NieR: Automata and Stellar Blade are pretty similar looking games and it seems that the story for these titles are inspired by one iconic anime.
Stellar Blade is an upcoming action-adventure game developed by the Korean studio Shift Up and published by Sony. Looking at various trailers and media ahead of the release, there is a clear resemblance to the iconic NieR: Automata.
Stellar Blade is set to come out on April 26, 2024 and ahead of the release, director Kim Hyung-Tae spoke to IGN alongside NieR: Automata director Yoko Taro about their games, as well as what inspired them to make them in the first place.
Neon Genesis Evangelion Helped With Inspiration For Both NieR: Automata And Stellar Blade
The upcoming Stellar Blade doesn't try to hide its anime inspiration, that much is certain. It's also obvious that the creators enjoyed games like NieR: Automata, something that Kim Hyung-Tae has even stated during his interview IGN.
Both directors also revealed that they each took heavy inspiration from the well-known anime Neon Genesis Evangelion. Just looking at footage from either game this really doesn't come as a surprise either. Yoko Taro stated that praise for NieR: Automata is great, but the story is just a re-telling of Evangelion.
The work I was most inspired by is Neon Genesis Evangelion. I thank you for praising NieR: Automata’s story, but actually it’s pretty much just a retelling of Evangelion, so there’s not much originality to it. I don’t really watch recent movies, so I’m mostly inspired by memories of works I saw in the past.
Similarly, Kim also revealed that he felt inspired by the anime, but that he didn't think he could ever surpass the show with his work. He also noted that he isn't able to tell stories like Yoko did with NieR: Automata, due to him being a visualist, and therefore might not be able to infuse the story of Evangelion as well into Stellar Blade.
I was inspired by Evangelion as well. It’s not easy to create something that surpasses your inspiration source. In that regard, NieR:Automata has a unique taste that only you could make. I really envy that. I’m a visualist and not a storyteller. I have always focused on how something looks.
While Evangelion came out in 1999, the story and visuals of the anime still have a hold on current projects, having helped shape an entire genre of games and other pieces of media throughout the 2000s. It's truly become a cult classic that is being used to this day for inspiration.
The iconic mechs, robots and relationships between people are things that are still being used today as ideas for new content. What other new shows or games will be released in the years with hints of Evangelion evident?