Excerpts From "a Stroll With Yoshi-p En Route" (出張吉p散歩) From Tgs2020

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First of all "Yoshi-P Sampo" or "A Stroll with Yoshi-P" is an irregular stream (lately has been maybe once a month?) where Yoshi-P joins (actual) players and (usually) does battle contents with his lalafel appropriately named "Yoshi'p Sampo," often referred to as "Yoshi-lala." (Visiting housing is also a focus now.) (Yoshida is often seen playing on BLM, his main class, though at lower levels even he admits its a bit... and gets stale, so sometimes he uses NIN. [An example opener rotation was shown on stream by Yoshi-P on NIN before, so he is at least familiar with the class.]

At TGS2020, Yoshi-P joined users for The Puppets' Bunker raid, joined by Yoko Taro and Yosuke Saito, the producer of NieR:Automata to talk about some behind-the-scenes as they play.

(I know that PLLs are subbed and released later, but I wasn't sure about Yoshi-P Sampo so if it is... sorry. I also intended it to be excerpts but its more like a rough/incomplete transcript... ahaha.)

Before the Yoshi-P Sampo:

• Yoshida says that with the work at home infrastructure now solidified, patches should roll out at our usual intervals plus one week.
• Saito says in his introduction that he's lately trying hard to learn the multiplication table, and he memorized until the middle of the 4's... "1x4 is 4, 2x4 is 8, 3x4 is 12, 4x4 is... 16!!!!!!"
• "Greetings! Living in Tokyo, at 50 years old, CEO of *Bukkuro Co. Ltd., Yoko Taro, nice to meet you! The staff made a sensible decision and made it so I can't view the monitor with comments. So, regardless of many negative comments are made, I won't be seeing them! Too bad! Forgive me!" (*Bukkuro roughly translates something among the lines of "F*ckin' kill.")
• Yoko Taro: "So today with this show about XIV, Saito Yosuke and Yoko Taro, the two of us are here, and so two is added onto the number fourteen..."
  Saito: "SIXTEEN!? SIXTEEEN!? Reaaally?"
  Yoko Taro: "So we are changing the program today to a exclusive special...!"
  Saito: "I heard there's a new trailer."
  Yoshida: "Doesn't exist!"
  Yoko Taro: "And new gameplay!?"
  (Can't talk too much about XVI or the mods might get upset but... Yoshida goes onto say that he wants to focus on development until next year, even though he feels the pissed off heat from Yoko Taro. He also says that since there is no teaser site, they will release that and basic things like characters there, at the end of October. He wants to release a true trailer, instead of say showing WIP renders and the like, as he saw English comments "See you in 2035," and that would worry fans [throwing shade at N****a]. )
  Yoko: "...that we were able to extract a Yoshi-P first comment since the XVI trailer... truly an achievement!"
  Saito: "And we heard you called us because the other planned guests declined!"

Yoshi-P Sampo:

• Yoko Taro: "The way (the wave of players) chase you (his lala) is like chasing a criminal." (Server team cautions every time for Yoshida to not choose the three starting nations to avoid crashes.)
• Saito: (Looking at the amount of players chasing Yoshi-lala) "Was XIV a game like Pikmin?" (Side note, Pikmin is a term used to throw shade at those who don't learn gimmicks but just trail along, in JP.)
• (The password to join the alliance was set to "1416." All: "Such a meaningful number..."
• Yoko Taro in response to Yoshida explaining they're going to skip the cutscenes to avoid spoilers: "You mean there's people who want to watch this but don't want to be spoiled...? That's uh... kind of a pretty kinky thing to do."
• (Yoshida forgets to turn on Japanese IME and can be seen typing in Romaji as it extrudes from the screen hiding chat. = Super trivial but a fun little tidbit for those bilingual.)

Minor spoilers!

Raid start:

• Yoko Taro explains that he didn't give specifics about designing the raid and it was the FFXIV team that brought NieR assets and faithfully recreated it while even expanding on it.
• Saito says that Flight Unit will be released as a plastic model figure that can transform. It took them three years to get to production.
• The FFXIV took care in presenting the Flight Unit's acceleration (speediness). With that in mind, Yoshida jokingly groans about players expecting it as a mount at some point.
• Gimmick difficulty is designed by the FFXIV, Yoko Taro didn't specify much about it. The difficulty during test play was significantly more difficult, floor-tanking common.

813P-operating Aegis Unit:

• Yoko Taro explains why there is no BGM for Boss 1 (and in 5.1) stems from wanting to do something different than the staple. (Yoshida chimes in that BGM is a part of staging so this is an actual design choice.) He also says he specified the exact intervals between each BGMs.
• Supposedly Boss1 is one of the tougher bosses throughout the raids. (Morbol/Malboro comment)
• As a RDM falls off exactly when they were talking about it, Yoshida: "Sorry RDMs, for making you do Displacement on such a small stage."
• Yoko Taro explains that gets comments about how difficult the raid is but reinstates he has nothing to do with the balance and its all on the FFXIV team, so lessen on "teasing" him. He then goes onto say when he test played it himself, he said to the team "Are you insane!?" and they said "Around this difficulty is just right." Yoko goes on, "I kept on looking at the floor. Oh how beautiful the floor is. I was satisfied." Yoshida goes on that they played the much harder test version, and the team adjusted the difficulty seeing Yoko Taro and Saito on the floor. Yoshida later comments that if they had a breeze, they would have shipped it out as is or even made it more difficult.
• They spent about 4 hours at the second Boss during test play. They included XIV players within the company outside of the production team to also test the raid with.
• Yoko comments that he died a lot as he couldn't get used to the unconventional "memorize to evade" portion of the game. He respects the players for continuing to play despite "being slammed down into a messed up hellhole and make them do something about it. It made me think that it was a type of social experiment."
• Yoshida: "Well, they start to get used it over time."
  Yoko Taro: "What kind of human are you trying to birth?"
• The expanding ring is a new gimmick for the game, inspired by Drakengard 3 (as most of us already know).
• 
  The solar panels (bridge to Boss 2) were not fleshed out in the original game, so Yoko Taro saw it and: "Ohh, so that's how its like." The team was given the asset for it, so Yoshida discussed with the level designer on how to incorporate it. They then brought it to Yoko Taro and he was bamboozled and flatly said "This is made very well." and that was it.
  
  Light Artillery Unit:
  
  
• 
  Yoko Taro again praises how good the team is in faithful recreating things from NieR that he doesn't recall once where he questioned the designs they asked for him to check. (The only time he does is when he thinks it might affect continuity in some way.)
  
  
• 
  Yoshida says that in a cross-over, he wants to make that even the non-boss enemies still have some significance. (Later explains the production team calls mobs as "trash.")
  
  
• 
  Yoko Taro comments that the Light Artillery Units do not appear in Automata but was impressed on how it follows the overall style of the game so much that if they had made it before Automata, he would have put them into the game.
  

Superior Flight Units:

• Morbol talks about because this is three parties split but on the same stage, accidents occur. (Face the Maneuver: High-powered Laser towards the outside!!!) Yoshida then talks about feeling it in the air to try hit Yoshida with them... but when it targets him, he barely adjusts it so it graces another party. They contemplated about including it as is with the death count in play test.
• The designs for these Superior Flight Units are also original and Yoko Taro likes them so much that he wants to take screenshots and post it on the official NieR twitter for NieR fans to see.
• Formation: Sharp Turn also was troubling for most, even Yoshida wondering how he died at first.
• When Yoshi-P took a hit from Formation: Air Raid, the chat: "Yoshida?" "Yo-yoshida?" "Yoshida???" "Yoshidaa?" "Relying too much on Aetherial Manipulation / Between the Lines are we?" "Yoshida-san... please." (They say step, which in JP, both abilities end in "-step".) Yoshida then says that warranted that but (jokingly) how XIV players are quite demanding on their producer. He then gets hits by a Formation: Sliding Swipe (almost deliberately). He then jokes about he able to lure others into it too (the Pikmin effect).
• Formation: Sliding Swipe during test play was a instant kill.
• Yoko Taro says it took them 4 hours to clear it. They also asked him to check the background while he played, and he said that there's no way he could have. The only thing I looked at was the UI. Morbol: "Yes, the UI and the designs on the floor..."
• They talk about how alliance A is in trouble, though they find out later that it was Yoshida's party's fault for aiming the laser at them. (Killing 4 DPS and 1 Healer, Tank low, no RDM/SMN lol.)
• Yoshida: "So typical that I get the AoE on me as soon as I drop Ley Lines."
• Yoko Taro wondes if Automata is too easy for those who play it coming from FFXIV, who, in Yoko Taro's mind, "It's not gaming if there is no pain involved."
  Saito: "XIV player should play Nier on Very Hard mode since it's very similar that you die in one hit."
• The slides in the bunker were made by the FFXIV team before Yoko Taro knew. He says its more well made than the original.

905P-operated Heavy Artillery Unit:

• Yoko Taro: "This is one is also well designed."
• When Yoko Taro explainsOperator21O to the uninitiated, basically it takes the events of the original and rubs it into the players again, so many players questioned whether Yoko Taro has a heart of a human (compassion). He then goes on to say that Yoko Taro is the one who specifically asked to add it in, so it's his fault, but again, the difficulty is not him.
• Yoko Taro jokes about not placing laser beams in the command room.
• Yoko Taro comments that the thing in the middle often is spewing out small lines so maybe if fans can look at it later in a video or something out of battle.
• Yoshida remorses that they might have heavily altered it too much. They said it was too difficult in the test version.
• Yoko Taro comments that again seeing players play in a stage that is heavily inspired by his work really makes him speechless.
• About the sound heard after Boss 3 >>> Yoko Taro: "I forgot. Probably something about 9S and wanting a family." Yoshida shares that chat is filled with "lols."

Heavy Artillery Unit (Hallway):

• Yoshida recalls Yoko Taro's initial "Yoko Taro" plan and Yoko Taro explains:
  XIV Team: "We made danmaku / bullet hell."
  Yoko Taro: "This is totally not a maku / hell. Please add more."
  XIV Team: "We can't, due to rendering limits."
  Yoko Taro: "So then make it that if any one of them hits a ball, lets make it so that all 24 instantly die."
  XIV Team: "No, we can't do that."
  Yoko Taro: "That's a shame."
• Yoko Taro then continues to comment that since all the bosses are so messed up, insta-death here is easily bearable for those players. But then Yoshida laughs about Yoko Taro himself dying about ten times to these balls.
  Yoko Taro: "I really think this part should have been harder. Insta-death would have been good." He also comments about this being the first and only time he commented about gameplay.
• Yoko Taro comments on how he may or may not explain how the Bunker became connected to the Alien Ship later on.

The Compound

• Yoko Taro explains that the cocoon-like pods that can be seen from the bridge leading to the final area is full of dead aliens. In Automata, you can see inside the cocoon pods, but because of the design being questionable (lewd) from an old setting he had, and it made it to the game so they had to black (silhouette) it out as a last resort to censor it.
• Yoshida himself wonders how the team was able to create the cutscene before the boss. According to him, there is a hard limit on number of character (models) that can be displayed at once, so the team really worked their magic to make it happen. (Commenting about the last... bit being set to hidden, as an example.)
• One of the players place the markers of "2" and "B" at the purple line next to each other.
• Yoko Taro says this is to contrast the character in Automata had a similar... staging, just this time with the YoRha units.
• They go on talking about there are many ball enemies in XIV. Yoko Taro comments that its very convenient, that they can roll around or shoot out rings. Yoshida says its a thing that they default to when troubled.
• Yoko Taro: "Isn't it a bit boring for the viewers to not see Yoshida die? Should I talk about the impressions I have from the Tenet movie viewing?" Yoshida and Yoko Taro were both invited to the preview and met there by chance. Yoshida watched the movie again and mentions that he really enjoyed that he was able to really grasp the things in the movie.
• As with 905P-operated Heavy Artillery Unit BGM, the BGM here also is praised, and Yoko Taro jokingly comments that he doesn't like it when he can feel that Okabe, their sound guy, makes good music as if hes boasting about it. The comments praise Okabe more and Yoko Taro goes on to say that Okabe has a really rotten personality so they shouldn't praise it. Saito then says that's not true, and asks why would Yoko Taro say it when hes not present, but Yoko Taro continues to say that he says it wherever and whenever.
• Yoko Taro comments that the last boss became this because he made accordingly to the XIV team telling him "it's alliance raid tradition" and thats what the players want. Yoshida chimes in that it looks better when the enemy is big and when so many players swarm around one humanoid, its like bullying. Chat goes "RIP Rhitahtyn." (Rhitahtyn sas Arvina is very popular in JP for reasons I don't know.)
• Yoko Taro was surprised when he said he wanted to include an enemy that coalesces, it was green lit with no problem and so he wonders about the limits in world setting XIV has. Yoshida explains that anything, aside from very core elements, so long as it adds to the game, is possible.
• Yoko Taro questions about the Yokai Watch collab, if there is a lore reason for that. Yoshida says its exists only because he is good friends with Hino. Yoshida explains it was a more Producer move, as he intended it for the parents of Yokai Watch kids, who play XIV, to be able to use that as a segue to talk about each other's games (and show interest). He also says that the designs cost them quite a bit from both companies, as they really wanted to make it original.
• All of the names of moves in XIV are considered canon. Yoko Taro explains that it was taken from stock that their team prepared (for collabs), in order to avoid conflicts/overlaps with other games, and to keep in line with the Automata world.

• The next raid is in the works, no cutscenes yet? Yoko Taro comments that he's going to get scolded again. Yoko Taro was adamant about how one of the cutscenes played out, so the XIV team really worked on making it within their limits. Yoko Taro laughs about how its not the highlight about the production. Yoshida thought that some staff would say "Isn't it too cruel?" but they seemed to be more interested in a different part (so it wasn't an issue). Saito then jokes about "Yes, it's an ending where these characters that everyone worked so hard on are going to disappear. I really do feel bad about it. The character that they worked on for how many thousand hours are going to disappear."
  Yoko Taro: "Along with the memories too."
  Yoshida: "Meanwhile rumors about data centers being blown to smithereens." (Yoko Taro's old comment in 5.1)

Others

• They are impressed with the two housings, especially Yoshida. (I'm sure you can enjoy it without understanding the language so go watch!)
• Yoko Taro comments on how well the Fat Cat is designed, on how the appeal of "cute" characters/mascots depend on their proportional balance so it's very good. Yoko Taro and Saito talk about buying one.
• The stream ends with Yoko Taro saying that his heart hurts on how much backlash there may be, so he wants to say "Sorry!" ahead of time.

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