Running Errands in Nier

I bought this game because of the music. Looking back, I probably should've bought the soundtrack.

I just completed a quest called "shopping list". It was, literally, a few items you collect for a complete stranger, and nothing else.

Here's some unsettling context: The main character who's running this meaningless errand has a daughter dying from a goofy fantasy disease, and he's the only one who can save her.


I know that it's a long-standing tradition for RPGs to dole out menial tasks to their players, but when you hinge your plot on something as immediate and dramatic as a dying child, maybe 100+ fetch quests isn't the best complement to your game's core plot.
Even the supporting characters know better. After I accepted the so-called quest my travelling companion was, like, "What the fuck are you doing, man? Where are your priorities?"
Plot and gameplay do not exist separate from one another, and Nier is a perfect example of how these two elements can clash. Just because most RPGs have lots of side-quests doesn't mean that every RPG should have lots of side-quests.



Also, what's up with the main character? The guy looks like one of those classic sixteen-year-old save-the-world RPG heroes, only it's thirty years later and the fucker is still wearing the exact same outfit with the exact same hairstyle.