[anotherman554]

"The philosophical implications of all this is that NieR: Automata's endless cycles of pain, death, and hope are reflections of human life. Your life isn't unique. Billions of humans, just like you, have come before you, lived their lives of happiness, sadness, pain, hope, and death. Again, and again, and again."

I agree partially with you but contrary evidence is that when you replay the game the second time it isn't actually a new cycle, it just shows events from 9s's point of view.

When you play it the third time it's not a new cycle either, just a sequel campaign.

That said, is what you wrote above really a philosophy? Or is it just a theme?

I mean, Blaise Pascal is most famously known for Pascal's Wager, an argument to believe that the Christian God is real.

Pascal the robot is a pacifist who likes children. Is there really a connection there?

[Jochim]

> Is there really a connection there?

The parallel is that Pascal's Wager is an argument from fear. The Pascal in the game introduces his children to the concept of fear in the same way that the real Pascal proposes we should fear the consequences of disbelief in an unknown. Yoko taro then shows us what he believes to be outcome of the philosophy that underpins Pascal's Wager when the children destroy themselves out of fear of events that do not come to pass. They destroy themselves out of that fear of the unknown.