Being the sequel to the pioneer of the HD-2D trend and the latest release from Team Asano, Octopath Traveler II is a game that has perfected the visuals, but also the gameplay and narrative structure you usually see with these titles. Furthermore, it was a multiplatform release this time, and despite its status as a sequel, Square Enix wanted this title to be something both fans of the original and new players would enjoy. As this is my first encounter with the Octopath series, this will also be the insight I’ll offer based on my long but very enjoyable experience.
After spending a long time with Baldur’s Gate 3 earlier this year, I wondered what a fusion of a JRPG and a traditional computer RPG would look like. While that description may not be a perfect fit for Octopath, it comes close to that as it’s a game that puts player agency at the forefront. As its name implies, you have eight different paths to choose from, and each choice leads to a different start and initial progress. Moreover, the whole map is available from the start with very few restrictions, leading to a very personalized journey through it.
Freedom of choice also extends to the progression of the story, allowing you to suspend one character's chapter and explore another's at your discretion. Each chapter is bite-sized, no more than a couple of hours long, usually including some early investigation through a new town, leading to a dungeon and then a boss fight. Furthermore, every character has several ways to interact with NPCs, based on attributes such as their level or the amount of money they own, with the time of the day also determining the available actions or the NPCs’ location.
While balancing your party for battles is still an important task, having a wide range of those path actions during exploration, and optimally leveling up the characters, helps immensely during NPC interactions, and often leads to rewards that wouldn’t be available until much later. Side quests often take advantage of this line of thinking as well, having a short puzzle structure, and while you can often brute force them, I enjoyed trying to think which character fits the best for each situation.
As for the plot of the game, the quality of the writing varies, with some of the stories remaining engaging throughout their whole duration and others losing their steam in some chapters. One of the most interesting ones was Throné’s, while I also enjoyed the bigger stakes on some like Temenos’ or Ochette’s, even if they didn’t quite stick their landing. That said, all the small details you find in the dialogues during exploration are the real winners for me, providing a lot of depth to the world and tying seemingly unconnected ends to a greater picture.
Where the game really shines though is the gameplay, and I think this is what helped make this so relaxing to play despite its length. Octopath Traveller II is a traditional turn-based JRPG with random encounters, but from the get-go, there are plenty of features that immensely improve the experience and make everything go by much faster.
Battles include speed-up options, there’s a lot of automation regarding equipment management, and there are plenty of fast travel destinations, minimizing backtracking. The game in general just feels good to play, and even if random encounters get a bit aggravating, they conclude rather fast and they can also be managed with some of the job skills. The job system, allowing each character to receive a second job, allows a lot of room for character customization, both in regards to passive and active skills, while it’s also very easy to learn and convenient to use.
As for the battles themselves, the combat is rather fast-paced with each character having a dedicated role based on their jobs. All the RPG staples are there and during their turn, the characters can choose which weapon to use. The battle loop usually consists of trying to ascertain the enemy's weaknesses and using them to break the shield protecting them, stunning them momentarily in the process and allowing for more damage, and repeat.
Bosses are usually a bit more complex, often having requirements like beating up minions first to be able to destroy their shield, but the process remains the same. Crucial to all of that is the Boost system, very similar to the Brave system from Bravely Default, which allows a character to act multiple times per turn, and it’s the bread and butter of the game. In general, while, for the most part, the game is rather easy, I found some encounters very satisfying and they required a lot of preparation and strategizing.
The visual aspect of Octopath Traveler II is a big part of its identity, and as mentioned at the start, it feels like the most well-realized HD-2D title so far. There’s great diversity in the locations and many city layouts, with several different buildings and structures, while the game takes extra steps with the lighting for the different parts of the day, or for environments with dim light. As the changes from day to night can be instantaneous, this is something that immediately becomes perceivable.
The sprite work is also excellent, with the high point being the boss encounters and their big and detailed sprites. This applies to the story bosses, but also the various hidden bosses you can encounter during free exploration, with every encounter being treated as a special event and always managing to impress.
Last but not least, the music of the title is a surprising standout. Yasunori Nishiki is a veteran composer and I loved his work on games like Yu-gi-oh! Master Duel, and his tracks here follow similar patterns. You have tracks fitting to their location, like the solemn theme of the Japanese-inspired Ku or the upbeat theme of New Delsta, but my personal favorites are the battle themes. Of course, special mention is needed for the final boss and the secret super boss, having some absolutely epic themes, as they deserve.
Overall, Octopath Traveller II is a fascinating and very fun RPG that everyone who enjoys the genre ought to play. It took me around 90 hours to complete, as the game is packed with places to explore, and thanks to a lot of its QoL features and its gameplay, I did so rather comfortably. It’s a great game to play in short sessions as well due to its structure, and there’s a lot of depth to its mechanics, which is required to take advantage of if you want to see everything the title has to offer. Highly recommended!
After spending a long time with Baldur’s Gate 3 earlier this year, I wondered what a fusion of a JRPG and a traditional computer RPG would look like. While that description may not be a perfect fit for Octopath, it comes close to that as it’s a game that puts player agency at the forefront. As its name implies, you have eight different paths to choose from, and each choice leads to a different start and initial progress. Moreover, the whole map is available from the start with very few restrictions, leading to a very personalized journey through it.
Freedom of choice also extends to the progression of the story, allowing you to suspend one character's chapter and explore another's at your discretion. Each chapter is bite-sized, no more than a couple of hours long, usually including some early investigation through a new town, leading to a dungeon and then a boss fight. Furthermore, every character has several ways to interact with NPCs, based on attributes such as their level or the amount of money they own, with the time of the day also determining the available actions or the NPCs’ location.
While balancing your party for battles is still an important task, having a wide range of those path actions during exploration, and optimally leveling up the characters, helps immensely during NPC interactions, and often leads to rewards that wouldn’t be available until much later. Side quests often take advantage of this line of thinking as well, having a short puzzle structure, and while you can often brute force them, I enjoyed trying to think which character fits the best for each situation.
As for the plot of the game, the quality of the writing varies, with some of the stories remaining engaging throughout their whole duration and others losing their steam in some chapters. One of the most interesting ones was Throné’s, while I also enjoyed the bigger stakes on some like Temenos’ or Ochette’s, even if they didn’t quite stick their landing. That said, all the small details you find in the dialogues during exploration are the real winners for me, providing a lot of depth to the world and tying seemingly unconnected ends to a greater picture.
Where the game really shines though is the gameplay, and I think this is what helped make this so relaxing to play despite its length. Octopath Traveller II is a traditional turn-based JRPG with random encounters, but from the get-go, there are plenty of features that immensely improve the experience and make everything go by much faster.
Battles include speed-up options, there’s a lot of automation regarding equipment management, and there are plenty of fast travel destinations, minimizing backtracking. The game in general just feels good to play, and even if random encounters get a bit aggravating, they conclude rather fast and they can also be managed with some of the job skills. The job system, allowing each character to receive a second job, allows a lot of room for character customization, both in regards to passive and active skills, while it’s also very easy to learn and convenient to use.
As for the battles themselves, the combat is rather fast-paced with each character having a dedicated role based on their jobs. All the RPG staples are there and during their turn, the characters can choose which weapon to use. The battle loop usually consists of trying to ascertain the enemy's weaknesses and using them to break the shield protecting them, stunning them momentarily in the process and allowing for more damage, and repeat.
Bosses are usually a bit more complex, often having requirements like beating up minions first to be able to destroy their shield, but the process remains the same. Crucial to all of that is the Boost system, very similar to the Brave system from Bravely Default, which allows a character to act multiple times per turn, and it’s the bread and butter of the game. In general, while, for the most part, the game is rather easy, I found some encounters very satisfying and they required a lot of preparation and strategizing.
The visual aspect of Octopath Traveler II is a big part of its identity, and as mentioned at the start, it feels like the most well-realized HD-2D title so far. There’s great diversity in the locations and many city layouts, with several different buildings and structures, while the game takes extra steps with the lighting for the different parts of the day, or for environments with dim light. As the changes from day to night can be instantaneous, this is something that immediately becomes perceivable.
The sprite work is also excellent, with the high point being the boss encounters and their big and detailed sprites. This applies to the story bosses, but also the various hidden bosses you can encounter during free exploration, with every encounter being treated as a special event and always managing to impress.
Last but not least, the music of the title is a surprising standout. Yasunori Nishiki is a veteran composer and I loved his work on games like Yu-gi-oh! Master Duel, and his tracks here follow similar patterns. You have tracks fitting to their location, like the solemn theme of the Japanese-inspired Ku or the upbeat theme of New Delsta, but my personal favorites are the battle themes. Of course, special mention is needed for the final boss and the secret super boss, having some absolutely epic themes, as they deserve.
Overall, Octopath Traveller II is a fascinating and very fun RPG that everyone who enjoys the genre ought to play. It took me around 90 hours to complete, as the game is packed with places to explore, and thanks to a lot of its QoL features and its gameplay, I did so rather comfortably. It’s a great game to play in short sessions as well due to its structure, and there’s a lot of depth to its mechanics, which is required to take advantage of if you want to see everything the title has to offer. Highly recommended!