Review in Progress: Octopath Traveler 2 (2024)

Halfway in, andOctopath 2feels like it’s surpassing its predecessor

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Octopath Traveler, and its follow-upOctopath Traveler 2, both start off with an interesting but challenging narrative format: take eight adventurers, tell their origin stories, and weave their fates together into a greater anthology. These eight heroes grow into their own in their stories and then, once established in their own right, join together to fight the ultimate challenge awaiting them. Conceptually, it’s powerful. In reality, it can be a delicate dance.

For a full disclosure, I wasn’t too keen on the firstOctopath Traveler. A soaring soundtrack and gorgeous presentation couldn’t lift the stories high enough to make me want to see things through to the finale myself. So I’m not sure what it was that drew me in, almost last-minute, toOctopath Traveler 2. It could have been lingering good-will from the Live A Live remake. Or maybe it was the idea that Acquire and Square Enix could take the criticisms of the first Octopathand craft a better version of it, where the eight-legged story wasn’t weighed down by its writing. Ultimately, I’m glad I did, becauseOctopath Traveler 2feels like making good on the blueprint laid out by its predecessor.

Octopath Traveler 2 (PS5[reviewed], PS4, PC, Switch)
Developer: Square Enix, Acquire Corp.
Publisher: Square Enix
Released: February 24, 2023
MSRP: $59.99

From the outset, much ofOctopath Traveler 2is the same as the first. There are eight travelers, each with their own backstory and class for combat, as well as Path Actions. Journey around town, fight through the occasional dungeon and boss fight, and use Path Actions on NPCs to move the story forward. The framework is very familiar. It’s how Square Enix and Acquire built up over the top that’s impressing me.

Day and night

The addition of a day-and-night cycle means everyone has two Path Actions now. While Throne can knock someone out at night, she has to be a little more polite in the sunlight and simply pick their pockets. Osvald can scrutinize someone, gambling on a chance to uncover their deepest held secrets, during the day. At night, he just mugs them. NPC interactions broadly fall into a few categories: get information, follow me, get items, or knockout. (For Hikari, that’s knockoutandsteal your skills, a la Rogue.)

TheOctopathteam has done a really great job, though, of making sure you’re doing a lot of different things with the vocabulary set out before you. Some chapters may never see you engage in combat. Others might have you try to solve a small mystery. And still, others might just be wading into gladiatorial bout after bout. I’m writing this review-in-progress from the halfway point, as we got code just ahead of launch. But even at roughly 35 or so hours in, I’ve found I’m doing something a little different in every chapter, for every character. Stories rarely ever feel too one-note.

Review in Progress: Octopath Traveler 2 (1)

It helps thatOctopath Traveler 2‘s cast is, on the whole, much more endearing than the first game. Importantly, you don’t need to have played the first game to follow anything happening here. And that jump allows these tales to, outside a few scant gestures towards previous events, tell a story that’s in a much different world state altogether.

Brave new world

Rather than just fantasy fare,Octopath Traveler 2sees a fantasy world approaching industrialization. Pioneers and merchants venture to the silver-mining town of Oresrush, spurred on by whispers of a shifting standard in currency. Agnea, the dancer from a small forest town, is caught awestruck when seeing the lights and sounds of the bustling New Delsta. At one point, a shipwright laments how investors have left her work, proclaiming that steam engines might be the future.

This world is a fascinating one, and the characters who give you their viewpoints into the world give you a wide variety of views. Partitio the Merchant struggles with wages and fair earnings, as his desire to pay workers an honest living leads to tensions with the higher-ups who want to scrape out the most profit for themselves. Hikari finds himself caught in a struggle for the throne, as his nation comes to grips with its history of conquering and bloodshed.

Review in Progress: Octopath Traveler 2 (2)

My personal favorite is Temenos, the doubtful Inquisitor for the Church of the Sacred Flame. A string of bad luck sees him caught up in a murder-mystery, and so he sets to work, investigating his way through the JRPG equivalent of the movieSeven. But what I enjoy isn’t just the detective vibes, but the entire inquisitorial nature of Temenos; his job, as he says, is to doubt. He casts aspersions on the way church officials wield their power over the more naïve.

Many paths, one road

This curiosity lends itself well toOctopath Traveler 2‘s very open approach to role-playing. Dotted throughout the world are sidequests. They operate similar toOctopath 1, in that they usually require a bit of problem solving and using Path Actions. Yet in the sequel, I’m finding them so much more rewarding. They give you just enough threads to let you solve something by yourself, while not being too difficult to discern.

Review in Progress: Octopath Traveler 2 (3)

Moreover, there are dungeons all over the map. Altars await, offering additional abilities for your eight travelers. Guilds in cities now mete out subclass options, and subclasses themselves are available earlier and feel more interesting to dig into. I’ve yet to venture onto the Crossed Paths, which see two travelers spend time with each other, a common request from those who feltOctopath 1‘s party felt too distant. But even within chapters, the party will get optional moments of banter, reminiscent of skits from theTales Ofseries. Some have genuinely made me laugh, or given me pause to think about what’s happening at the moment.

All of this builds to a world that feels so much more alive inOctopath Traveler 2. There are always new sights to see, towns to explore, quests to undertake, and objectives to task myself with. I’m sure there’s what some might consider grinding, but it’s under enough layers of interesting meta-interactions and systems that I’m barely even noticing it.

Take to the field

Even combat has seen a pretty noteworthy shift. Sure, all eight characters maintain the same classes and general dispositions from the first game. The Scholar will cast magic, the Warrior wields weapons, and the Cleric heals and casts holy light magic. But alongside a fairly diverse set of abilities and support skills that can change how each character approaches a fight, every traveler has their own Latent Power. This Limit Break-adjacent skill lets a traveler do what they do best. Castti can freely mix up a massive, tide-turning concoction, without using up ingredients. HIkari taps into a well of probably-definitely-corrupting power to unleash heaps of damage.

Again, I turn back to Temenos, whose Latent Power ensures that whatever hits he doles out will break Shield Points on the enemy.Octopath Traveler 2still uses the Boost and Break systems, encouraging you to Break enemies by hitting their weaknesses, opening them up for attacks, and using Boost points to either time those breaks or capitalize on them with massive damage. Well, subclassing Temenos into Scholar means I can give him the Elemental Barrage ability, which doles out anywhere from three to five blasts of magic in one burst, and more if I boost him. Coupled with his Latent Power, he shreds through shields in a single turn.

Review in Progress: Octopath Traveler 2 (4)

Little tweaks and optimizations like that make theOctopath Traveler 2combat feel so much more lively in its earlier hours than the first ever managed. Battles can provide a decent challenge, but a smart and tactical player could take on enemies well above their level if they plan and prepare right. That’s the sign of an engaging turn-based combat system to me, at least.

All roads lead home

As I said before, I’m still at roughly the halfway point. I’ve cleared half of all the available character chapters, but still have a ways to go to see this through to its end, and how exactly all these travelers will come together. But whereOctopath Traveler 2is succeeding is making the journey feel so worthwhile. I think withOctopath 1, much of my focus was on the destination. That’s not really on my mind in the second game.

Instead, I’m scouring the map for more opportunities for Partitio to strike a bargain. I’m trying to snatch all the guild subclasses and class statues I can locate. With each new screen, I’m filling in the blank outlines on my blank canvas of a map, while inviting new dangers at every bend. The soaring theme ofOctopath Traveleralways makes me think of grand adventure, spanning across lands and towns. WithOctopath Traveler 2, that world feels vibrant, exciting, and ripe for exploration.

About The Author

Review in Progress: Octopath Traveler 2 (5)

Eric Van Allen

Senior Editor - While Eric's been writing about games since 2014, he's been playing them for a lot longer. Usually found grinding RPG battles, digging into an indie gem, or hanging out around the Limsa Aethryte.

More Stories by Eric Van Allen

Review in Progress: Octopath Traveler 2 (2024)

FAQs

Is Octopath Traveler 2 worth finishing? ›

The sequel improves on everything. One more thing with the original, all stories followed the same structure, there are 4 chapters, you arrive at a town, do a path action, go through a dungeon, fight a boss. This time things are less formulaic and have more variety to them.

Is Octopath Traveler 2 as grindy? ›

The game is not grindy for the main stories. Not really. Fight random battles on your way and you will hit the appropriate level. You can absolutely go out of your way to make it grindy, though.

How many hours to complete Octopath Traveller 2? ›

Every path is yours to take. How long is Octopath Traveler II? When focusing on the main objectives, Octopath Traveler II is about 60 Hours in length. If you're a gamer that strives to see all aspects of the game, you are likely to spend around 93½ Hours to obtain 100% completion.

Did Octopath Traveler 2 sell well? ›

Sales. The Nintendo Switch version of Octopath Traveler II was the second bestselling retail game during its first week of release in Japan, with 53,995 physical copies being sold across the country.

What is the max level in Octopath 2? ›

Like most JRPGs, your party's levels in Octopath Traveler 2 range from 1 to 99.

Should I play Octopath Traveler 8 times? ›

Do I need to play the game 8 times to see everyone's story in its entirety? Just confused as to how the game might work. :) No, you can do everything (get every achievement even, nothing missable) on a single playthrough. Basically you go to various towns to experience chapters in the various characters' stories.

What is the fastest way to grind XP in Octopath 2? ›

The best thing to do to farm EXP is to just fight enemies in the highest level place you have access to and can handle. You can swap in lower leveled characters into your party while one or two of your high-leveled characters carry the weight.

Will I like Octopath Traveler 2 if I didn't like the first one? ›

If you did not like the original Octopath Traveler because of its flat, boring, compartmentalized characters and stories, then you should really give the sequel a chance, because the writers at Square Enix have redeemed themselves in a major way.

Is Octopath Traveler 2 longer than 1? ›

Sony-Owned Company Releasing Game Only on PC and Switch

Compared to games like Chained Echoes, Octopath Traveler 2 engages role-playing fans for much longer. And the game even outranks its prequel, offering 10 hours of additional gameplay.

Does Octopath 2 have an ending? ›

Octopath Traveler 2 does have a true ending, and it requires beating the game's true Final Boss, Vide the Wicked.

Does Octopath 2 have Missables? ›

There are numerous missable, one-time events, and points of no return in Octopath Traveler 2. Read on to see the list of missable, one-time events, learn when the points of no return happen and find out if branching chapters are missable!

Does the main character matter in Octopath Traveler 2? ›

Honestly, just choose the character you're most interested in, the only thing that matters is to remember they are locked into your party until their story is complete. The powerful town characters are Osvald (Scrutinize/Mug), Throne (Steal/Ambush), and Temenos (Guide/Coerce).

Is Octopath 2 better? ›

A series of improvements, including refined storytelling and more complex characters, make Octopath II feel deeper and more exciting, like the fulfillment of what the original game tried to achieve.

Does Octopath Traveler 2 have anything to do with 1? ›

If you're wondering whether you need to have played the original OCTOPATH TRAVELER to enjoy this follow-up, the answer is: no you don't. OCTOPATH TRAVELER II is a completely standalone game - the world is unique, the characters are brand new, and their stories are told entirely within this game.

Should I finish Octopath Traveler 1 before 2? ›

Do You Have to Play Octopath Traveler 1 Before 2? Plot-wise, the two Octopath Traveler games are unrelated. Therefore, you can enjoy either one in any order without missing any crucial story elements. However, the overall gameplay of Octopath Traveler II is improved compared to the first game.

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