Nier: Automata’s church mystery solved: modders reveal their work

It is a mystery. Nier: Automata’s hidden church has been solved. Or rather, the people behind it have fessed up to creating the mod that made it possible — and to trolling the community with a monthlong reveal of their work.

Reddit’s sadfutago shared a number of videos about an undiscovered church. They also posted several other videos, including some that were previously unavailable. On Thursday, a new series of images was posted from the church with mysterious messages. These messages eventually led to another Twitch account, which streamed more footage from the church and a boss battle. Viewers were baffled — but some had caught on to what was happening by this point.

After a playthrough, NierAutomata’s church area, the people behind it revealed themselves and the modding work they’d done to make it possible. DevolasRevenge and Woeful_Wolf were three modders who explained their work. Nier: AutomataIt was done in a way no one thought possible and it created something so beautiful that people thought Square Enix or PlatinumGames had made it.

“Everything we have shared has been completely in-game,” the group said, “no editing was used. We have been loving all the discussions and theories — it has been an amazing journey. It has been inspiring to see the community come together after so many years, it has made all the hard work well worth it.”

Modder DevolasRevenge is credited for creating the new map. He thanked the viewers and their fans for being there. “Whether you expected this outcome or not, I hope you enjoyed the impact,” they said. “It was never meant to blow up this big, but just to confuse a few people on Twitter lol.”

A group of modders has apologized to Nier fans for mislead them. The ruse was intended to make Nier followers believe that the church had either been cut content or some previously undiscovered secret. It was not a sprawling alternative reality game (ARG), or merely a marketing stunt. The group also said they “weren’t trying to impersonate Yoko Taro” and further apologized for what they called an “anticlimactic ending.”

Here are the good news: Nier: Automata fans who want to visit the church themselves (and see more Nier mods) is that the team says they’ll be releasing the 3D modeling add-ons for Blender and scripting tools they used to the public. “Keep an eye out for more…” they said.

Nier: AutomataFans who were following the story closely were thrilled and shocked by the news. Many suspected that it was Nier producer Yokotaro and his crew. The church campaign was believed to be a marketing strategy that would pay off in the form of a Drakengard remake or a new Nier title (due some assets taken over from). Drakengard 3In Nier: AutomataYou can also do something more dramatic. They got what they wanted, and the surprise was spectacular.