Yoko Taro Wants You to Know That He Loves a Hedgehog

One of the major news stories this week was that pre-production was being done on a third NieR entry, and that producer Yosuke Saito said that he “would like to believe” that Yoko Taro will be involved, but said that Taro isn’t a man that is motivated by money. While Taro hasn’t confirmed any involvement on a potential third NieR title (he has in the past said that he would “imagine a NieR: Automata sequel that everyone is thinking about, then make something that is not that.”), he did have an equally important message to share on his Twitter account with fans.

After a fan sent him a photograph of a pet hedgehog posing near copies of NieR and NieR: Automata, Taro responded that “Why you know I LOVE HEDGEHOG!!!!” You can view the adorable photos of the hedgehog, and Taro’s perfectly formatted reply below:

So, at the very least, we now know that Yoko Taro loves that very adorable hedgehog. I think we all do.

For more on the year’s best action game, check out an excerpt of what I had to write in my NieR: Auotmata review:

The amount of emotions that NieR‘s story was able to get out of me is particularly impressive when you consider that the entire cast is comprised of androids and robots. It’s strange to type this, but all of the characters are truly humanized by the time the game’s fifth main ending is seen (there’s 22 in total — although the majority are gag endings that are easily missed). It’s hard to speak about a lot of what this title does really well without spoiling it, but Automata fully embraces that it’s a video game. There are certain gameplay moments (including the incredible end credits) that are absolutely mind-blowing, and this isn’t because of a story twist, but rather due to how the game manages to connect players into the overall experience.

NieR: Automata isn’t without problems, but it’s also a truly groundbreaking game. It won’t push a single genre forward, but it has the potential to change the entire medium. It takes advantage of player interactivity in ways that I’ve never seen before in order to create an incredibly memorable experience that’s a joy from beginning to end. Anyone who’s interested in what gaming can do that books and movies cannot needs to experience Yoko Taro and PlatinumGames’ masterpiece.

NieR: Automata is available now for PlayStation 4 and PC.