We’ve talked a little bit about Nier Re[in]carnation, the upcoming mobile entry in the Nier series.

A closed beta test just began in Japan, and we already have some details about the game from participants.

According to Reddit users who got to try out the beta, the story, environments, music, and general Nier atmosphere seem to be strong so far. There are also weapon stories unlocked by leveling up each weapon.

The gacha aspect has been a concern, and there is gacha for both weapons and characters. However, it doesn’t sound like the gacha is being pushed. Opinions from the beta test are that it will be a f2p-friendly game.

(Then again, this is only a beta test showing the start of the game… but here’s hoping.)

Meanwhile, another player has uploaded 13 minutes of Nier Re[in]carnation gameplay footage, so we can get our first extended look at the game.

From this short look, I can already tell the soundtrack definitely has that Nier feel.

The gameplay video begins with side-scrolling gameplay, but then it moves into a 3D area where the character can move freely. After leaving a grayscale area, she enters a ruin-like area that really reminds me of places from Nier.

I can’t read Japanese, so I don’t know what’s going on, but she talks to some sort of shadowed figure, and then it switches to a new side-scrolling section in a desert town. The characters are promptly shot, but Mama (the little floating creature that accompanies the protagonist) interrupts and the scene rewinds.

This leads to our first look at Nier Re[in]carnation’s combat. It’s a turn-based combat system, although you can run around in the combat area, possibly like how it’s handled in Dragon Quest XI. It goes back to the protagonist in the ruins after that, and she seemingly gets a weapon.

Overall, Nier Re[in]carnation is starting to seem pretty interesting, although I still need to finish Automata. What do you think of the new details and footage from the Nier Re[in]carnation beta test?

Along with the announcement of the Nier Replicant remaster, we also discussed Nier Re[in]carnation, the upcoming mobile game in the Nier series.

At the time, all we had was a short teaser showing some game environments, with a reference to a place called “the Cage” that is presumably the game’s setting, and a few quotes from producer Yosuke Saito and direction Yoko Taro about their goals for the game.

Of course, the use of “reincarnation” in the title has let to theories about what the story might involve.

We still know very little about Nier Re[in]carnation, although a new Famitsu article confirms that it will have gacha. Here’s hoping the gacha elements aren’t too intrusive.

(I can’t see the typical character-collection sort of gacha game working for this game, anyway.)

This new detail accompanied the first actual gameplay footage, which shows the player using a virtual joystick on the touchscreen to control a girl running through a castle-like area while accompanied by a floating creature.

The girl, who was also shown in the art when the game was announced, is most likely the protagonist. Although no details about her have been confirmed yet, some fans believe she’s a young Kaine. It’s hard to get a good look at her face, but I can see how she would fit with the themes mentioned in the initial reveal trailer (memories, longing, solitude, and salvation).

Of course, people have already jumped to the conclusion that since this is the first gameplay video shown, it must be the only gameplay and therefore it will be a walking simulator. Personally, I find it hard to believe that there will be no gameplay beyond what’s shown in the video (although I do wonder how those people think gacha would come into play). They probably just wanted to showcase the general tone and feel of the game.

It looks pretty good for a mobile game to me, and the music is great.

There has been no word so far about localization. What do you think of Nier Re[in]carnation?