Nier: Automata and Ghostrunner lead August’s PlayStation Now additions

Another month means a fresh batch of additions to Sony’s PlayStation Now service, with August’s offerings now confirmed to be Nier: Automata, Ghostrunner, and Undertale.

Nier: Automata is probably the biggest eye-catcher, providing another opportunity to experience developer Platinum Games’ celebrated action-RPG. Creator Yoko Taro’s second Nier outing – which follows the dystopian travails of androids 2B and 9S – is as richly atmospheric and dizzyingly inventive as its predecessor, mixing Platinum’s tried-and-tested hack-and-slash action with ample genre-busting surprises as its layers are gradually revealed.

“Those searching for an endlessly imaginative dreamlike journey,” wrote Jeffrey Matulef in his Recommended review, “will find Nier: Automata too mesmerising to look away from.

As for Ghostrunner, it’s an intensely acrobatic solo sci-fi adventure built around exhilarating first-person parkour and blistering sword play as its cyborg ninja protagonist scales the innards of neon-streaked cyberpunk skyscraper. Eurogamer’s Robert Purchase was mightily impressed when it came out last year, awarding it a Recommended badge and calling it a “joy to play”.

Lastly, there’s Toby Foxy’s cult RPG Undertale, which follows the adventures of a child who tumbles into a strange world beneath the Earth’s surface. What follows is a game of big heart and wilful idiosyncrasy that’s earned a legion of fans – and countless memes – over the years.

“Undertale dances happily in the footsteps of Shigesato Itoi’s Mother series,” said Eurogamer’s Martin Robinson when he reviewed the PlayStation Vita version back in 2017, “and like those games before it, it’s a JRPG that’s endlessly playful and inventive.”

All three games are available on PlayStation Now from tomorrow, Wednesday 3rd, August, and only Nier: Automata has a departure date. It’ll be leaving the service on 1st November this year.