I get it, 3D Mario games are not for me. Although F.L.U.D.D. plays fine, the platforming sucks because Mario is slippery and many stages require precise jumping and extra techniques(like backflips and spins) which I find a bother to get the hang on, and the camera also is a drag because it has collision, so if you're near a wall or a wire mesh, you WILL get mad over the camera being in impossible angles to progress properly. Also, this mission-based approach from Mario 64 is so boring it feels like a chore playing. Ultimately, the lava boat level is one of the worst bullshits I've ever seen, specially from a game that's supposed to be very well funded and marketed. If it was the first stage of the game instead of the last I would've dropped it, but alas, I was too far gone already.

The more I played this game, the more I hated it for what it is. It's story, art and music are all that you expect from a Nier game, it's quality is on par with some of the best games offered in the market. However, this comes bundled with a lazy and absolutely shallow gameplay consisted of battles which autoplay and rely only on your setups gained from the gacha and upgrade systems. Apart from that, the game ends in a month from now(April 28th) and this story may be lost forever, which is a sin since this really is Nier 3, it is post-Automata and it summons lore from Drakengard and both previous Nier games, answering some questions and gives a lot more in exchange. It's a bittersweet piece, in the end.