Nier: Automata Was Originally Going To Be Like Farmville

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We've heard a lot recently about what games could or might have been, vs. what they actually became. Nintendo speaks of UFOs and a sport jacket-wearing Link, while the fact that Fire Emblem Awakening nearly took place in space also comes to mind. Recently Nier: Automata producer Yosuke Saito spoke of similar scenarios that could have been, zeroing-in on, of all things, the notorious free-to-play Farmville.

In an interview with EuroGamer, Saito elaborated on the situation.

"The timing was amazing, miraculous," says Square Enix producer Yosuke Saito. "This collaboration was suggested when we'd just come up with the idea of making the Nier sequel a mobile game. We were inspired by Platinum Games – they were great fans of the first Nier, and their suggestion was remaking Nier as a Vita title. So we got two different projects together, and maybe the best option was doing a full console game."
Nier 2 as a mobile game? Taro says the original idea was along the lines of Farmville – something that surely would have gone down just swimmingly with the fans.

"Yeah, we're very glad we didn't go down that route," says Saito.

From what I'm hearing, it was Platinum and Nier: Automata director Yoko Taro that saved the game from its farming-friendly fate. And hey, I'm not knocking farming – everyone loves Stardew Valley, right? But somehow I doubt Nier fans would have been happy with this outcome.

For more Nier: Automata, you can check out one of its gameplay trailer here, and read our comparison to both Horizon Zero Dawn and The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild.