides in ultimately hinders its ability to be directly approached and experienced. Finally, and I’ll admit this is on me for not being clearer about this, while I think DoD2 does a lot of things substantially better than DoD1 (primarily as a playable piece of media), I do not think it’s a flawless game. The only reason I choose my I choose to use “The Worst Nier Game” in my video’s thumbnail is because, as you yourself said, Drakengard 2 is only a Drakengard game in name. I’m not going to go into a massive tirade on DoD2’s many failings here, but believe me, one exists. If you read through all of that, I appreciate you taking time out of your morning to read my response. While it’s unfortunate that we’re probably not going to be able to see eye-to-eye on this specific subject (or maybe others), I’m nonetheless grateful to be able to share ideas with other people. Contrary to what this video probably leads you to assume, I don’t hate Drakengard. I’m just disappointed in how it presents itself and its ideas. Coming from the monumental storytelling experiences of the NieR triology, I really wanted my first foray into the predecessor series to be as engaging and cool as my experience with the sister series. Unfortunately, my playthrough in 2019 was not particularly enjoyable (even in an artistic sense), and I feel like that displeasure carried through to my second playthrough earlier this year. Perhaps you’ll end up enjoying my thoughts on the rest of the series whenever I get around to the rest of the games, maybe not. I will apologize in advance though, I still plan to clickbait the hell out of my DoD2 title and thumbnail.

Weird, the game doesn't give that impression in the slightest. I swear I've had moments where I'll max out a weapon's evolution stage and take out a few more enemies, and the next level it's XP will still be at 1

@jayistoro Hey, thanks for stopping by! I'm glad you found it entertaining!

@@hikkiko9050 Just doing my duty 🫡

@vanillekarnickel you understand my pain! The real secret reason I made this video is so that less people have to play Drakengard. Less suffering in the world, and more people that can enjoy the rest of the series without subjecting themselves to agony

@@VaunDoomYT I understand that feeling. There are games I love that are trash, but I can't help but love them

Thanks, I appreciate it!

The connection between those two series is one of the wildest things I've ever seen for sure

Not sure if I'd call what you have to do to get all those weapons rewarding, but looking at a list of how many weapons you had to unlock and what you had to do to unlock them was scary as hell

It's really a bummer how bad DoD1 is as a game experience At least it laid the groundwork for some really weird and cool stuff to follow!

Thanks for watching! If I remember correctly, I think the romantic relationship was pushed more heavily in the DoD 1.3 novellas. Immensely tragic to lose Accord's library, but at least the members of the Discord tend to have a lot of info on hand!

@@1cegrim I've heard Yoko stated he never intended for the romantic element between Caim & Angelus to exist but the co-writer he worked wit on this game shoved it in themselves. The entire relationship was supposed to stay antagonistic all the way through but the co-writer(who may have been a romance writer before) did their own thing

@nightlydata2181 Sawato Natori was their main writer, It might have been her decision

@@1cegrim that's who I meant but forgot the name

@nightlydata2181 honestly, as weird as the Caim/Angelus romance feels, it still doesn't feel out of place in a game like Drakengard. Just another weird degenerate part of a weird degenerate world

No one ever expects the giant baby and pregnant naked lady ending

A game can be artistic, it can be bold, it can take risks, and it can push the envelope. That doesn't mean it is good just because it does that. Drakengard is strongest as an art piece: the distillation of chaos and unpleasantness in a virtual game world. It makes the player uncomfortable through tone, atmosphere, soundtrack, and gameplay. It excels in pushing the idea that the player shouldn't be comfortable playing the type of game it is. It's also a dogshit video game. The emphasis being on the term "game". Subversive design choices and an edgy narrative doesn't automatically push away the flaws the game has, especially if those hinder it as a playable piece of software. Also, I'm actually of the opinion that both Nier games are masterpieces in their own right, and from what I've read did a great job of conveying the specific vision Yoko wanted with each game (even if SQEX did kinda force automata to be a nier game). DoD3, despite it's technical limitations and letdowns, is a fascinating return to the world of midgard and tells a very compelling and surprisingly feminist narrative. Oh yeah, and DoD2 is actually a pretty good game too. It plays pretty decently, the soundtrack is solid, and the narrative attempts to tell a very interesting continuation to a game that was never intended to have a direct sequel. It also does a great job at characterizing Caim in a way that is clearly understood by the audience and true to his depiction in the first game. Is it a flawless game? Fuck no, but it's a pretty solid ps2 hack and slash

@@HalfLight333 i think a DoD1 remake with the platinum team on ground combat and some ace combat veterans on the sky combat could potentially be an actually really cool project I'd also be interested to see if they make any story changes

@Swam0811 oh my god yeah, it's so hard for no reason. That final note...

@Lillymu961 thanks for watching! I'll give the game this: it is one of the most effective "art games" I've ever played lol

must've been a pretty compelling missing of the point if you stuck around for the full hour

Yeah bro, what saves this game the most is its incredible lore... One day I hope we'll be blessed with a DOD Remake. We're rooting for the Watchers to make it happen🙏🔔🗼🧂

@TheAdarkerglow oh no, I've been found out! After playing Drakengard for the Playstation 2 I have managed to mistakenly refer to it as part of its sister series, NieR for the Playstation 3!!

@kingpin3690 not sure how I could research the game better than playing through it and every other game in the franchise, as well as reading all the supplemental material associated with each game, as well as interviews related to the game's development, but I suppose you do you lmao

@iamdoom9810 whaaaat nooooo... they programmed all that cool dragon combat that gets you no exp so the game would be cool and awesome!! (Ignore the red armored knights, they can't hurt you if you don't ride the dragon)

@NakedRadish just wait until you see final fantasy 14's Nier raid... so many bells... bells bells bells

@@1cegrim Oh I did. They were actually the reason I started playing 14 cause I heard there was Nier content over there. I got to the last boss of the last raid and saw the portal in the sky, then I heard the 1st bell, then I saw the boss... My friends in VC were really confused why I went "Oh hell no..." XD Still my favorite piece of content in the game.

@NakedRadish funny story, ff14 is the reason I started playing the drakenier games. I finished Shadowbringers and saw the Nier crossover and thought "I should probably play that automata game shouldn't I..." And then Replicant v1.22 dropped near to tier 3 of the raids, so I thought "it'd probably be smart to play that first" and then I learned about drakengard right before the remake dropped and well... Needless to say, I've become intimately acquainted with Yoko Taro's works lol

@@1cegrim so you had the complete opposite of my travel XD still now we're brothers in bell PTSD kekw

@andrewtarasenko2976 I actually have played the second one; it's actually a real game lmao One of these days I'll cover it, but I need a break from Drakengard right now

@aidanuzuki3449 i think a lot of people have a ton nostalgia for this game; played it when they were younger. I get having a lot of love for things from your past, but it's important to look at them objectively too... cause this one really wasn't it

@UmmWalad while the game has some of the most dismal endings out of any game I've played, they don't particularly say a lot on their own besides "look how dark and fucked up the world is!" That's my biggest overarching critique: the game is mostly edge without a lot more to say about that edge. Additionally, I was trying to review the game's writing as-is, without relying on the supplemental content to clarify any confusion (I wanted to review the game purely on its own merits) The soundstrack, while grating, is very suitable for the tone and subject the game puts forward. That said, there's a reason I used the DoD3 remix of Seere's prayer over the original version. I also thought the attract mode cinematic used a different track than growing wings, unless my version of the game is different for some reason. As an art piece, the game is very fascinating and has a very consistent theme and presentation. As a game I'd... I'd rather boot up DoD2

@1cegrim the game is basically a dark fantasy with no happy ending and i disagree that it doesnt have alot more to say about its edge. If you criticize it for not revealing everything clearly within the game then every other game in the franchise fails the same metric

@UmmWalad both Nier games and DoD3 include in-game documents that either explicitly state or heavly allude to unspoken plot details, giving more context to what is happening behind the scenes. Additionally, they have the benefit of being sequels, allowing their story to build off of previous entries in the franchise. While this doesn't inherently make those games "good," it does make their subtleties more accessible. My biggest criticisms of both Nier games actually come from their plots hinging on information that was either not in the game or written later. Replicant's central conflict is predicated on two characters restricting CRUCIAL information from the main cast, which could easily prevent most of the second half of the game. This is easily explained away with supplemental content, but I don't think that excuses the game's storytelling. Route D of automata centers entirely around a character that 90% of first time players know nothing about, yet has more lore and history than almost every central cast member. Tying crucial character motivation and background to a stage play that never made it overseas, and has only recently been adapted to localized media, is frustrating and hinders the game's narrative. I believe a central part of enjoying media and media series is being ready and willing to engage in discussion and critique of a piece of media's strengths and weaknesses. Nothing is perfect, and it's important to acknowledge those shortcomings, especially in the media we love the most. As much as I respect every entry in the Drakenier franchise, I don't think DoD has many praiseworthy elements, and it deserves as much critique as any other piece of media

@1cegrim i dont have a problem with criticizing a game. As i said first dod is known for its atrocious and tortous game play and ill never defend any aspect of it. However my point was originally about the story only. And as per your comment it seems that you agree that yoko taro games often leave much to be desired in terms of background info and even motivations of in game characters. But if your complaint is that dod is too dark and hopeless when that was yoko taros intent then that's where you truly lose me

@@UmmWalad I don't actually think DoD1 is too dark. I think darkness in media can make for very compelling storytelling. Berserk is probably the strongest example of this (that story is fucking depressing). Where I run into issues with Drakengard, is that a lot of the darkness doesn't get enough exploration. Like, we don't really go into the fact that the empire is slaughtering villages and committing genocide against the elves, it just happens as set dressing(I think a side story establishes elf blood is super effective against red eyes?). One of the main characters is a nonce and travels with a child who becomes very fond of them. We don't really ever get into that. Furiae and Arioch largely don't have any character to speak of. Again, I have no issue with dark subject matter, I just want it be explored instead of just used for shock

I will concede this game is hard to get out of your head once you learn about it. I honestly think the "game" part of it being so terrible does even more to keep it cemented in your head. It's probably one of the most unintentionally "art" games I've ever played

@@Oakusify thanks, I'll try my best to deliver!

@h_works2965 this is some fire analysis! It's interesting to see what 7-ish years did in terms of both the questions Yoko was asking, and the answers he was pondering to those questions. Nier feels almost nothing like DoD in pretty much every way, yet still retains things that are crucial to what make his games his. Also a lot of the short stories and novellas are like... needlessly dark. Like almost uncharacteristically so. Although it probably doesn't help that their main author Jun Eishima is a little bit too aligned with Leonard's interests

What do you think about Silent Hill 2?

@yeahbuthow2005 i haven't had a chance to play the silent hill games, would you recommend them (and should I play the remakes?)

@tlozfreak888 if I'm gonna review a game, I gotta go all the way!