In a previous article, we discussed a new secret in Nier: Automata that has taken the community by storm. Reddit user sadfutago revealed a never before seen region of the map to the wider Nier community and stirred serious discussion. Lance McDonald, one of the most prolific data miners was involved in the hunt. Major publications all wrote multiple articles, updating users daily on the news. Memes were created. Wild conspiracy theories were spouted, from Yoko Taro being the person behind the secret, to never behind seen mod under the veil of everything.
After the previous article went online, sadfutago released a few more videos on Reddit. The video shows a complete trip from the Copied City to the church underground. The following few videos show sadfutago attempting to kill “blobby” after hacking a chest with 9S, before meeting a bird fountain with Japanese questions.
I played as 9s after doing missions to come back open the chest but the black blocky guy is strong I didn”t know he was gonna kill me but I can beat him this time I think you have to fight him far because of the squares. .
byu/sadfutago innier
I think my game has a glitch since I keep going back the beginning I don’t know how to fix it and the cup has random letters or korean. Maybe I need to restart ‘ the game or retry the boss again or maybe I took too long to beat him.
byu/sadfutago innier
The modding community at this stage was already sceptical of the legitimacy of sadfutago’s claim. Subsequently, modder meowsandstuff analysed the video and revealed numerous inconsistencies in the videos.
End of the Unknown
Sadfutago broke character after his last video and posted images of yet another unseen location in Nier: Automata. This time, however, the images were captioned cryptically.
In his profile, sadfutago revealed a Twitch channel and debunked the claim that it is an ARG or official content. You can see the VOD of the livestream below:
The live stream showcases the entire church content from beginning to end, including the transition to the inverted statue scene, as seen in the featured image. It also featured the 3 modders: DevolasRevenge, Woeful_Wolf, and RaiderB. The video finally ended in a compilation of memes and a sincere thanks to the community for the ride along the journey.
With the live stream finally divulging the truth, the crowd reacted in different ways. Those who believe that it was a mod in the first place can only applaud the efforts of the team of three; while others were angry and disappointed, clearly hoping that it was an official reveal of new content or remaster. Regardless, most people agree that the mod and the whole sadfutago persona brought together the Nier community. It brought excitement for a new era of Nier: Automata modding.
Vague Hope
When I was in the Discord, Kae Bee told me, “This whole church was actually kinda meta, even if it wasn’t intended. It worked great with Nier’s theme of solitary.” To which, I also agree. It wasn’t just the emotions that the secret induced, but the way that the secret was gradually revealed speaks very fondly of the Nier franchise. One could say that the entire project is a love letter to the game. Baal, one of Nier’s modders from Discord says, “Our friends here trolled the entire community with state of artwork that 99% of us here thought was impossible.”
Devolas eventually fessed up, admitting that he was the one puppeteering sadfutago all along. According to his statement, the intoner scene (the one in our featured image) was completed in 45 minutes, and some of the scripting work was “done by Raider on a beach with his laptop”. The name sadfutago was a tribute to Popola and Devola, the “woeful twins”.
In a world full of drama, this entire fiasco is a new breath of fresh air. It unites us through our excitement in something so simple: a secret room in a well-beloved game. Somewhere in the future, someone will look fondly back at this memory.
You can find their RaiderB’s scripting code here, and Woeful’s modelling tool here. The modders have also posted an AMA on Reddit, here. If you wish to join the next step on this journey, The Nier Modding Discord server is joinable here.
