It's been 9 years of no word on a new Nier, but Pokemon creator Game Freak's upcoming action RPG might just scratch the itch

At today's Xbox Developer Direct showcase, we got a new look at Beast of Reincarnation, a surreal action RPG in development at Game Freak, who are best known as the primary developer of Pokémon videogames. In addition to revealing more details about Beast of Reincarnation's story and gameplay, Game Freak put a date on the action RPG: it's out this summer.

Beast of Reincarnation was first unveiled last June, and its unique visual identity really speaks to me. The beautiful Japanese countryside, mystical elements, and samurai protagonist (complete with wide-brimmed kasa) remind me of Sucker Punch's Ghost of Tsushima/Yotei, but the postapocalyptic world is also suffused with overgrown, rusted megastructures and gangly automatons that call to mind Square Enix's beloved Nier series. And let me be clear: Nier is beloved to me.

The NieR connection isn't just visual: Beast of Reincarnation is similarly set thousands of years into Earth's future, where humanity is struggling against a plague of evil magical plants, as well as a distinctly Yoko Taro-flavored race of transhumanist robots gone wrong.

"The Golems are beings created when former humans transferred their souls into mechanical bodies in order to survive the harsh world," explained director and writer Kota Furushima. "Their souls have deteriorated, causing them to lose control."

That's basically the plot of 2010's Nier (Gestalt/Replicant), but here it's a side story: Those evil plants, and our protagonist's ability to seal them away, sound like the main focus of the plot. It seems much more open-ended than I expected, featuring not just character action light/heavy combos plus Sekiro parrying, but also stealth, ranged combat with bows and crossbows, as well as an active command system for special abilities that resembles Mass Effect or Final Fantasy 7 Remake.

It's the sort of experimental, PS2-esque Japanese action game that we've been seeing a lot more of in the 2020s after a long dry spell, and I'm very much here for it. You can wishlist Beast of Reincarnation on Steam ahead of its release this summer.