Nier Automata was a great game on console, but the Steam release was poorly optimized for PC. It had a locked frame rate, mushy-feeling mouse and keyboard controls, and awful stuttering that could make high-action scenes nigh unplayable.
Everyone expected Square Enix to release a PC optimization patch a few months later, but then years went by without a word from the publisher. Fans took it upon themselves to fix Nier Automata with various mods that unlocked the game's framerate and ironed out all the graphical issues.
Then a few things happened all this year. Gamepass got a version of Nier Automata that was noticeably better than the Steam version, leading Nier fans to nearly riot. Square Enix then promised back in April that a Steam upgrade was in development while removing the game's Denuvo anti-cheat in June. Nier Replicant, the remade prequel to Automata, got a Steam patch in June that largely fixed many of the same issues that still plagued Automata, leading some fans to wonder just what the hell was going on.
Related: Mod Replaces Engels With Shrek In Nier Automata For The Real Ending [S]
Now, four years later, Square Enix is finally giving Steam owners of Nier Automata the news they’ve been waiting for. A performance patch is coming on July 15.
In addition to fixing several bugs and stabilizing the frame rate to be a smooth 60 fps "under default settings," Thursday's Steam patch will bring several new features to Nier Automata. Borderless video settings, Fidelity FX and HDR support, and 4K UI textures will go a long way to improving the game's visual fidelity, while cutscenes have also been adjusted to play at a smooth 60fps "without stretching the picture."
There's also a new setting to adjust Automata's "global illumination" between high, medium, and low, depending on how dark you like your post-apocalyptic future Earth.
This sounds like the patch that Nier fans have been waiting for, Thursday might be the day y'all finish getting the rest of Automata's endings.
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