A year of amazing releases continues this week with NieR: Automata , a new action RPG from Square Enix and PlatinumGames. We’re big fans of the game, as you probably gathered from our NieR: Automata review, and have devoted plenty of time to humanity’s war against the robot menace. But we also see calls for tips spring up around the web from players who’d like some help with the pod systems or want a bit more guidance on NieR: Automata ’s fast-paced combat.
Obviously, half the fun of games like NieR is figuring out which weapons/combos feel best to you. Instead, we’ve tried to round up information we wish we’d figured out a bit earlier in the NieR: Automata campaign and some tips to help keep 2B alive when the going gets tough.
Here are our tips for new NieR: Automata players:
Auto-Use Item Is Literally A Lifesaver
Dying can be frustrating NieR: Automata . Depending on where you fell, recovering 2B’s body (and whatever gear you happened to be carrying at the time) can be incredibly difficult. It also slows down the pacing of a fantastic story. But keeping an Auto-Use Item chip equipped on your pods and a healthy stock of healing items makes 2B immortal for all intents and purposes. The pod automatically uses restorative items, with bonus healing based on chip level, anytime 2B’s health gets dangerously low. And crafting more powerful versions of the chip is relatively cheap.
Auto-Heal Is Pretty OP Too (Late Game)
If Auto-Use Item starts to get a bit too expensive for your taste, check your inventory for an Auto-Heal chip that might serve as a suitable replacement. Auto-Heal gradually heals 2B over time, provided she doesn’t suffer any combat damage, with the uptick determined by the chip’s level. When damaged, the healing is temporarily halted but it’ll resume after a few seconds if no further damage is sustained. Obviously, you’ll have to keep a closer eye on your health bar and manually use restorative items if 2B’s health gets too low. But those who’ve grown skilled with the dodge/parry systems can save plenty of cash using Auto-Heal instead of Auto-Use Item.
Upgrade Your Chip Slot Count ASAP
One of the merchants at the Resistance Camp offers a variety of pod services, from new and fused chips to expanded chip slots. Make that last offering a priority. The first few chip slot expansions will be relatively inexpensive, but they’re eventually going to get pretty pricy. You don’t necessarily need them all, but just make sure you aren’t spending all your cash on fancy fused chips before you have the spare slots needed to equip them.
Pay Attention To Chip Slot Costs
All pod chips aren’t created equally. As you’ve probably already noticed, the modifiers on the end of each name (i.e. Auto-Use Item +1) let you know when a chip is more effective than the base version. But it’s also important to pay attention to the chip slot cost for the chips you’re fusing together. You should generally only fuse diamond-rated chips with other diamond-rated chips, when possible, and the chips that require the least slots to equip should be treated as prime fusion candidates. The goal, of course, being to create a collection of highly effective chips with the lowest possible equip costs.
There Is No Limit To Dodging
Unlike many modern action RPGs, NieR: Automata doesn’t force players to monitor a stamina bar, meaning you can dodge incoming attacks until the right trigger on your DualShock 4 gives out. So you don’t necessarily have to worry about maximizing your efficiency with the dodge system during the early hours of the game. Spam the dodge as much as you need to stay alive and worry about perfecting its usage over the course of your journey through NieR: Automata .
NieR Tells You When 2B Can Parry
Parrying isn’t required for success in NieR: Automata . But it’s pretty easy to pull off, thanks to the game’s helpful visual cues for properly-timed dodges. Anytime the action slows down and 2B appears to blink out of harm’s away, leaving a trail of white particles in her wake, you’ve executed a Perfect Evade. To parry, press an attack button after a perfect evade. Melee parries typically leave 2B’s aggressors susceptible to air combos. Ranged parries launches your pod “head” first into oncoming attackers, dealing explosive damage in a short area.
Pod Damage = Free Damage
Get in the habit of holding the R1 button down pretty much anytime you’re in combat. It’ll help if you’re also making use of the game’s camera lock system, triggered by pressing L2, but 2B’s pod does an adequate of choosing targets when they haven’t been chosen by the player. There are a few occasions when ranged damage won’t be effective, and even then you usually just need to remove an enemy’s armor and/or shield, but ignoring your pod is usually tantamount to leaving free damage on the table.
Fishing Is A Great Source Of Cash
There are several ways to make money in NieR: Automata . The game includes a variety of items intended solely as merchant fodder, instead of being used as crafting supplies to upgrade 2B’s arsenal, and they can all be farmed at will. Players can also complete side quests for the characters met during the NieR: Automata campaign. But few offer the inner peace that comes with fishing, the chosen hobby of octogenarians around the globe.
You can fish pretty much anywhere that 2B finds standing water, but some redditors are already compiling lists of their favorite fishing spots and the best catches you can pull from each.
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NieR: Automata is currently available on PlayStation 4 and heads to Steam on March 17.
Be sure to check back with iDigitalTimes and follow Scott on Twitter for more NieR: Automata news throughout 2017 and as long as PlatinumGames supports NieR: Automata after launch.
