NieR:Automata - YoRHa Boys

The book itself arrived in excellent condition, which was to be expected since I ordered it new. As for the contents, I wasn't expecting anything spectacular, just an expansion on Automata's lore. I got exactly that, so I wasn't disappointed. I quite liked the characters and their dynamics and I found the story a fun read overall. If I were to nitpick, I'd say that the book had some typos that the editors may have missed; nothing major, just some missing words in three places. Otherwise, I thought the translation was good at conveying what was going on and getting the character's individual personalities across. If you really enjoyed NieR:Automata and would welcome some expansion onto the game's lore, then I'd say this is a good read.

This is a novel definitely for the NieR Automata fans. There’s lore which sheds some light on the creation and destruction of the bunker, and stories which involve male YoRHa units and why there’s mostly female units that make up the YoRHa force. As a fan myself, I found this a good read, I’m always happy to know more about the world of NieR Automata, but it was nice to read about male units, I genuinely wish there was more about them. There are some translation errors here and there, but there’s nothing crazy, it’s well written overall and there’s little bits of art for each chapter.

This had a much better translation than the Short Story Long / Long Story Short books (which were still good btw). The story was very good and engaging, and adds some more lore to the Nier:Automata universe. Would recommend!

A third spin-off novel from the excellent Nier: Automata video game, about artificial lifeforms created to fight a proxy war in the far-flung future. This one is a prequel of sorts, adapted from a stage play by the game's quirky creator Yoko Taro. Recomended only if you're a fan of the game and the previous books, as you may feel a bit lost if this is your introduction to the series.

This book is different from the other two spin off novels because the story is original rather than telling the story of Automata from different perspectives. The writing (or perhaps , translation) reads a lot more like an amateur piece. Yorha Boys gives you some context behind the Bunker’s secret and unavoidable fate. I’m not sure why this was included, but it was interesting. Then we’re introduced to squadron M, an experimental male squad. Only two members are adult models and the rest are like 9S, so expect fan service moments galore. Their interactions are cool to follow as they go on various missions, there being one character in particular that I wish we could’ve seen more of his psychopathic tendencies. The book takes a nosedive though once we’re introduced to another group of androids. It really became extremely boring to read, but the ending made up for it. Oh, remember I said fan service galore? Well, being a 9S fan this didn’t bother me that much but there’s a super forced ship at the end. If this isn’t your thing, I’d still recommend this book if you can look past that element. It just really made me wish we got a spin-off game with M squad.