![Japanese Developers Speak Out Against NieR Re[in]carnation Revival](https://media.ixbt.site/768x768/smart/ixbt-data/1174032/image.jpg)
"Making a game technically functional and making it engaging are different things."
A large-scale discussion about game preservation and copyright infringement has erupted around the fan "revival" of NieR Re[in]carnation.
Last week, an X user with the nickname Altret announced the creation of an unofficial offline version of the project — using private servers. This made it possible to partially bring back to life the game, which was closed in April 2024. However, the initiative was implemented without the permission of Square Enix, which immediately caused controversy in the community.
Some fans supported the project, pointing to the lack of legal ways to complete the game, the plot of which plays an important role in the overall NieR/Drakengard universe. At the same time, many users, especially in Japan, strongly condemned the initiative, calling it a violation of copyright and disrespect for developers.
![NieR Re[in]carnation](https://media.ixbt.site/fit-in/1460x821/ixbt-data/universal_publication/410383/nierreincarnation-1jpg-69e26f0dc3b15.webp)
Against the backdrop of the dispute, professional developers joined the discussion, explaining why creating an official offline version is not an easy task. Japanese programmer and producer Itchie, who previously worked at Square and SNK, noted that the key systems of online games — progress, inventory, enemy behavior, and reward calculation — are usually tied to the server infrastructure. Transferring these mechanisms to local operation requires solving many problems: from hacking saves to synchronization errors and data loss.
In addition, games originally designed for multiplayer require serious rework when switching to offline: the balance of difficulty, the pace of rewards, the event system, and even the AI of opponents must be adapted for single-player mode. According to Itchie, such a "remodeling" is closer to a complete reconstruction of the project than to a regular modification.
Making a game technically functional and making it engaging are different things. There is a risk that it will become playable, but uninteresting.
Another Japanese programmer, known as Kei, confirmed this from personal experience. According to him, when trying to transfer the game offline before the servers were shut down, it turned out that the labor costs were comparable to developing a new game from scratch — and may even exceed it.
At the same time, developing an online game with the future offline mode in mind is possible, but it greatly limits design decisions at all stages of production.
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