Nier: Automata sales hit 1.5m units

Square Enix and PlatinumGames’ Nier: Automata has now shipped over 1.5m units worldwide on PS4 and PC, the publisher has confirmed.

Announced via Twitter this morning, the figure includes both physical and digital sales of the game, marking another 500,000 copies sold over the last two months since Square Enix’s previous announcement of one million unit sales at the end of March. That, too, included physical and retail figures.

After the poor sales of its 2010 predecessor, it’s clear Nier:Automata’s been a hit with gamers the world over. However, if Famitsu’s figures are anything to go by, it would seem that a large part of those sales have been from outside of Japan, which is surprising given how popular the first game (and its related Drakenguard titles) are in its home territory. As of May 21st, for instance, Famitsu’s figures state Nier: Automata has sold 292,581 copies on PS4 in Japan since its release on February 23rd, which leaves rather a lot of units being bought elsewhere.

That may have been part of the plan all along, though, as when MCV spoke to Square Enix’s senior product manager Chris Arnold ahead of the game’s release, he said that the blending of Automata’s western-style action and Japanese role-playing elements was designed to make it as appealing and as approachable as possible for newcomers to the series. Indeed, Nier: Automata entered the UK charts at No.6 when it launched at the beginning of March.

"Nier was a cult favourite that over time developed a strong following through great word of mouth," he said. "Whilst Nier: Automata will appeal to that same audience, the extra considerations that have been made to make the game as accessible as possible will hopefully extend its audience outside of this.”

PlayStation®4／Steam向けアクションRPG『NieR:Automata』世界累計出荷・ダウンロード販売本数が150万本を突破いたしました。発売後もサポートいただき、誠にありがとうございます。 #NieR #ニーア pic.twitter.com/IcSRDctAAG

— NieR公式PRアカウント (@NieR_JPN) May 30, 2017