N.E.R.O.: Nothing Ever Remains Obscure Reviews
Nero hopes to tell a touching story, but derivative gameplay, woeful technical issues, and a high price tag get in the way.
Nero is a beautiful contrast between light and dark, love and pain. It's not a fast-paced game, but rather a reflective, insightful, and emotional experience that is a very different kind of game that what we're used to. What starts as nothing more than a simple story of a woman and the man she loves, it quickly transforms itself into a heartfelt and wrenching story of a mother and her husband who go through one of the most wrenching, desperate series of emotions that a human being could experience.
As a visual novel and piece of fiction, NERO is an absolute treasure. As an actual game, though, it is almost a complete disaster, with slow, boring gameplay and technical hiccups abound.
I wanted to like Nero, I really did, but as the credits rolled all I could do was wish I could get my two hours back.
Your mileage may vary depending on how much the story grabs you, but most will find that the asking price here is too high for what you get.
NERO is pretty to look at but is decidedly lacking when it comes to substance or involving players in the intricate story it's trying to tell.
'Nero' may have some rough edges and frame rate problems, but the brief experience offers a genuinely affecting story that lives up to the 'interactive novel' billing.
Even after finishing, it's difficult to pin NERO down to a concept or feeling that's easy to explain. It's a game that prioritizes emotion above all else, and it does so wonderfully. But as the boy at the heart of this tale learns, emotions are tough to understand, and thus NERO is tough to understand. You'll just know that you felt something, and that sensation alone is worth the journey.