Midway in, and Octopath 2 feels prefer it’s surpassing its predecessor

Octopath Traveler, and its follow-up Octopath Traveler 2, each begin off with an attention-grabbing however difficult narrative format: take eight adventurers, inform their origin tales, and weave their fates collectively right into a higher anthology. These eight heroes develop into their very own of their tales after which, as soon as established in their very own proper, be a part of collectively to struggle the final word problem awaiting them. Conceptually, it’s highly effective. In actuality, it may be a fragile dance.

For a full disclosure, I wasn’t too eager on the primary Octopath Traveler. A hovering soundtrack and lovely presentation couldn’t raise the tales excessive sufficient to make me wish to see issues by means of to the finale myself. So I’m unsure what it was that drew me in, nearly last-minute, to Octopath Traveler 2. It might have been lingering good-will from the Stay A Stay remake. Or perhaps it was the concept Purchase and Sq. Enix might take the criticisms of the primary Octopath and craft a greater model of it, the place the eight-legged story wasn’t weighed down by its writing. In the end, I’m glad I did, as a result of Octopath Traveler 2 seems like making good on the blueprint laid out by its predecessor.

Octopath Traveler 2 (PS5[reviewed], PS4, PC, Change)
Developer: Sq. Enix, Purchase Corp.
Writer: Sq. Enix
Launched: February 24, 2023
MSRP: $59.99

From the outset, a lot of Octopath Traveler 2 is similar as the primary. There are eight vacationers, every with their very own backstory and sophistication for fight, in addition to Path Actions. Journey round city, struggle by means of the occasional dungeon and boss struggle, and use Path Actions on NPCs to maneuver the story ahead. The framework may be very acquainted. It’s how Sq. Enix and Purchase constructed up excessive that’s impressing me.

Day and evening

The addition of a day-and-night cycle means everybody has two Path Actions now. Whereas Throne can knock somebody out at evening, she must be somewhat extra well mannered within the daylight and easily choose their pockets. Osvald can scrutinize somebody, playing on an opportunity to uncover their deepest held secrets and techniques, through the day. At evening, he simply mugs them. NPC interactions broadly fall into a number of classes: get info, observe me, get objects, or knockout. (For Hikari, that’s knockout and steal your expertise, a la Rogue.)

The Octopath group has accomplished a very nice job, although, of constructing positive you’re doing a number of various things with the vocabulary set out earlier than you. Some chapters could by no means see you have interaction in fight. Others may need you attempt to resolve a small thriller. And nonetheless, others may simply be wading into gladiatorial bout after bout. I’m scripting this review-in-progress from the midway level, as we acquired code simply forward of launch. However even at roughly 35 or so hours in, I’ve discovered I’m doing one thing somewhat completely different in each chapter, for each character. Tales not often ever really feel too one-note.

It helps that Octopath Traveler 2‘s solid is, on the entire, way more endearing than the primary recreation. Importantly, you don’t must have performed the primary recreation to observe something occurring right here. And that leap permits these tales to, outdoors a number of scant gestures in direction of earlier occasions, inform a narrative that’s in a a lot completely different world state altogether.

Courageous new world

Relatively than simply fantasy fare, Octopath Traveler 2 sees a fantasy world approaching industrialization. Pioneers and retailers enterprise to the silver-mining city of Oresrush, spurred on by whispers of a shifting customary in foreign money. Agnea, the dancer from a small forest city, is caught awestruck when seeing the lights and sounds of the bustling New Delsta. At one level, a shipwright laments how buyers have left her work, proclaiming that steam engines could be the longer term.

This world is an enchanting one, and the characters who provide you with their viewpoints into the world provide you with all kinds of views. Partitio the Service provider struggles with wages and honest earnings, as his want to pay staff an sincere residing results in tensions with the higher-ups who wish to scrape out essentially the most revenue for themselves. Hikari finds himself caught in a battle for the throne, as his nation involves grips with its historical past of conquering and bloodshed.

My private favourite is Temenos, the uncertain Inquisitor for the Church of the Sacred Flame. A string of dangerous luck sees him caught up in a murder-mystery, and so he units to work, investigating his manner by means of the JRPG equal of the film Seven. However what I get pleasure from isn’t simply the detective vibes, however your complete inquisitorial nature of Temenos; his job, as he says, is to doubt. He casts aspersions on the best way church officers wield their energy over the extra naïve.

Many paths, one highway

This curiosity lends itself nicely to Octopath Traveler 2‘s very open method to role-playing. Dotted all through the world are sidequests. They function just like Octopath 1, in that they normally require a little bit of downside fixing and utilizing Path Actions. But within the sequel, I’m discovering them a lot extra rewarding. They provide you simply sufficient threads to allow you to resolve one thing by your self, whereas not being too troublesome to discern.

Furthermore, there are dungeons all around the map. Altars await, providing extra talents to your eight vacationers. Guilds in cities now mete out subclass choices, and subclasses themselves can be found earlier and really feel extra attention-grabbing to dig into. I’ve but to enterprise onto the Crossed Paths, which see two vacationers spend time with one another, a standard request from those that felt Octopath 1‘s occasion felt too distant. However even inside chapters, the occasion will get optionally available moments of banter, harking back to skits from the Tales Of sequence. Some have genuinely made me snicker, or given me pause to consider what’s occurring in the mean time.

All of this builds to a world that feels a lot extra alive in Octopath Traveler 2. There are all the time new sights to see, cities to discover, quests to undertake, and aims to job myself with. I’m positive there’s what some may take into account grinding, nevertheless it’s underneath sufficient layers of attention-grabbing meta-interactions and programs that I’m barely even noticing it.

Take to the sector

Even fight has seen a reasonably noteworthy shift. Positive, all eight characters preserve the identical lessons and normal tendencies from the primary recreation. The Scholar will solid magic, the Warrior wields weapons, and the Cleric heals and casts holy mild magic. However alongside a reasonably numerous set of talents and help expertise that may change how every character approaches a struggle, each traveler has their very own Latent Energy. This Restrict Break-adjacent ability lets a traveler do what they do finest. Castti can freely combine up a large, tide-turning concoction, with out utilizing up substances. HIkari faucets right into a nicely of probably-definitely-corrupting energy to unleash heaps of injury.

Once more, I flip again to Temenos, whose Latent Energy ensures that no matter hits he doles out will break Protect Factors on the enemy. Octopath Traveler 2 nonetheless makes use of the Enhance and Break programs, encouraging you to Break enemies by hitting their weaknesses, opening them up for assaults, and utilizing Enhance factors to both time these breaks or capitalize on them with huge harm. Effectively, subclassing Temenos into Scholar means I may give him the Elemental Barrage potential, which doles out wherever from three to 5 blasts of magic in a single burst, and extra if I increase him. Coupled together with his Latent Energy, he shreds by means of shields in a single flip.

Little tweaks and optimizations like that make the Octopath Traveler 2 fight really feel a lot extra vigorous in its earlier hours than the primary ever managed. Battles can present an honest problem, however a sensible and tactical participant might tackle enemies nicely above their degree in the event that they plan and put together proper. That’s the signal of a fascinating turn-based fight system to me, no less than.

All roads lead residence

As I mentioned earlier than, I’m nonetheless at roughly the midway level. I’ve cleared half of all of the out there character chapters, however nonetheless have a methods to go to see this by means of to its finish, and the way precisely all these vacationers will come collectively. However the place Octopath Traveler 2 is succeeding is making the journey really feel so worthwhile. I feel with Octopath 1, a lot of my focus was on the vacation spot. That’s not likely on my thoughts within the second recreation.

As an alternative, I’m scouring the map for extra alternatives for Partitio to strike a discount. I’m making an attempt to grab all of the guild subclasses and sophistication statues I can find. With every new display screen, I’m filling within the clean outlines on my clean canvas of a map, whereas inviting new risks at each bend. The hovering theme of Octopath Traveler all the time makes me consider grand journey, spanning throughout lands and cities. With Octopath Traveler 2, that world feels vibrant, thrilling, and ripe for exploration.