The NieR: Automata animation finally returned in July this year, exactly one year after its first part, which was plagued by production problems, was completed.

The animated adaptation of the beloved Square Enix game NieR: Automata is finally returning this July with NieR: Automata Ver 1.1a.

Last year, the NieR: Automata anime came out, and the series was obviously highly anticipated by fans of the series, but the series suffered from some serious production issues. The anime began airing in January, but episode 4 was delayed by nearly a month due to COVID-19-related reasons, and then episodes 9-12 were pushed back from March to July, also due to COVID-19. It’s been a rough start for the anime, but this July, the series will return with its second season (well, technically it’s season 2, but it’s being called season 2). The first trailer for NieR: Automata Ver 1.1a was released earlier today, giving you a glimpse at the upcoming new season, and you can check it out below.

The new season also introduces a new opening song, “Black Box” sung by LiSA. LiSA’s song may have appeared in the opening song of the first Demon Slayer, and is also the theme song of the Japanese version of Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse. The song is supposed to start from where the first season ended, which is also where the first ending of the game ends, so those who have only watched the anime and have not actually played the game may find the song a bit repetitive, because of the theme of the game.

We’re still waiting to hear if series creator Taro Yoko will release another NieR game, but series producer Yosuke Saito did reveal that the two of them, along with composer Keiichi Okabe, are working on a game that “may or may not be NieR,” so hopefully we’ll get to see some of that, too. In the meantime, you can always check out 1000xRESIST, a game inspired by NieR: Automata that you definitely shouldn’t miss.