Yoko Taro - Master Of The Ludonarrative 

I think the main reason I like Yoko Taro's style of working with the meta compared to SpecOps and Undertale especially is that he doesn't condemn you for playing the game *he* (and his team) designed. The way he acknowledges his and the player's complicity in the events isn't "deny yourself" content if you want to be a "moral" person it's to poke at the implications of the complicity between him, the player, and the game. As someone who does creative work, I find him highlighting implications infinitely more worth while than chiding people for engaging with the work in a specific way Great little video!

I'd argue that Spec Ops The Line has an ending reveal that also goes well beyond the "you were the monster the whole time" to more of a meta-narrative on war games saying "you wanted this horrible scenario set up so you could be the big hero in this video game".

Excellent video! I kinda wanna tell my own NieR: Automata story. Of what it did to me. Of what I took from it. I had an incident I don't wanna go into in my own childhood. It left me untrusting. I didn't have real friends. I never went anywhere. I didn't do anything. I sealed myself off from the world. Didn't want anything to do with people. My shell was already cracking in late 2017, when someone bought me this game. I played it, not knowing what to expect, and got invested, although I focused on the main quest, avoiding most sidequests. I reached ending E, and then I tried to persevere, like you did. I tried to get through without help. I finally got frustrated and accepted it. And then, I grew, more willing to accept others. More willing to let others in. My shell cracked completely. NieR Automata taught me to live life with others. That I can rely on others. And that's beautiful.

ludonarrative more like lewdonarrative

When i finished the game, i cried so hard at all the messages of support from all over the world. And when i learned they gave up their save file to help me... damn. That hit me so hard. I knew i had to give mine up aswell.

I am here to listen to people say nice things about the game of the generation.

"There's no slop you hunger for more than a youtube critic agreeing with your feelings and repeating them back to you." FINALLY, SOMEONE GETS IT

Ludonarrative is a cursed word and I blame digi for telling that one story about his ex gf

I need a Drakengard and a Drakengard 3 Remake so bad...

Yoko Taro is far and away my favorite game director of all time. His games are masterful and unique and I adore all of them even the ones with glaring with flaws.

This game literally saved my life. Last year, i had so much shit going on in and outside of my head that i started considering suicide. I got my hands on the game and... fuck, it just changed everything. It gave me nostalgia of the games i used to play on the PS2, the atmosphere hit me right on the spot, the soundtrack has some of the best music i have ever had the pleasure to listen to, and the overarching themes and narrative made my perspective on life completely shift. It affected me in an absolute level. I wish i could tell Yoko Taro how powerful and important this game is to me, and how thankful i am to him and it. It's my favorite piece of art of all time.

Ludonarrative Dissonance 😏🤘🏻😏😤

Idk why, but everytime I see Ludonarrative I think of Ludonarrative Dissonance, and that now long lost story Digi had of having to turn someone on by defining Ludonarrative Dissonance while fuckin

A little late to the video, but I'm glad you're back. I hope Nier: Automata comes to the Switch because I'm hesitant to buy another game console for a single game. Yoko Taro said he wanted to bring it to the Switch, so I'm crossing my fingers.

I couldn't agree more. You really described what makes it so powerful and inspirational!

I was early enough to see the version without the b-roll footage and I... I thought it was on purpose... Like some kind of artistic statement...

Rewatching this and your Code Geass video 4 years later. Miss your content so much. But I'm not sad that you stopped doing RU-vid, instead I get to be happy for all the contet you put out and that I can go back and watch and appreciate years later. (so, you know, no pressure! lol)

I had to make my own video about this darn game before allowing myself to get really into a replay. I couldn't think of any other way to thank yoko taro for creating it, and players like yourself for making that sacrifice. Loved this video!

I think that people focus a little too much on the pure meta aspects of Undertale when its heart, for me at least, is what it has to say about depression and empathy in a broader sense-although NieR: Automata also has plenty to say in its own right with respect to empathy, as you demonstrate.

YEESSS MY QUEEN HERE TALKING ABOUT MY FAVOURITE GAME you've just made my day had to skip some parts because i tragically haven't player the original nier yet but still, the ending was perfect and only made me want to play his other games more

1:28 why you gotta call us out ? amazing video, very well put together. nier made me cry, but nothing made me cry more than ending e of nier automata. its so powerful in so many ways. there's so much about this game, its like a love letter, sometimes you just discover new things about it 2 years after finishing the damn game. nier automata was like eating the best meal ever, and it left me sated but incredibly sad and happy at the same time. from drakengard to nier automata, yoko taro has always wanted to subvert tropes, to subvert expectations, to subvert videogames genres, and i can't wait to see what he will create next, now that his talent is recognized by a large community. i can still dream of a drakengard 1 remake... i cant wait for his nier automata collaboration on ffxiv though

Part of me feels like I already needed to play this game. This video essentially cements that fact.

This extra context you've given to who might get help from me sacrificing all my save data makes me more confident in my decision to be selfish and hold onto that shit.

The final section of that game is so awesome! I love it!

I recommend A LOT Yoko Taro GDC talk about how he design his narratives. It's as awesome as this video is XD

Been waiting for this vid ever since the stream XD Fantastic as usual

Great video! And play One shot if you liked Undertale's metanarrative. The funny thing is that people still try to debate who copied who between the two (regarding the metanarrative aspects) but the reality is that Oneshot came out almost at the same time and has been in work for years...so yeah! Play oneshot and give it a shoot!

Journey was the only game that I’ve played that really made me feel connected to other people in a way that no other could.

whenever someone brings it up i always have to mention that rpgs have been pretty self aware before undertale, and not just indie rpgs but also megaten and earthbound. and beyond rpgs, the danganronpa series began getting extremely meta way before the recent meta boom, culminating to v3 for better or worse.

Thank you for this sustenance.

im here to say I'm super busy with medicine atm but i love your videos and can't wait to go watch them all when i have the time

I don't massively buy that the ending is as impactful as everyone lords it to be because of the underlying game design of it. When you finish the game and offer to aid, you do not get your name used up once and deleted when it is shot down to help another person. If that were the case, people could very easily grind through people's sacrifices so that there were none left to aid players. It would also mean that the first few players would have to beat the game without help. Instead, it seems that your name is put into a database of possible names to pull from. You aren't therefore helping another person, you are just taking credit for the help that the person would receive anyway. I would love to see the concept taken further, but at the moment, I don't think it's gone far enough.

After... recent events, this makes me wonder if TLOU2 could learn some things from Yoko Taro....

U look so pretty in your outro/credits section!

I finished this game yesterday on PC, but its been offline for a couple of days because of a dead wifi card(i just ordered 165 ft of CAT6 ethernet cable off of amazon) The final bullet game for ending E only took me 3 hours, and I still cried after beating it and seeing the final cutscene, but I really feel robbed now of the sense of community and goodwill of accepting the weightily sacrificed help of others and offering up your own blood, sweat, and tears for the sake of someone else who would soon be in your position to need a savior.

I see a Yoko Taro vid I click. I am but a simple girl.

cant say im too big of a fan of video games using the milkshake duck on me all the time

Kojima and Yoko should work together would be cool to see

Does the save file sacrifice actually help other people? Because I'm under the impression that there's other save files that'll do the job. It's like voting. I haven't played the game but I do wonder about it, especially since it confuses me how the first person beat the credits scene if there was nobody to help them.

Will it stay up

The best game of all time.

Welcome back!

I haven't played nier automata; how does deleting all your stuff help another player? im curious :3

During that ending sequence my internet gave out and I tried for hours, didn't even get the option. Had to google and redo another day. :-| The game was still an absolutely singular experience though. (....except for the og Nier :P)

Welcome back. :)

This is a great video

I think there are some more games in your timeline. I'm not one to seek out those games, but some that come to mind are Icey, Pony Island, Firewatch, Edith Finch etc. Superbunnyhop is always a good source for these kind of games, especially the Inbox episodes that dive into the really obscure stuff (sometimes).

2:14 I would actually consider games like the beginners guide and Stanley parable to be similar in terms of making the player question if they have choice.

Have you tried Lisa the Painful

On an unrelated note: Is it just me or is the entire narrative structure of this game one gigantic dialectic performance?

Yooo! You did a vid on my boy Yoko? Haven’t played Automata so I can’t watch, but I hope you made some reference to Drakengard :p

Aww man, I haven't played OG Nier yet......I really would've appreciated a spoiler alert :/

I think kojima is like yoko

mentioning undertale but not Off by Mortis Ghost, smh

the man follows me on twitter

ah.... i didn't read the pinned comment and got spoiled on nier.......... that's what i get for watching one of these before finishing the game ghghggh

if you want a good comic Ludonarrative, i recomend the multiversity by grant morrison, i just say advance you won't understand most of it without basic understanding of grant morrison's writing.

bravely default

Wait, do you actually think that Emil is gay? Did I miss something in either Nier games? Because it seemed like he was attracted to Kaine; or were you just joking and I'm taking this too seriously? If so, my b.

What the ending of Nier Automata did to me was reminding me that, before any adjective, sexual orientation, ethnic, whatever... there is a human. A human that thinks, suffers, enjoys and lives just like me. How could I deny them my help? We are all travelers on the same path and I would gadly do anything to make that experience better for me and the rest of my fellow companions.

😉

FIRST!