I wouldn’t fault you for being skeptical if a good friend instructed you about probably the most wonderful role-playing sport, and one of many first issues stated was, “It’s a port of a reasonably profitable cellular gacha sport, however belief me! It’s actually nice!” However right here I’m, your good friend, telling you that Octopath Traveler 0 isn’t merely okay, it’s genuinely nice. It takes a narrative beforehand locked on cellphones and expands it right into a masterfully crafted expertise of earnestly instructed journey that isn’t merely “good for an RPG” however nice by any customary of the phrase. That is one of the best the sequence has ever been.
Octopath Traveler 0 is the platonic superb of a role-playing sport. Beginning with a doomed hometown and a quest for vengeance towards colourful villains, it builds to the genre-expected epic battles and world-shattering plots. You’ll leap from story arc to story arc, exploring dungeons and dealing with off towards bosses in turned-based battles; you’ll pause between these huge story moments for some comfy town-building and brisk aspect quests.
This isn’t a sport that reinvents the wheel and but I can’t suggest it sufficient. Utilizing solely this easy framework, Octopath Traveler 0 persistently impresses. It stands aspect by aspect with all-time classics and someway manages to do that despite a very odd improvement course of.
I’ve performed a lot of this sport already and knew this story earlier than downloading it as a result of it began as a cellular gacha sport known as Octopath Traveler: Champions of the Continent. Launched in 2020, Champions of the Continent was a really strong RPG prequel to Octopath Traveler that supplemented improvement prices, as many cellular video games do, with microtransactions and a gacha “pull” mechanic the place gamers may spend in-game currencies on a random smattering of heroes. This was significantly unusual as a result of it was a solo sport with no actual multiplayer part. However the greater oddity wasn’t the tacked-on cash mechanics however the truth that Champions of the Continent was truthfully a great RPG.
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Again-of-the-box quote:
“Marvelous!”
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Sort of sport:
A Goddamn Position-Enjoying Sport
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Favored
Traditional tales instructed with clear ardour, crunchy fight and enjoyable staff constructing, a few of the finest music in all of gaming
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Disliked
Some get together members do not actually get an opportunity to shine, town-building is charming however considerably restricted, there’s some stuff from the cellular sport I actually want was right here.
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Developer
Sq. Enix
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Platforms:
PS5, PS4, Xbox Sequence X/S, Change 2, Change, PC
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Launch date:
December 4, 2025
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Performed
Remaining save file time was 88 hours and 50 minutes. Nonetheless trying to find some last secrets and techniques
That story, targeted on the trials of a “Chosen One” dealing with off towards villains sporting a wide range of magical rings, fleshed out the franchise’s considerably underwritten setting of Orsterra and featured persistently compelling story arcs. The pixel artwork was nice even on cellular, and it had all of the manufacturing worth of a full-priced sport. Which raised a query: why the hell was this a gacha sport locked away on telephones? It was merely method too good to be a cellular sport.
Half a decade from the preliminary launch, Sq. Enix appears to have reached an analogous conclusion, releasing Octopath Traveler 0 as an up to date port for consoles and PC that tremendously rebalances fight encounters and provides a recent, new framing system to the expertise.
On this model of the sport, as a substitute of commanding gacha-pull heroes, gamers create their very own character. This adventurer lives within the small hamlet of Wishvale, which is affluent and protected till a triumvirate of ring-bearing villains plots to burn down the village in quest of one more power-granting ring. A basic setup if ever there was.
This model of the sport, which removes the entire cellular model’s paid mechanics, seems to be the sharpest and most compelling Octopath Traveler to this point. Filled with a few of the best boss encounters and sweeping storytelling within the franchise, Octopath Traveler 0 stands up in an oddly sharp rebuke to its progenitor title and solutions the query “Did we actually want these microtransactions?” with a convincing “no.”
My Remaining Fantasy
I can’t say it emphatically sufficient: I really like this sport, I feel it’s phenomenal. But if I’m compelled to “ponder the orb” right here, I discover myself trapped in a deadly loop. Octopath Traveler 0 can’t exist with out the cellular gacha sport coming earlier than it, and but the sheer craftsmanship on show, the frankly astounding expertise packed into each pixel and every story second, additionally screams out to inform me what I already know: So lots of the video games that we’re enjoying at this time that attempt to sneak in methods to slowly bleed us of our money, may merely be regular video video games. We don’t want that gacha shit! You possibly can tear it out and nonetheless have top-of-the-line role-playing video games of the last decade.
As a result of pricey God, what a online game that is. What a beautiful little factor!
As you may anticipate, fight is the central focus, and Octopath Traveler 0 makes just a few changes to the sequence’ battle system that assist it stand out. The obvious is the rise from an lively get together of 4 characters to a complete of eight. This may look like a beefy get together measurement, however there are some advantages available.
Shifting away from a deal with character customization (get together members solely ever have one job as a substitute of a mix of two) provides your fighters distinct roles in fight, whereas the big roster of characters means you’ll spend a lot of the sport adjusting get together compositions to cowl potential weaknesses. In battle, 4 “lively” characters stand on the entrance and may be swapped out with their accomplice within the again. Battles are a fast-paced affair the place you continually shift out characters to hit enemy weaknesses or else pull in your healers or buffers to bolster your powerhouses. There’s little or no downtime in the midst of a battle, and intelligent groups can cowl all of your fight wants.
That is draped on high of the same old programs which have come to outline an Octopath sport. Enemies have a wide range of weaknesses, and hitting them with the right weapons or parts chips away their defend till they’re surprised for a number of rounds of high-damaging hits. Characters achieve Enhance Factors each flip that may be spent to extend their harm, turbocharge their therapeutic spells, or do issues resembling prolong the period of debuffs they toss on targets. The perfect boss battle finds a stability between spending simply sufficient of those factors to hurry up harm to the enemy’s defend whereas conserving sufficient in reserve to dump into your assaults when the enemy is surprised. Should you’re good, most fights within the sport may be cleared in two breaks of your opponent’s defend.
Managing character well being, swapping out your vacationers, and determining precisely what harm breaks an enemy’s guard provides the primary half of a battle a playful tone. You’re poking and prodding and puzzling a path to victory till all of the sudden all of it turns into clear and the celebrities align for a robust spherical of dominating selections. None of that is significantly advanced. There are not any timing buttons to parry assaults or pseudo-action programs augmenting the expertise.
This RPG motion is supplemented by extra informal intermissions the place the purpose is to discover the world, meet townspeople, and plan out the newly revived Wishvale. Your hometown, misplaced within the opening hours like many RPG beginning villages earlier than it, lingers closely within the hearts and imaginations of many characters all through the sport. Whereas most of Octopath Traveler 0 is targeted on dungeoneering and fight, a large chunk can be targeted on rebuilding your house and wandering the world to search out residents that you would be able to invite to populate the village.
Within the prior Octopath video games, your get together members would have varied “path actions” that allowed them to work together with townsfolk in numerous methods. As an example, Therion the thief may steal gadgets from individuals, whereas Olberic the wandering knight may problem sure characters to duels. This was a great way of having access to particular gear with out merely spending cash in a store. Sure characters may even be recruited to affix you as summonable assist in battle. Octopath Traveler 0 retains this however ties path actions to one among three disciplines—Wealth, Fame, or Energy—and permits your created hero to do all of them. Relying on what number of factors you’ve within the corresponding self-discipline, your possibilities of success will improve. Achieve sufficient fame, and recruiting somebody turns into simpler. With sufficient wealth, you’ll haggle higher
There’s nothing stopping gamers from trying to carry out these actions anyway, which is a part of the attraction of exploring any Octopath sport. Discover somebody with an extremely good sword that you just solely have a 3 p.c likelihood of stealing? You possibly can nonetheless strive it. Hell, in case you’re cussed, you may even save-scum till you get it. Consequently, though a lot of the narrative is targeted and guided, you continue to have loads of incentive to discover past the bounds of the present second, urgent via high-level areas till you arrive at a city the place you may discover some retired hero with simply the proper loot. It’s yours in case you defeat them in a duel. Does it matter in case you’re fifteen ranges decrease? Perhaps in case you’re good, you may set your self up for a very long time.
This aimlessness is a key part of the Octopath expertise that you would be able to entry everytime you want a break. Inquiring in regards to the individuals in a city may reveal humorous tales. You may discover a gardener with a crush on an area noble and even somebody who as soon as had a celebration of seven companions like your self. There’s a whole aspect of those video games that’s about these unusual bits of character fluff and the enjoyment of breaking the sport by stealing the proper dagger far ahead of supposed. It’s straightforward to get misplaced within the pleasure of wandering.
I’m A Wanderer, I Roam Round
In Octopath Traveler 0, right here’s much more cause to wander away and discover cities. Snooping round will result in recruitable townspeople that you would be able to invite again to Wishvale, and most characters have particular advantages that they create to your city. Somebody could be higher at working the farm, whereas recruiting one other to work your common retailer may decrease costs on therapeutic gadgets. The town-building in Octopath Traveler 0 isn’t too sophisticated however there’s loads of pleasure in arranging homes and retailers earlier than discovering simply the proper individuals to deal with every new facility is loads of enjoyable.
Wishvale is the place the sport’s coronary heart resides. Your character, together with a core group of mates, takes tragedy and from these ashes builds one thing higher. The method of coming back from a narrative chapter to spend a recent hour or two on Wishvale’s improvement provides Octopath Traveler 0 a surprisingly comfy temper. It’s not Stardew Valley, nevertheless it’s nonetheless a welcome reprieve from the excessive story stakes. As villains loom on the horizon and the trail of heroism appears steeped in blood and ache, there’s at all times a house to return to and great individuals to fulfill.
That’s the whole “deal” right here. This isn’t a sophisticated sport by way of themes, however within the face of horrible darkish forces and harsh tyrants, Octopath Traveler 0 in the end concludes that even the worst instances are momentary. Even probably the most evil of kings may be deposed. All it takes to result in radical and spectacular change is sufficient like-minded individuals. Whether or not that’s the solid of characters you invite again to Wishvale or the colourful adventurers that be part of your precise get together.
The Energy Of Friendship
When individuals speak about Octopath Traveler, the chorus appears to be “It appears cool, however why aren’t these characters speaking to one another?” and it’s in these moments the place I each agree with the criticism and recall the sequence’ inspiration. Structured like 1994’s RPG powerhouse Reside a Reside, the mainline Octopath video games have tried to stability eight separate character tales that gamers can interact with in any order whereas nonetheless weaving a bigger story that satisfies fashionable audiences. It’s been a troublesome act. Reside a Reside managed it by having a variety of genres represented in its tales; one chapter was a western, whereas one other may have been a riff on 2001: A House Odyssey. Each chapter was wildly completely different.
The Octopath video games, missing this sort of selection, have tried some ways to fulfill gamers. The primary sport tried to weave a delicate connection between plotlines, however a scarcity of character interplay held it again and made most tales really feel contained in their very own small bubbles. The sequel adjusted by implementing chapters the place the primary characters would staff up for miniature adventures collectively as they unravelled the bigger plot. It largely labored out, however nonetheless didn’t seize audiences in search of conventional RPG get together banter—even when the dialogue writing was nice.
Octopath Traveler 0 tries one thing a bit completely different, and I feel it’s the sequence’s most profitable story construction but. Every chapter focuses on coping with a special villain, pairing the participant with a charismatic ally and aspect friends as they unravel the thriller of one of many divine rings. Many of those tales appear self-contained style romps—one is a mafia journey akin to Jojo’s Weird Journey Golden Wind, one other huge midgame stretch turns the sport right into a Fireplace Emblem story of warring nations. By the tip of the sport, a core get together of eight “foremost” characters could have emerged to face the ultimate risk.
Supplementing this are a dabbling of recruitable side-characters to fill out get together slots. Just a few of those characters have recruitment quests, whereas many extra merely leap to affix your journey with little prompting. These characters aren’t actually current within the plot however quite rounded out via the non-compulsory “get together chats” that add recent methods to banter if you return to Wishvale. In one of the best moments, these scenes will pop up in dungeons or throughout overworld journey to present characters an opportunity to chime in on happenings. That is significantly well-used within the last dungeon, which is filled with get together discussions in regards to the journeys they’d and the unusual sights they confronted.
Whereas enjoying Octopath Traveler 0, one phrase repeatedly rings out: charming. There’s not a single cliche or trope that this sport doesn’t use— and generally it makes use of them a number of instances throughout the course of a single scene. It is a sport written by and for individuals entranced by melodrama, completed with a deep and earnest love for storytelling that enables these archetypal moments to land. A touring companion reveals themself to be a royal in disguise, or somebody leaps into the center of a climactic battle to inform the villain that they underestimated the ability of friendship, and I’m nonetheless hooked. It at all times leaves a smile on my face.
When Phrases Go away Off, Music Begins
The glue holding all of this collectively is the music. Composer Yasunori Nishiki leaps from model to model with an nearly insulting ease. A narrative arc diving into felony syndicates and vengeful anarchists turns into outlined not solely by the blood being spilt however by the brassing saxophone wailing that accompanies it. As soon as the sport’s last villain reveals himself, his highly effective marching leitmotif begins to suffocate, his evil seeping subtly into dungeon areas and story scenes earlier than exploding into what could be probably the most astounding suite of ultimate battle music I’ve ever skilled.
All of this music, all of this outstanding magnificence, was beforehand locked away on cellular gadgets. It’s a tremendous aid that this music has now been preserved in a extra accessible sport. No different fashionable RPGs, not even titans like Metaphor: ReFantazio or Clair Obscur: Expedition 33, are working fairly on this degree musically. We must be speaking about Nishiki in the identical breath as different pioneers of the style like Yoko Shimomura or Yasunori Mitsuda.
Octopath Traveler 0 (and actually all turn-based RPGs) capabilities like a stage musical. Gamers transfer via a wide range of plots—political dramas, operatic tales about demons, and far more—and wait with anticipation for the second the place two characters attain an deadlock, or somebody needs one thing with such deep ardour that mere phrases aren’t sufficient. On the stage, this might be the moments the place characters burst into music. Right here, we’re thrust into lavish battle sequences which might be equally as musical.
I do know that the builders perceive this as a result of a key second in Octopath Traveler 2 turned a singing competitors right into a turn-based battle. The sport transforms right into a flat, proscenium view the place heroes stand on one aspect and villains line up on the opposite, hurling phrases and particular assaults at one another. At key moments, an ally may leap in to present you miraculous buffs. Beneath this, there’s music.
On The Chopping Room Ground
As a result of that is an adaptation of a long-running reside service sport, there’s a wealth of content material that might have been carried over. Lots of of recruitable characters, particular occasion quests, aspect tales, problem fights and extra have been added to Champions of the Continent during the last half-decade. Octopath Traveler 0 is within the unusual place of getting to prune all of that right into a tighter package deal.
As a partial remake of Champions of the Continent, this sport often makes some odd selections about what to protect and what to transform. Some adjustments are fairly good. Reworked issue and dungeons streamline the gameplay and make this a lot smoother to progress via. There’s model new content material right here together with some mysteries that extra informal gamers may by no means unravel. However there’s additionally some essential issues left behind within the authentic sport.
Whereas there’s nonetheless a large crew of vacationers to select from—I completed the sport with about 35 characters that I may use at my leisure—some extra distinguished characters from the cellular sport aren’t right here. Mainly, the preliminary group of vaguely “canonical” heroes, resembling Viola the Thief or Fiore the Warrior, is lacking. These had been iconic characters resembling they may exist in a mid-tier gacha sport, and never having them feels unusual.
Plus, a considerable amount of character content material from Champions of the Continent merely isn’t right here and just a few key vacationers have devoted story content material. From character quests to high-pressure coliseum challenges, there are items from the unique sport that aren’t right here, leading to some half-baked get together members. Even when they’re nonetheless nice in a battle.
My favourite get together member was Alexia the Scholar. She’s tossed at gamers fairly early with out a lot of a recruitment course of, permitting you fast entry to highly effective magical spells. Not like some new characters, she doesn’t have a lot private story content material and but her means to hit bosses with devastating magicks has made her not solely my MVP in fights however perhaps my favourite scholar in the entire franchise. I want I knew extra about her. I prefer to suppose perhaps I simply missed a side-quest however I believe that’s not likely how this all works. Not everybody will get their second.
There are additionally moments the place the grandeur is just too a lot for the sport to deal with. Enjoying on the Nintendo Change 2, there have been key moments the place the console struggled to maintain up with all the things occurring on display screen. A large conflict sequence that includes a redesigned dungeon is dragged down by all these hearth particle results. I liked increasing my city and constructing out services, however as Wishvale grew, I encountered the occasional hitch whereas operating round.
Adapting a sport that was made with appreciable {hardware} limitations in thoughts additionally implies that there are moments the place the environmental design and the general colour palette can appear restricted in comparison with, say, 2023’s Octopath Traveler 2. Some pockets of the sport world can really feel a bit sparse at first, and the preliminary dungeon forays are little greater than brisk cave adventures.
What Is Performed In Love Is Properly Performed
The scope of Octopath Traveler 0 adjustments drastically as time passes, nevertheless. That story, whose stakes finally rise to the very heavens, is instructed with such fervor that my grin was at all times broad even when I’ve seen these sorts of tales instructed numerous instances earlier than in dozens of video games and I can’t rely the variety of instances I ended mid-battle to easily admire the attractive sprite work and astounding music. There’s something magical right here and a shocking problem throughout my playtime was peace with how a lot I had fallen in love with this sport. Was that allowed? Was it okay for me to really feel so enraptured?
Terrence McKenna, American thinker and lover of magic mushrooms, has a phrase (recommendation for individuals experiencing a robust psychedelic expertise) that I’ve been turning over in my head as I stroll away from Octopath Traveler 0: “Don’t give into astonishment.” AAA sports usually strive to cover their flaws behind mountains of graphical enhancements and manufacturing worth. Dazzled audiences eat them up no matter what messages they maintain or worth they create just because they are dazzling. The job of a critic is to decelerate a bit of.
However, I stand right here astonished. Octopath Traveler 0 is such a robust distillation of all the things that I discover interesting about role-playing video games that I can’t put my sentiment apart. There’s the occasional shortcoming, a efficiency concern right here or a function misplaced within the adaptation, which I personally miss, however anybody considering that is some half-assed port of cellular gacha trash can be terribly mistaken. The common participant can get pleasure from wherever from 80 to 100 hours of gameplay, a lot of which will probably be graced by a few of the most astonishing storytelling in fashionable gaming.
There’s a value for this journey though it’s nothing too horrible. Octopath Traveler 0 merely asks you to depart your cynicism on the door. There’s a tendency in fashionable audiences to attempt to outsmart video games. We’ve seen all of it and are sometimes very happy with the truth that there’s nary a plot twist we are able to’t see coming or a element we are able to’t ring the “sin” bell about. Avid gamers are irony-poisoned, and customers usually compete with artwork, aiming for an opportunity to say “I knew that was coming.” Does that make you are feeling intelligent? I’ll be over right here having fun with the present.
When a bit of media as earnest as Octopath Traveler 0 comes alongside—filled with wandering swordsmen, villains ascending to the Heavens, and extra—it’s laborious to not find yourself smitten. There’s a perception that as long as you inform a narrative along with your head held excessive and love on your viewers, all the things else will work out. And the damndest factor about that’s that perception is right. Meet this sport with your individual child-like sense of earnestness, and you’ll have an expertise that you just’ll not neglect anytime quickly.
