New Nier: Automata secret room discovered 5 years later — is it legit?

Nier: Automata fans and the game’s modding community are confounded by the reveal of a previously unseen secret area in the game — a discovery made five years after Automata’s release on PlayStation 4. It is believed that one anonymous user has accessed the data. This makes it even more mysterious.

Players with intimate knowledge of the subject matter NierAutomata and the game’s current modding scene are stumped by the discovery: Does venturing into this previously unseen area require a very specific set of requirements? It could be a PC mod masquerading to be a PlayStation 4 version. Or is this just a trick? It’s an ARG. What else?

The Nier: AutomataThese questions have not been answered by the modding community. However, a lot of Nier enthusiast are going through the files of the games, playing the game again, and debating how much. Nier: Automatamodding technology; and studying videos frame by frame like a Zapruder film.

It is the tale of Nier: Automata’s secret new area — a church hidden behind a wall in the game’s Copied City area — started in early June, when a player posted a question to the Nier subreddit asking what was required to access the church area. They had access to it, so why didn’t their friend? Other players didn’t know what the original poster was talking about. There’s no church in that level, one player said. “I don’t think you can enter any building in the Copied City,” another responded.

The original poster, who goes by sadfutago on Reddit, later posted video of the church and where they accessed it — through a never-before-seen camouflaged door. Many were suspicious and thought the video was fake. Others went on to investigate.

It wasn’t until Monday, when prominent modder and streamer Lance McDonald posted a new wrinkle in the saga, that the story of Nier: Automata’s new mystery exploded. McDonald was also responsible in finding the answer. Nier: Automata’s supposed “final secret” last year.)

“Someone randomly posted a video on the Nier Automata subreddit showing they found a secret room in the Copied City,” McDonald wrote on Twitter. “So far no one else has worked out how they managed to make this secret door appear. Literally 1 person on earth has accessed this room and we are uttered mind blown.” McDonald later explained that it’s “not yet possible to mod Nier Automata in this way,” adding that “the community is in shambles over this discovery.”

For existing mods Nier: AutomataGenerally, these include character model replacements and high-res textures updates. Creating or adding all-new geometry to the game’s world is much more challenging, modders say, particularly on PS4.

Popular Nier: AutomataModding Discord servers, the members have been analyzing every part of multiple videos uploaded by sadfutago. They’ve also peppered the poster with questions, divining that sadfutago is allegedly playing on an unpatched, physical version of Nier: AutomataPlaystation 4 without internet access. Finding clear answers to sadfutago’s questions has proved difficult.

Modders and Nier experts have tried to view the supposed secret area through roundabout means — using a wireframe-only view and by breaking through game boundaries — but still don’t see the church. The game is currently being played through again in an attempt to unravel the mystery.

Sadfutago uploaded a longer and clearer version of Tuesday’s video. It shows what looks like a large area but offers little interaction.

Discussions on the Nier modding Discord server generally agree on one thing: If this new area is a player-created mod, it’s a sophisticated one. This mod is so complex that it’s unlikely anyone other than the author. Nier: Automata development staff or someone who is so talented that they’ve been developing their mod in secret and without the broader help of the community.

There’s also widespread suspicion that this is either a longstanding hidden Easter egg or part of some guerrilla marketing effort. Two high-level developers of the game, producers Yosuke Saito and Yoko Taro, haven’t exactly been forthcoming about what they know.

“Eternal mystery,” Saito tweeted Tuesday, quote-tweeting Lance McDonald’s viral tweet about the hidden area. Saito tweeted that a well-buried secret like this is something that the wily Yoko Taro would do, and later added “First of all, please calm down and make a reservation here” — linking to a separate tweet about the upcoming Nintendo Switch port of Nier: Automata.

Yokotaro was not satisfied with the producers’ response. “Do you want to know about my insight?” Taro tweeted to a fanOn behalf of the person who inquired about the mystery church. “In that case, you can find answer at my twitter profile. Thank you.”

The “answer” in Taro’s profile is this: “I can’t answer about any products. Please ask publisher.” In other words, Taro apparently has no interest in confirming or refuting this particular secret. (Incidentally, Taro did confirm the discovery of the aforementioned “final secret” from Nier: AutomataLast year.

As for whether sadfutago is on the up and up, it’s worth noting that their Reddit profile has only ever been used to post about this one subject, and only in the Nier subreddit. Sadfutago is the Japanese name for twins. Nier: Automata has a set of twins: Devola and Popola, and their staves appear as props in the hidden church’s altar. A character also appears on the altar is from Nier: Replicant, Yonah.

Each new discovery has Nier modders and fans searching for answers. However, as the interest in Nier modding Discord has increased, so has the noise. It’s currently flooded with memes, copypastas, and rapid-fire shitposting. However, many Nier enthusiasts are seeking answers. Some just enjoy being along for the ride.

“This is either a god-tier and impressive hoax or insanely cool left over data and either way this is AMAZING,” one Nier subreddit poster said in response to sadfutago’s latest video. “I have never been this happy at being potentially bamboozled before.”