Yoko Tarois a veteran in the game industry. His intricate imagination bears incredible games with unique worlds and characters. Over the course of his career, he has had his hands in the development of many flagship titles both as creator and support. While it is widespread knowledge that Yoko Taro had never originally planned on being a part of video-game development, he joined the faction after working forNamcoand Sony.
He is praised for his unique style of storytelling, which focuses on the darker side of people and why they deem it necessary to cause violence against one another. Taro’s themes are heavy in the games he has worked on, and fans of his work remember him for those narrative elements. His success has been defined recently by his works intheNieRfranchise, which has become a cult classic. Here are some of the best games that Yoko Taro has worked on.
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Updated on June 26, 2025, by C.M Edwards:Yoko Taro continues to be one of the most prominent game directors. His substantial success with the Nier franchise has been earned through hard work and dedication. The expanding story of Nier through several new releases over the past ten years has created a world loved by thousands of fans. Nier now makes its way to the Nintendo Switch with a definitive version titledNier: Automata - The End of YoRHa Edition, which is being released with exclusive content and DLC. Yoko Taro’s legacy has been solidified with each title that he has under his belt, but the eccentric artist surely has more to come.
9NieR Automata
NieR Automatais one of Yoko Taro’s most popular games and is set in a sci-fi world during a war between machines and androids. The story follows several characters, but among them,2b is the main character and the most popular. She is accompanied by a scanner droid named 9S and a rogue prototype named A2, and together they set out on their missions.NieR: Automatais a direct spin-off of Taro’s earlier game,Drakengard, which takes place ten thousand years in the future.
NieR: Automatasaw outstanding success in both East and Western territories. Fans worldwide enjoyed the game for the character of 2B, the intense combat system, and the incredible boss fights that it brought to the table.
8Nier Reincarnation
NieR Reincarnationis an action RPGthat was released on mobile devices. It is a prequel to theNieR: Automataseries. This game follows an entirely new character named Fio, a girl who has lost her memories. The game sees her being stalked by a monster of darkness as she tries to navigate her way through a dangerous dimension called “the cage.”
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Over the course of the game’s story,players will uncover lore-rich realizations about theNieRuniverse. They’ll follow Fio and several other entities that appear throughout the game’s story, learning more about this complex world.
7Nier Replicant
NieR Replicantver.1.22474487139…is a remastered version of the originalNieRthat was released on Playstation 3 and Xbox 360.NieRis a JRPG that takes place in theDrakengarduniverse and serves as the starting point for theNieRseries of games, to which the previous two entries belong.
The story follows a protagonist that sets out to destroy the Shadowlord and end the blight that has been causing chaos in the world. Along the way, players will pick up essential party members as they battle and level up throughout the game’s campaign. WhileNieRspawned its own franchise, it was intentionally meant to be the base forDrakengard 2. However, the game’s story and concept were worked on, and the project evolved into a new IP all of its own.
6Final Fantasy 14: Shadowbringers
FF14has seen monumental success underSquare Enixas one of the most-played MMOs of the current generation. TheFinal Fantasyname itself carries a lot of weight in the gaming world, as the longest-running RPG series to date.FF14has had several expansions over the course of its existence, most recentlyShadowbringers,on which Yoko Taro worked as a scenario writer.
In collaboration with Yoko Taro and the developers ofNieR: Automata, the dark apocalypse scenario is a 24-man raid inFFX14. Shadowbringersintroduces players to characters and monsters from theNieRseries, brought to the world ofFinal Fantasy.
5Drakengard
Drakengardis the defining universe in which theNieRgames universe resides. Yoko Taro created the first game in 2002 for PlayStation 2 and served as creative director and scenario designer. This title is the first game of a series that spawned two sequels, all of which were highly acclaimed by fans of action RPGs.
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Unlike theNieRgames,Drakengardtakes place in a dark medieval fantasy world called Midgar. It has a multi-faceted story that allows for several different endings, depending on the choices players make throughout the game. The main character is prince Caim who joins forces with Angelus, a red dragon, to prevent the world from falling into chaos.
4Time Crisis 2
Time Crisis 2is an FPS light gun arcade game published byNamco, for which Yoko Taro served as the background designer. This game marked Yoko Taro’s second venture in game developmentbefore he ventured out to create his own ideas, including the games mentioned earlier on.
Time Crisis 2focuses on two secret agents that seek to upset terrorist efforts sending players through a succession of guided kill-em-all missions. The game spawned a sequel that was released years later on consoles, but this follow-up did not see as much success.
3Voice of Cards: The Isle Dragon Roars
Voice of Cards: The Isle Dragon Roarsis a drastic change from the normal themes that Yoko Taro is known for.Voice of Cardsis a unique RPG that is outfitted in a Table-top-role-playing game system, where characters, foes, and the world are portrayed as game cards similar to that ofThe Witcher’sGwent.
The story sends players on a mission to slay a dragon of unspeakable power that has been prophesied to bring calamity to the world. The queen of the Isle of Bliss sends out bands of heroes in order to bring the dragon down.Voice of Cardshas a very innovative style of lay that maintains the classic RPG systems while mixing new elements.
2Monster x Dragon
Monster x Dragonis an upcoming collaboration between Square-Enix and Yahoo set to release as a free-to-play browser game that combines trading card game aspects and role-playing game aspects. Players will take control of several monsters as mercenaries going head to head in the game world of Dragonia.
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In a massive war, players must create the strongest team possible while at the same time creating powerful factions with other players to create massive armies.Monster x Dragonis set to release this winter, so players should keep their eyes peeled.
1Drakengard 2
Drakengard2 is a Japanese RPG with hack-and-slash combat released in the early 2000s. As a sequel to the originalDrakengard, it is one of Yoko Taro’s earliest works and shares a universe with theNierfranchise.
Players take control of Manah, who sets out to free the people from the cruel oppression of the Knights of the Seal. The main Knights, Uric, Eris, Gismor, and Calm, are the pillars of the Seal order and possess powerful abilities Mannah must overcome.Drakengard 2has an incredible multi-layered story and has multiple routes to reach several different endings.
