Not Too Late to Get Angry, Apparently
Nier: Automata dropped on Steam all the way back in 2017, but that doesn’t mean that it’s immune from criticism. Despite the fact that the game is critically adored – much like The Last of Us: Part II, which also fell victim to a review bombing campaign – the game has attracted the anger of hundreds of fans – this time, bizarrely, over updates.
Here’s the down-low: the game dropped for the Windows Store and Game Pass on PC, but in a different edition – the Become a God edition, specifically. Players on Steam, however, have to deal with the YoRHa Game of the Year edition – which has many issues that can only be fixed through modding. Fans have always been frustrated with this, but the fact that the game is now available for PC through a different service – and without the issues that have been plaguing them – has led to fans demanding the game receive an update to match the Become a God edition – and writing negative reviews to try and get their voices heard.
As far as review bombings go the reasoning is understandable – even if it’s not necessarily the best way to go about it. Just look at the furor over the PlayStation version of Marvel’s Avengers getting exclusive heroes, then imagine that applies to more than just exclusive features, but to the game’s quality of life.
The good news? The review bombing is coming late in the game, and even the 300 negative reviews it’s received in the past few days are only enough to drop the game’s reception from “Very Positive” to a mere “Mostly Positive.” It’s also worth noting that, unlike the campaign against The Last of Us: Part 2 – which was based on the game’s storyline and characters – this is one Square Enix can fix with a patch, so it’s possible that they will eventually address the issues with a patch.
Could the campaign pick up steam? We’ll see, but it’ll take a lot of negative reviews to see the game’s reception drop into the negatives.