Go to the next town and do the boss there, it's much easier. I accidentally went to the next town before the tower and am really glad I did.  The Nu'un is a much harder boss.

From now on the game isn't exactly linear, and you can skip areas or come back to them later.

Hmm, I never use the Cling Ring when in Soul Form, there are better options.  Once I hit New Game+ I simply relied on my ability to not get touched at all.  I had 9 Vitality and was easily able to survive.  Of course, I don't play as a purely physical character where I can see it might be more useful, but I do melee the bosses.

Oh, and I agree, I'm always in Soul Form.  The ability to remain silent is absolutely imperative.

You couldn't be more wrong with this statement.  Kaine has some excellent character development, in novel form, once you hit New Game+.  She's not just there for fanservice, though admittedly I thought she was at first, too.

Nier is a hard game to review, I think.  Looking at it from a purely objective standpoint, I don't think I could give it as high of a number as it was given here.  But I loved it so much more that if I were to review it, I'd probably review it more positively simply because, despite its flaws, it's an amazing experience.

I'm well aware of that, but there was a Twitter update saying that they were supposed to "push the title for more sales."  It seems to me like they weren't quite happy with how it sold.

I really hope we have a chance of seeing this title here in the west.  According to XSEED, the first only sold 20,000 copies (Source: http://www.siliconera.com/2010/05/25/marvelous-shipped-95000-games-in-north-america/), so hopefully that wasn't drastically below their expectations.

Seconded.  I found the main game to be painfully easy and didn't really need to grind at all.  This could be because I did most of the quests I encountered and because I used what would be considered a "strong" party, but still. . .

Unless of course he's talking about the Post-Game, in which I would absolutely understand.

Here, have a somewhat low quality Youtube version of it. It's heavily cut and you don't hear everything, but it gives you an idea of what it sounds like. It's also fast-forwarded to cut down the video time, so some of the songs are faster than how they "really" sound.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T7xs_jXVM0A

It's not as nice on the ears as the main soundtrack, but it fits the atmosphere.  I'm a fan of the Song of the Ancients/Fate remix (~6:00 on the above movie), personally. I am not sure if you can buy the DLC music anywhere, but if you can, point me to it.  I downloaded a 16 minute mp3 of the DLC music after hearing it while playing the DLC, but I really hate to just "download" and not own it.  The Nier soundtrack is one of the first soundtracks in years that I went out and ordered within the first two hours of playing the game.

The DLC was fun.  I enjoyed it, but I don't think it is probably worth the cost.  The remixed music, however, is excellent and arguably reason enough to buy the DLC. It's 15 levels, most of which are more challenging than what is in the main game.   The graphics and music are distorted and the "story" is somewhat twisted, so it has an interesting atmosphere.

If you like to finish your games 100%, the DLC will make it easier since it makes a few really rare items used in Weapon Upgrades more readily available.

There are also alternate costumes, which are cute.  The magic balls thrown at you from enemies turn into Emil heads whenever you have the costumes on, as well.

I think 5-1 is creepier, but 5-2 is more disturbing. The thought of what you're running through (it's not mud) is rather disgusting.  5-3 is flat out "wrong" in so many ways that I'd actually put it as the highlight of the game for me.

Though I agree, I think what I miss most if not knowing what's coming next.  Part of the fun is discovering the levels, fighting new enemies, the like.  Playing 3-1 for the first time at 3:00AM was extremely nerve wracking, moreso than most "horror" games I've played.

Hmm, I'll elaborate on VII since no one seems to mention it here.

DQIII is the best in the series, in my own humble opinion.  There are also a few references to DQIII in DQVIII, so you may want to try this if you're going to try VIII.

DQIV has focus on multiple characters and has a "POV" section early on that defined it when it was first released.  I found the characters to be likeable, for the most part, but I didn't find the story to be particularly interesting.  There's not really a lot to say about this one, since it doesn't change much up.

DQV is really interesting because it does a lot of things differently.  This is a very popular game as well, usually Japanese gamers put this and III at the top of their "favorite" list.

If you like IX there's a large chance you'll like VII.  The main point in the positive direction of VII is that is revolves around miniature "side-stories", like what IX has.  Except the mini-stories in VII are much better and generally more indepth. For example, one story actually spans over the course of four regions throughout the game over the course of the NPC's lives.
The worst part about VII is that it's just so goddamn huge.  It takes about 2 hours for the game to actually get started - as in fighting your first battle - and it takes about 10-15 hours before you can change classes.  If you don't use a guide, expect a normal playthrough to run a minimum of 60 hours, with no optional content done, many people will say about 80-100 hours. Content-wise, there is about two or three times as much to do in DQVII as there is DQVIII in the main game alone. What DQVII is most well known for is being one of the longest  RPG ever created, storylinewise. Most people give up before they reach the halfway point.

DQVIII is a mixed bag to me, but  I've seen a lot of Western gamers claim it as their favorite.  It reeks of charm from its pours and the game is absolutely beautiful, but until I hit around the halfway point, I just couldn't stand it.  Not only did I find the pacing slow, but I dislike how you develop your party members in battle. There was a certain point that the game grew on me and I started enjoying it more, but in the end I'd call this one "average" in my "DQ-opinion" book.

DQ Monsters I and II are so much better than DQ Monsters: Joker that it's not even funny., if you're going t try this series, definitely get the GBC versions first.

It completely depends on your ranged weapon.  Most of them are Dexterity based.  Sticky Compound Long Bow+5 is typically considered one of the best and that has an S in Dexterity.  You only really need 30 or so in total to use this weapon effectively for all of your standard and New Game+.

Did the Black Phantom Edition really sell out?  I was hoping to double dip and import it.  Looks like I'm a bit late!

Also, ranged attacks break the game.  Now that I've beaten it some 5 times I find the game boring with ranged attacks, but I can absolutely see how they would be useful your first few times through the game.  I try to limit the amount I use them to Crystal lizard/geckos and 3-1.  Some magic, like Poison Cloud and Death Cloud, is really easy to abuse as well.  Any boss you're having problems with can likely be beaten with Poison Cloud (including Maneaters).

And while we're on the topic of New Game+, I'm actually appreciative of the difficulty spike.  It got me used to dying in one hit, so when I - more recently - replayed the game with a new character it was too easy.  The spike is huge, though, and I admit to dying quite a bit.  When I talk about Demon's Souls being hard I'm not talking about the base game, I'm talking about NG+.

It's a word in the Hymnos language.  The hymnos language is the language you see all in the games, as well as the language the Reyvateils sing in.  It means "ending" of "end of the world."  Ar Ciel is the world Ar tonelico takes place in, so the title is actually rather morbid.

I'd highly suggest Atelier Annie, OP.  It's a great portable title with very nice replay value.  Just don't go into it expecting the battle system to be very interesting, as you don't play the game for the battles.  Just be aware that the game is pretty much completely non-linear and you've not given much of a direction right from the get-go.

I'm worried for XSEED, since they're owned by AQ Interactive.  I hope that their Falcom partnership does well or I fear we'll see the end of them.