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Octopath Traveler [OT] Eight for one, one for eight

Andyliini

Member
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Platform: Nintendo Switch
Release date: July 13 2018 (Worldwide)
Developer: Square-Enix/Acquire
Publisher: Square-Enix (JP), Nintendo (Rest of the World)
Season pass: No
Demo: Yes

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Eight travelers. Eight adventures. Eight roles to play in this new magical adventure from the producers of Bravely Default. Choose your hero and lead him/her on a personal quest around the world while gathering information and meeting new allies to join you. Against you are hordes of monsters, but with your bravery and a new turn-based Boost Battle System. The world, it's rich cast of characters and vicious monsters are all presented in a hand-drawn pixelart style called 2D-HD, bringing you back to the golden age of Role-Playing games. So choose your favorite hero, and step into a brand new adventure full of magic and mystery.


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Olberic Eisenberg
Job: Warrior
Path Action: Challenge - allows Olberic to challenge townspeople to a duel.
Talent: Bolster Defense - allows Olberic to boost while defending to protect against the mighty blows of formidable enemies.

Cyrus Albright
Job: Scholar
Path Action: Scrutinize - allows Cyrus to glean new knowledge from the townspeople.
Talent: Study Foe - allows Cyrus to gain insight into an unfamiliar foe's weaknesses.

Tressa Colozone
Job: Merchant
Path Action: Purchase - allows Tressa to purchase items from townspeople.
Talent: Eye for Money - allows Tressa to collect money left behind by fallen adventurers, merchants, and the like.

Ophilia Clement
Job: Cleric
Path Action: Guide - allows Ophilia to guide townspeople, who will follow wherever she goes.
Talent: Summon - allows Ophilia to summon a townsperson under her guidance to aid in battle.

Primrose Azelhart
Job: Dancer
Path Action: Allure - allows Primrose to allure townspeople into following her.
Talent: Summon - allows Primrose to summon a townsperson she has charmed to aid in battle.

Alfyn Greengrass
Job: Apothecary
Path Action: Inquire - allows Alfyn to learn all sorts of information from people.
Talent: Concoct - allows Alfyn to create potions and substances from various ingredients to aid allies or harm foes in battle.

Therion
Job: Thief
Path Action: Steal - allows Therion to steal the belongings of townspeople.
Talent: Pick Lock - allows Therion to open locked treasure chests he encounters in his travels.

H'aanit
Job: Hunter
Path Action: Provoke - allows H'aanit to use beasts to provoke people into battle.
Talent: Capture - allows H'aanit to capture monsters and beasts in battle and train them to fight by her side.


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Standard
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Special Edition
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Name: Wayfarer's Edition (US), Traveler's Compendium Edition (EU)

Includes:
Game Card in a normal box
Double-sided map
Pop-up Book
Coin Replica
Octopath Traveler Sound Selections CD
Cost: 90€

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Metacritic: 85
Opencritic: 84

IGN: 9,3/10

Octopath Traveler is a JRPG dream come true. Both its battle system and aesthetic pay loving tribute to the Super NES era while moving the formula forward in exciting and novel ways. This isn’t merely a modern retread of past classics, but a phenomenal homage with genuinely fresh ideas in a fantastically charming wrapper of old-school meets new. While the eight different character stories could’ve used a little more connection between them, I’m looking forward to going back to complete them all, explore the many side areas, battle optional bosses, and unlock the final job classes.

Nintendo World Report: 9/10
It’s an elegant game packed with serene melodies, a simple yet deep combat system, and a stunning world to explore. The end result might not be the modern classic so many hoped for, but Octopath Traveler is an excellent RPG that’s only major sin is a loose story structure.

Nintendo Life: 9/10
Octopath Traveler is a special RPG, the kind of game that keeps an eye on the past while walking bravely into the future. Indeed, we’d even go so far as to say this is the best RPG you can find on the Switch to date, all elements of this game link together perfectly to make for a harmonious and immersing experience that you’ll find difficult to put down. We’d recommend Octopath Traveler to both fans and newcomers of RPGs; the game does a fantastic job of straddling that line of accessibility and depth, satisfying both camps with its dizzying amount of content. Classic-inspired gameplay, an orchestrated soundtrack, and a unique approach to storytelling make this a game that you won’t want to miss. This is an absolute must buy.

GameSpot: 8/10
Despite the lackluster stories that pull you through the world, Octopath thrives on its character progression and the temptations of high-level challenges and rewards. The promise of new jobs, exciting boss fights, and powerful gear will inspire you to poke around every corner, and there are no shortage of discoveries to strive for. And all the while, you're treated to one of the most interesting and effective re-imaginings of a retro aesthetic around. Octopath will likely be a divisive game due to its fractured storytelling, but it's one worth playing despite its lesser qualities. Its high points are simply too good to ignore.

Eurogamer
Octopath Traveler is the kind of game that gets hand-waved aside as being for "the old school", but that's to overlook its charismatic innovations in battle and the strange, detached, even austere construction of its narrative. For good and a little for ill, it's a lot more eccentric than it seems. JRPG detractors will bounce off the hoarier elements - changeless villages, that well-thumbed handbook of classes and abilities, those sparsely animated sprites - and so, miss the peculiarities those devices hide. Genre aficionados may take umbrage at being forced by the levelling curve to alternate characters, and never quite seeing those stories entwine as fully as in, say, the Mass Effect games. Give the game time to bed in, however, and you'll find it a bold contribution to a genre that has always been a little too in love with its past and the past in general. There's much here to inspire nostalgia for the classics, but Octopath Traveler is at its best when following its own nose through a history of its own creation.
 

Danjin44

The nicest person on this forum
Great OT, I already pre-ordered special edition and can't wait get my hands on this game.
 

Andyliini

Member
I already got my Traveler's Compendium Edition today. Going to start an adventure soon myself. I'll probably begin as H'aanit. She seems like an interesting character with unique ability.
 
I already got my Traveler's Compendium Edition today. Going to start an adventure soon myself. I'll probably begin as H'aanit. She seems like an interesting character with unique ability.

Colour me jealous. No post until Tuesday here in Northern Ireland :(
 

jshackles

Gentlemen, we can rebuild it. We have the capability to make the world's first enhanced store. Steam will be that store. Better than it was before.
Awesome OT. I've been looking forward to digging into this game for a while. The three hour time limit on the demo feels like it flew by too fast.
 

Shouta

Member
I got my copy yesterday but didn't get a chance to play it yet. Looking forward to digging in tonight.
 

Vawn

Banned
I literally can't believe how good this is so far

I hope it brings a renaissance of higher budget, old-school jrpgs. When I heard about Tokyo RPG factory being formed solely to make old school jrpgs, starting with a game that was meant to be the spiritual successor to Chrono Trigger, I got overly excited.

I Am Setsuna wasn't bad by any means, but it wasn't 90s Squaresoft quality either. I haven't even tried Lost Sphear yet, as it sounds overpriced for what it is.

But, so far, Octopath Traveler feels like the Square JRPG I've been waiting for since the turn of the century. I just hope gamers make room for this type of experience and support these games.
 
I hope it brings a renaissance of higher budget, old-school jrpgs. When I heard about Tokyo RPG factory being formed solely to make old school jrpgs, starting with a game that was meant to be the spiritual successor to Chrono Trigger, I got overly excited.

I Am Setsuna wasn't bad by any means, but it wasn't 90s Squaresoft quality either. I haven't even tried Lost Sphear yet, as it sounds overpriced for what it is.

But, so far, Octopath Traveler feels like the Square JRPG I've been waiting for since the turn of the century. I just hope gamers make room for this type of experience and support these games.
Early signs of sales are very, very promising, so this is good for the future of these games.
 
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Shouta

Member
Put 2 or so hours into the game so far and I really enjoy it. Started with Tressa but switched to Olberic because I was more interested in his path to start out with. The combat is pretty standard so far but it's nice and I like that the game's XP and JP curves aren't crazy, feels like a good climb to get more powerful.

The graphics and music are really nice too.
 
I went as blind as I could, although I had played the original demo they released.

I started with Cyrus, picked up Tressa and and just met Olberic.

Loving the soundtrack. This will be a legit physical purchase.
 

jshackles

Gentlemen, we can rebuild it. We have the capability to make the world's first enhanced store. Steam will be that store. Better than it was before.
I got my copy in and started with my save data from the demo which was a really painless process. I'm at about 8 hours played now, party is level 16-ish. I started with Tressa because I'm a sucker for playing the merchant in RPGs (Torneko Taloon, the best) and I've really enjoyed her story, path actions, and battle skills. Rest is probably my favorite ability in the game.

I got Cyrus next, and I've been loving his "Evasive Maneuvers" passive skill - which I've been toggling on/off depending on whether I'm traveling to a new destination or trying to level up.

The only character I haven't got yet is Olberic, and that's kind of by design since I played through his "initial story" in the first demo and I imagine it probably hasn't changed a whole lot since. I'll still pick him up and do the story, but I've just put it off for last :)

My least favorite character is probably Alfyn (the alchemist). He's pretty weak and doesn't function very well as a stand alone healer. His "mix" ability is interesting and will probably get more useful as things go on but other than that he doesn't seem that useful. I can definitely see cross-classing someone like Cyrus with his abilities down the line though, which is exciting.

All in all, I'm loving this game. Great RPG, good combat (although the boss battles can get lengthy), excellent music and graphics. Highly recommended if you're a fan of the genre.
 

sotojuan

Member
Pretty good so far. I'm just redoing the first demo's stories first because I am boring. I like how they're mixing the stories together.

Game needs an autobattle option though.
 
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JORMBO

Darkness no more
I started as Ophelia and played an hour so far. The music is really good. I am liking the combat system so far too. It should get a lot more interesting as I get more characters.
 
This game is delightful and the pop up book that comes with the special edition speaks to my soul.
Pretty early on but enjoying the crap out of it.
 

sotojuan

Member
Are you people going from character to character, doing their "chapter one" on the way? I've done three so far and while fun, I can see it feeling repetitive. Anyone taking an alternate route?
 

jshackles

Gentlemen, we can rebuild it. We have the capability to make the world's first enhanced store. Steam will be that store. Better than it was before.
Are you people going from character to character, doing their "chapter one" on the way? I've done three so far and while fun, I can see it feeling repetitive. Anyone taking an alternate route?

Nah I'm just doing everyone's chapter 1 for my first playthrough so I can get all the good bits. If you want to skip the intros though, you can replay them later at the inn.
 

Chiggs

Member
Just picked up The Wayfarer's Edition at Best Buy, along with Captain Toad. Trying to figure out which one to start first, but I feel like it's going to be Octopath.
 
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Shouta

Member
Just picked up The Wayfarer's Edition at Best Buy, along with Captain Toad. Trying to figure out which one to start first, but I feel like it's going to be Octopath.

Toad is a really great short-burst play when you need a breather from something else. I'd totally play it when you need a break from Octopath for a bit before jumping in again.
 
I just started playing it about an hour ago, and I already love it. I also really hope that this signals a return to classic, turn-based JRPGs. I've started off with Ophelia - looking forward to progressing.
 

Chiggs

Member
The Wayfarer's Edition is quite nice. The little pop-out panoramas are quite nice and the package feels pretty impressive. Installed the music CD in iTunes but won't listen to avoid any musical spoilers (yes, I just typed that). Going to dive in now.
 

JORMBO

Darkness no more
I played for awhile longer and the game hasn't really grabbed me yet. The characters and story have been pretty boring so far. It's very awkward how they don't interact with one another.
 

Alec

Member
I've got 3 more characters to recruit before I'm done with everyone's 1st chapter. I'm wondering if this is the right way to place, because none of them are coming together in any sort of narrative way yet and it's getting a little tiring. I'll keep going though.
 

Smasher89

Member
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I can see speedruns of this game being both super fast(prob less then 90 min), but also extreemly rng based! (note the normal exp amount is prob like 20-50, and this was without a exp modifier (heard its possible to get a x 100 modifier, haven't seen it though).
 
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Shouta

Member
I've got 3 more characters to recruit before I'm done with everyone's 1st chapter. I'm wondering if this is the right way to place, because none of them are coming together in any sort of narrative way yet and it's getting a little tiring. I'll keep going though.

There seems to be with a few of the other characters that pop in and out of the various chapters but I'm actually skipping the story of everyone but my main characters I've decided on, at least their Chapter 1s. It helps that I can see the intros at the tavern but I figure I could play through the game again and focus on those characters instead, doing the same to the characters I played this time.
 

Velius

Banned
Just curious on everyone's thoughts on this game. We still loving it?

I heard that the spritework has diminished somewhat from the demo. Is that accurate?
 

jshackles

Gentlemen, we can rebuild it. We have the capability to make the world's first enhanced store. Steam will be that store. Better than it was before.
Just curious on everyone's thoughts on this game. We still loving it?

I heard that the spritework has diminished somewhat from the demo. Is that accurate?

I've been having a blast with this game - I've got about 12 hours on my save at this point. I've done every character's "Chapter 1" and just finished my first "Chapter 2" (Primrose). I've unlocked a few of the secondary job classes, and I have a pretty good team put together. I can definitely say that this is one of the better JRPGs I've played in a long time. I imagine I'll bet putting quite a bit of time into this game - so much so that my fears about it not being worth a full-price purchase have already been quelled.

I'm not sure about the spritework - I believe they're the same sprites although they've added some post-processing effects that I understand some people don't entirely agree with. Personally, I find the graphics to be beautiful and the scenes they create with them have at times felt really magical.
 
Just curious on everyone's thoughts on this game. We still loving it?

I heard that the spritework has diminished somewhat from the demo. Is that accurate?

No, it's not. Some people just seem to have an agenda to bash this game. I don't know why.

As for the game itself, the battle system is fun and intuitive and I'm loving the different stories so far.
 

Shouta

Member
I'm enjoying it and there's actual banter between characters in the form of Tales like talking sprites. I was pleasantly surprised at that when I hit my first Chapter 2. Money is hard to get in this game but the overall difficult curve feels pretty good with that in mind.
 

jshackles

Gentlemen, we can rebuild it. We have the capability to make the world's first enhanced store. Steam will be that store. Better than it was before.
I'm enjoying it and there's actual banter between characters in the form of Tales like talking sprites. I was pleasantly surprised at that when I hit my first Chapter 2. Money is hard to get in this game but the overall difficult curve feels pretty good with that in mind.

I will admit to having cheesed Tressa's field ability and how the game calculates enemy encounters on more than one occasion to help outfit my crew. It's still not the absolute best or fastest way to make money I'm sure, but it's reliable.

I agree though, money definitely feels like a rare commodity, and it's nice that the game forces you to make decisions about what equipment to buy - instead of the way most RPGs handle it by giving you enough money to do whatever you please which means get to a new town -> buy all the best stuff they have to offer -> rinse -> repeat
 

Shouta

Member
I will admit to having cheesed Tressa's field ability and how the game calculates enemy encounters on more than one occasion to help outfit my crew. It's still not the absolute best or fastest way to make money I'm sure, but it's reliable.

I agree though, money definitely feels like a rare commodity, and it's nice that the game forces you to make decisions about what equipment to buy - instead of the way most RPGs handle it by giving you enough money to do whatever you please which means get to a new town -> buy all the best stuff they have to offer -> rinse -> repeat

Her field ability gets so little unless you take the risk and go into a tough zone. It's nice though and if you have the items to beat the monsters, it can be a nice little windfall early. I went through a 30~ zone at like 13-14 and made it out because of item damage being fixed. I got a nice 5k in total from Tressa's field ability as I got ran through, lol.

Her battle ability doesn't generate much but it's a nice chunk of change from a boss fight.
 

Bboy AJ

My dog was murdered by a 3.5mm audio port and I will not rest until the standard is dead
This game is amazing and the best JRPG I've played in years. Years. It's beautiful and tells a great story. The stories are simple and not the usual, ridiculous, over the top plots. Perhaps that's why I love it so much. It's just like a good book and not an HBO special. Really fantastic.
 

jshackles

Gentlemen, we can rebuild it. We have the capability to make the world's first enhanced store. Steam will be that store. Better than it was before.
Her field ability gets so little unless you take the risk and go into a tough zone. It's nice though and if you have the items to beat the monsters, it can be a nice little windfall early. I went through a 30~ zone at like 13-14 and made it out because of item damage being fixed. I got a nice 5k in total from Tressa's field ability as I got ran through, lol.

Her battle ability doesn't generate much but it's a nice chunk of change from a boss fight.

The game has a feature ("bug", maybe?) where once you enter a zone you can take a certain number of steps before encountering an enemy. I think it's to prevent the "oh, you just entered this tough zone and immediately ran into a monster in your first steps" but I think it also is there to solve the problem of zoning in sometimes not entirely at the edge of the screen - so you can leave without encountering an enemy. However, these steps still count towards Tressa's ability.

I was in Stillsnow, and exited town to the west. I found out you can walk directly left til you get to the snow man, then walk back to town without triggering an enemy attack, and you'll get about $350 for doing that. They had the Grand Vest there which is almost $9k, so I did that trick for about 30 minutes to get enough to outfit my party. The whole time, I never once encountered an enemy. I tried using Cyrus's Evasive Maneuvers ability to walk farther and get more money, but it looks like the number of steps you can take before an encounter in a new zone is fixed and isn't affected by that.
 

Virex

Banned
I've got 3 more characters to recruit before I'm done with everyone's 1st chapter. I'm wondering if this is the right way to place, because none of them are coming together in any sort of narrative way yet and it's getting a little tiring. I'll keep going though.
They never get together in a narrative way
 

TannerDemoz

Member
Can anyone link to some good combos for Alfyn's potions? Some reviews I've read mention he's a powerhouse (he's my main) but everything I'm concocting deals like 5/6hp damage and only seems good as a way to run down enemies' guard defence.
 

Vawn

Banned
As great as God of War was, this is personally my GOTY. I can't put the game down.
 
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Bboy AJ

My dog was murdered by a 3.5mm audio port and I will not rest until the standard is dead
Can we switch out the initial character after getting all the other characters?
 
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