NieR Replicant's New Mermaid Episode, Explained | Screen Rant
The strangely named NieR Replicant ver.1.22474487139... brings a host of changes to the cult classic RPG, with the most obvious being a massive visual upgrade. Combat has also been enhanced and streamlined to more closely match the gameplay style of NieR Automata.
NieR Replicant isn't quite a remake, but a little more than a remaster. The original game had two different versions in Japa - Replicant and Gestalt - with only the latter released in the West. Gestalt featured an older protagonist who's the father of Yona, while Replicant featured a young protagonist who's Yona's brother. The older NieR, affectionately referred to as "Papa NieR" by fans, will feature in a new piece of content that presents players with 15 different challenge dungeons.
The other main piece of new content in NieR Replicant is called "Episode Mermaid," and features a brand-new area and story. For fans both new and old, here's everything players need to know about NieR Replicant's Episode Mermaid.
Episode Mermaid is easily the most interesting addition to NieR Replicant, as it represents a brand-new location and piece of the game's story. The details provided for Episode Mermaid are sparse, with NieR Replicant's extra content trailer reading "A wrecked ship and a little girl. What you see there is an invincible and mighty shade that could never be killed."
The new area is a massive shipwreck which players will need to explore before facing down the deadly boss. From the brief glimpses in NieR Replicant's trailer, it looks like the ship will include both 3D exploration and the 2D side-scrolling view. The story section shows an older NieR accompanied by both Kaine and Emil, meaning Episode Mermaid likely takes place later in the game. Most likely the episode will be accessed in Part Two, after the five-year time skip that takes place. Sadly, not much else is known about Episode Mermaid, but with how Yoko Taro likes to link all of his projects together the new story may have larger implications for the overall lore of the NieR and Drakengard.
NieR actually does connect to the Drakengard series, which started on the PS2. One of the endings of the original Drakengard transports the protagonist and his dragon to 2003 Tokyo, and the ending events of that game directly set up the beginning of NieR Replicant. It's not the most obvious - or important - connection, but it's there nonetheless. It'll be interesting how Episode Mermaid expands on the overall lore of the series, and how it's different from the original NieR Replicant.
NieR Replicant launches on April 23 for PS4, Xbox One, and PC.