A new NieR update may have revealed the release of the next game in the Square Enix series. Recently, Square Enix producer Yosuke Saito pointed out that 2025 is the 15-year anniversary of the series. Once a niche series, NieR Automata has propelled the franchise closer to the mainstream, evident by the fact that it has sold over nine million units. A follow-up was always going to happen, but has yet to happen. It being the 15-year anniversary of the series though means it’s a perfect time to remedy this, and a recent tease from the aforementioned Saito suggests Square Enix agrees.
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“2025 will be a milestone year as it marks the 15th anniversary of the NieR series, so I’d like to do something for it! What should we do… maybe something with the next game, or developments related to that… I’ve been hearing the fans’ expectations. It’s a bit tricky, though,” said the producer. “That said, as I’ll likely be doing less direct work as a producer, I’d appreciate it if you could patiently look forward to what’s coming.”
This is a pretty not-so-subtle tease that a NieR game is going to be announced this year. There’s no suggestion when it will release, but historical context may reveal exactly this. NieR Automata was notably announced in 2015, and then released in 2017. If the next NieR game is announced this year, then a 2027 release seems not just possible, but perhaps likely.
Interestingly, if this is when the next NieR game releases, it will be around the release of the next-gen consoles, which are expected to be in 2028, though a new rumor suggests the next Xbox is actually coming out much sooner than this.
NieR Automata was notably never delayed, which is the only thing that could disrupt this two-year cycle from repeating. Of course, Square Enix could have a different marketing approach to the game that could lead to it handling the reveal and the release of this new NieR game completely different. Considering the success of NieR Automata though there isn’t much reason to expect the approach to change a great deal, unless of course the game is being planned as a next-gen release, which then could throw everything out the window. That would be a lengthy period between reveal and release if this happens though. Alas, all we have right now is speculation.
