Octopath
Traveler II

Octopath Traveler (2018) and Octopath Traveller II are combat-focused role-playing games where you follow eight characters on their personal quests. Like other role-playing games, you explore the vast open world, interact with citizens and fight enemies as you progress through the story, but here, each of the eight protagonist's intersecting stories are told independently and can be played in any order. It has the feel of eight games in one, until the (optional) ending, where you unite the heroes and defeat the imposing doom. The game also stands out for its unique art style, which blends retro 2D characters and locations and 3D geometry.

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Set in the mystical realm of Orsterra, the main story of the first game follows eight main characters: Ophilia, Cyrus, Tressa, Olberic, Primrose, Alfyn, Therion and H'aanit as they each complete personal quests, be it a new purpose and meaning, revenge, or a search from an ancient tome. After playing through each of the stories, all eight heroes intertwine and they must band together to defeat a fallen god called Galdera, who was locked away in the Gate of Finis by the other twelve gods and stop him from unleashing terror across the world.

You explore the land as you progress through the story, and interact with characters. You choose whether to be a rogue or noble, each path has benefits and drawbacks. Rogue actions, for example, can be used regardless of the level of your character, but can hurt your reputation in a town, and may eventually prevent you from doing anything in that town. Noble actions can only be used if you are of a high enough level and wealthy enough, but never fail. By interacting with characters, you can perform side quests and advance your story more quickly.

The game's combat uses a turn-based system. While it's easy to grasp, to beat harder enemies you'll need to learn their weaknesses and experiment with different attacks. You can also obtain boost points that can stun your enemies and give you an advantage.

Octopath Traveler matches its unusual looks with layered character stories to create a game that touches on a range of themes: loss, purpose, inspiration or rescue. But it's how these stories and themes come together by the end of the game that is most satisfying. Facing the final showdown, with all eight characters fighting side-by-side for the first time is surprisingly emotive and speaks to the importance of other friendships with people different from ourselves.

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Our examiner, Ben Kendall, first checked Octopath Traveler II 3 years ago. It was re-examined by Jo Robertson and updated 9 months ago.