Yosuke Saito, producer of the Nier series, has teased the potential reveal of his next project sometime in the year 2024.
Speaking on the occasion of 4gamer’s annual year-end feature that shares comments from celebrities in the game industry, Nier producer Yosuke Saito looked back at 2023 and shared his thoughts on 2024.
In response to a question regarding his message to his fans, Saito stated that he has been working hard, presumably on a new game project. He wondered when he will finally be able to announce something new. The Nier producer asked fans to wait just a little longer, suggesting that his next project is likely to be announced in 2024.
In response to another question regarding the 2023 he found most impressive or was most surprised by, Saito said that there were many great games released in 2023, but he found Pokemon Sleep to be the most innovative, as a game about the act of sleeping as the central theme is very unique. Above all, he said that the sleeping Pokemon are cute. He mentioned that he had gradually become addicted to its game loop.
Whether Saito’s next project is a new entry in the Nier series or a new IP altogether remains to be seen. The mos recent entry in the series, Nier: Automata, is a 2017 action role-playing game developed by PlatinumGames and published by Square Enix. It serves as a sequel to Nier (2010), which is a spin-off and sequel to the Drakengard series. Initially launched for the PlayStation 4 and Windows via Steam, an Xbox One version followed the next year, and a Nintendo Switch release came out in 2022.
The game unfolds in the midst of a proxy war between alien Machines and human androids. It centers on combat androids 2B and 9S, along with rogue prototype A2. The narrative unfolds through multiple playthroughs, each revealing additional story elements. The gameplay melds role-playing aspects with hack-and-slash combat, incorporating elements from various video game genres, including shoot ’em up and text adventure. Production commenced in 2014, with series creator Yoko Taro, producer Yosuke Saito, and lead composer Keiichi Okabe returning to their roles from Nier. Akihiko Yoshida, renowned for his work in the Final Fantasy series, led the character design.
