I bought Nier Automata this weekend and havn’t started playing it yet. Brad said on the bombast that the side quests were not original in terms of gameplay but had great writing.

Are there any side quests that are comparable to the lighthouse quest in the original? For the folks who played the first game I’m sure you’re aware of the gut punch that quest is and that it was ingeniously written. I won’t spoil anything for people who have not played it, but it’s incredibly sad and touching.

I’d say there are a lot of those type of quests in Automata, certainly a lot more emotional type side content than in the original.

Yeah a large majority of the side quests are like small little stories that you shouldn't miss out on. Significantly less farming for farming sake anyway. Less broken water wheels.

Oh man I forgot about that quest in Nier.

The old man and his dog was always the goto quest like that which I remember from the game.

There's a quest in Automata about a couple on the run that I think tops any other side quest from either game, but I'd also say the gut punch in that quest is the polar opposite to the lighthouse lady one.