Games Like NieR Automata

What Made NieR Automata Work

NieR: Automata is a Platinum action game that keeps changing genre — bullet hell, side-scroller, text adventure — and asks you to play it several times because each pass is a different game, not a harder one. Recommending action games alone misses the reason people remember it.

NieR: Automata is a 2017 action RPG developed by PlatinumGames, directed by Yoko Taro and published by Square Enix, first on PS4 and PC, then on Xbox One in 2018 and Switch in 2022. The androids 2B and 9S fight machines on an abandoned Earth, and the story continues across several playthroughs from different characters' views, with 26 lettered endings. Players who loved it usually want one of three things: the Yoko Taro storytelling, the PlatinumGames combat, or a melancholy open world.

Also written as Nier — same game, same list.

9 Games Like NieR Automata

1. Ni

   1.NieR Replicant(2021)

   The predecessor, and the story it tells makes Automata land harder.

   Why it fits: NieR Replicant ver.1.22474487139… is Toylogic's 2021 updated version of the 2010 NieR Replicant by Cavia, supervised by Yoko Taro and published by Square Enix. It is set long before Automata, shares its world and music, and uses repeated playthroughs that reveal more of the story.

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2. Dr

   2.Drakengard 3(2013)

   Same writer, same world, and much stranger.

   Why it fits: Access Games' 2013 PlayStation 3 action game, directed by Yoko Taro and published by Square Enix, is a prequel to the original Drakengard, the series NieR branched from. It has multiple branches and endings and the same bleak, darkly funny writing.

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3. As

   3.Astral Chain(2019)

   Platinum combat with the same anime-sincere tone.

   Why it fits: PlatinumGames' 2019 Switch game, published by Nintendo, was directed by Takahisa Taura, who was lead game designer on NieR: Automata. You control a police officer and a chained creature, the Legion, at the same time, and the combat has the same fast, stylish feel.

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4. Ba

   4.Bayonetta(2009)

   If the combat was the hook and you want it deeper.

   Why it fits: PlatinumGames' 2009 action game, directed by Hideki Kamiya, introduced Witch Time — slowing enemies after a last-second dodge. Automata's dodging and combo systems come from the same studio, and Bayonetta is the deepest version of that combat.

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5. 13

   5.13 Sentinels: Aegis Rim(2019)

   A story told in fragments across many perspectives, and it earns every twist.

   Why it fits: Vanillaware's adventure and real-time strategy game, published by Atlus, came out in Japan in 2019 and worldwide in 2020, and on Switch in 2022. Thirteen teenagers' stories are told out of order and gradually reveal a science-fiction twist, similar to how Automata spreads its story across routes.

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6. St

   6.Stellar Blade(2024)

   The most direct modern successor in look and combat feel.

   Why it fits: Shift Up's action game, published by Sony on PS5 in 2024 and on PC in 2025, follows the soldier Eve fighting creatures on a ruined Earth. It shares Automata's setting and fast, parry-heavy combat, and added a NieR: Automata collaboration as downloadable content.

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7. Un

   7.Undertale(2015)

   For the way it uses repeat playthroughs as part of the storytelling.

   Why it fits: Toby Fox's 2015 role-playing game remembers what you did in earlier playthroughs and changes its characters and endings based on them. It is the most celebrated game besides Automata that makes replaying part of the story.

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8. Gh

   8.Ghost of Tsushima(2020)

   If what you wanted was a beautiful world with excellent combat.

   Why it fits: Sucker Punch Productions' 2020 PlayStation 4 game, followed by a PS5 Director's Cut in 2021 and a PC release in 2024, follows the samurai Jin Sakai during the 1274 Mongol invasion. It is for players who valued Automata's open-world exploration and melee combat over its storytelling tricks.

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9. Sc

   9.Scarlet Nexus(2021)

   Two campaigns that tell one story from opposite sides.

   Why it fits: Bandai Namco's 2021 action RPG on PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S and PC has two campaigns, Yuito's and Kasane's, telling the same story from each side. It combines psychokinetic combat with an anime-style science-fiction plot.

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Where to Start

If the story and the endings were what stayed with you, play NieR Replicant next — it is the earlier chapter of the same world. If it was the combat, go to Astral Chain or Bayonetta. If it was the idea that a second playthrough can change what the game means, Undertale does it with far fewer resources and just as much effect.

How We Picked These Games

Each pick had to share at least one of Automata's identities: Yoko Taro's writing and his use of multiple playthroughs, PlatinumGames-style fast action, or a story told from more than one side. We deliberately mixed genres — an RPG, a strategy-adventure, an indie game — because Automata itself changes genre constantly.

Which One to Play, by What You Liked

If you liked NieR Automata for endings that change what came before, try Undertale, NieR Replicant and 13 Sentinels: Aegis Rim. Games where the second and third runs are the point.

If you liked NieR Automata for Yoko Taro's bleakness, try Drakengard 3. The series NieR branched from, with the same dark humour.

If you liked NieR Automata for the combat, try Bayonetta and Astral Chain. PlatinumGames' deepest systems, and the game Automata's lead designer directed next.

If you liked NieR Automata for 2B on a dead Earth, try Stellar Blade. An android soldier, a ruined planet, and a collaboration DLC with Automata itself.