NieR: Automata surpassed seven million sold units, Square Enix announced earlier this week. This development further extends the game's lead as the best-selling title in both the NieR and overarching Drakengard series. Its latest commercial milestone is largely attributed to the recent release of a NieR: Automata port for the Nintendo Switch.
NieR: Automata debuted on PC and PS4 in 2017 before making its way to the Xbox One a year later. Similar to the original NieR, the sequel received mixed reviews but didn't take long to achieve cult status due to its distinctive storytelling that experimented with the boundaries of its media format by leveraging multiple playthroughs to construct a unique interactive narrative. The Switch port of the game—titled NieR: Automata The End of YoRHa Edition—released in early October to critical acclaim and fan adoration.
While Square Enix hasn't provided a breakdown of the game's sales by platform, NieR: Automata's fourth-anniversary sales milestone suggests that its Switch port is either close to surpassing a million purchases or has already done so. As part of the same announcement, the Japanese publisher revealed that its remaster of the original NieR—NieR Replicant ver.1.22474487139—hit 1.5 million in sales this month. That version of the game released in the spring of 2021, 11 years following the original's debut. Furthermore, this newly confirmed milestone means that all versions of the first NieR game have now definitively hit two million in combined sales.
Though the series on the whole is now close to hitting ten million in lifetime sales, this newly renewed public interest in the franchise is still far from guaranteed to lead to a fourth NieR game. Late last year, the series creator Yoko Taro said NieR is officially "finished" since he doesn't expect to be given funding for another game. A few months beforehand, Taro—who directed both the Drakengard trilogy and all of its NieR spinoffs—labeled NieR: Automata's success as a "fluke," stating that he never expected any of his games to find a large audience due to their niche appeal.
Despite the occasional rumor that Drakengard 4 might be in development, Taro's skepticism about the series' overall global appeal makes it unlikely that today's Square Enix will greenlight another game, especially as the company's growing ambitions keep pushing the threshold for what its management deems a commercial success. That said, the newly released Switch port of NieR: Automata and last year's NieR Reincarnation mobile spin-off are both strong indications that the Japanese gaming giant is still testing the waters regarding the viability of a fourth NieR game.
NieR: Automata is available on PC, PS4, Switch, and Xbox One.
Source: Nintendo Life
