The series that introduced HD-2D graphics to the world continues with another retro-themed JRPG, with not one but eight playable characters.
As the generations pass by it’s clear it’s becoming more and more difficult to make an old-fashioned Japanese role-playing game. Turn-based battles and low tech graphics are still just about viable on the Switch but no publisher is going to greenlight an old school experience on the Xbox Series X/S or PlayStation 5 unless there’s a compelling draw that justifies it. In most cases that draw is going to be nostalgia, either for a specific series or for the general concept of Japanese-made role-players.
2018’s Octopath Traveler was the start of an entirely new franchise but one which relied heavily on a player’s love for 16-bit Japanese role-players. If you didn’t have any, you probably didn’t enjoy it, although it did also see the debut of HD-2D: a graphical style that looks like a SNES game, except with 2D sprites moving around 3D landscapes.
HD-2D has been used in a number of other games, including Triangle Strategy and the remake of Live A Live, but Octopath Traveler has so far been the most successful. That’s probably because it not only had the best mix of new and old but because five years ago it and its visuals were a welcome novelty, a distinction that this sequel cannot claim.
If you’re wondering about the name, it’s a reference to the fact that you get to play as eight completely different characters, one of which you pick to be the main protagonist – with the others joining in as and when you meet them. The characters for the sequel are all new and so is the setting, which rather than the generic medieval fantasy of the original now takes place in the land of Solistia, which is experiencing its equivalent of the Victorian era.
The characters include everyone from a warrior named Hikari to Throné the thief and a dancer called Agnea. Although there are plenty of boss battles, and a big finale where everyone teams up, the goals of each character are completely separate and, unusually for a video game, are both personal and entirely sensible. So Agnea, for example, merely wants to be famous, Hikari just wants to go home, and, err… Throné is on a quest to kill her adoptive parents.
Although you can see influences from a number of specific Square Enix titles, in the levelling up and other systems, the combat has the most in common with the Bravely Default series – as well as, obviously, the previous game. As before, most enemies can only be damaged by specific weapons or elemental attacks, breaking their defence and stunning them for a single turn, while you try to get all your attacks in at once and make use of a damage multiplier that builds up every turn.
Except for the fact that working out the weaknesses is a matter of trial and error, the battle system is clever and interesting, forcing a reliance on tactics and timing rather than brute force. However, the very obvious problem is that it’s almost exactly the same as last time.
The characters are different, and so are their special moves and abilities, but beyond that the only significant new element is latent powers, which are basically limit breaks. These are different for each character and do things like provide an extra turn or activate unique abilities, but as useful as they are they just underline the existing strategy of waiting for the right moment to unleash a massive attack, instead of chipping away at an enemy forever.
The lack of innovation is also true for the path actions feature, which allows each member of your party to interact with non-player characters differently. From helping out in a fight to giving unique side quests, or simply offering a discount on items, it’s a neat way to emphasise the individuality of the characters. The problem is, it was already in the first game and the only difference here is you get two abilities instead of one, depending on whether it’s day or night.
It’s the same for the HD-2D graphics, which continue to impress but have seen no fundamental change, including the fact that the visuals are peculiarly dark almost all the time – for no obvious reason. It can’t be a technical one because Live A Live is perfectly bright and colourful when it wants to be, but both Octopath Travelers are stuck in a near permanent twilight that looks like a screen saver has kicked in and the screen’s about to shut down.
On the Switch, there’s more performance issues than in the first game, and yet strangely less in the way of modern lighting effects, which may have something to do with the sequel being multiformat (except for Xbox) at launch.
Octopath Traveler 2 seems perfectly happy with just being the same experience again, only with different stories. That leaves the basic dungeon exploration and lack of puzzles as underdeveloped as before. Combat is really all there is and because this is a pseudo-retro game there’s also a lot of level grinding to be done, which is as tiresome as usual.
Inevitably, not all the plot threads have been created equal (we’d recommend starting with either Throné or Osvald) but the real problem with Octopath Traveler 2 is how it just copy and pastes the gameplay from the original and forces the storytelling to do all the heavy lifting. The better plot arcs are good, but they’re not that good.
If you’re a fan of the original, or Japanese role-players in general, then Octopath Traveler 2 has plenty to recommend it. And yet, knowing that entirely new entries in the genre are becoming increasingly rare this seems like a wasted opportunity, that ends up pandering to nostalgia for not just retro games but its own predecessor.
Octopath Traveler 2 review summary
In Short: A competent and entertaining faux-retro Japanese role-player but apart from the new characters almost nothing has changed since the first one.
Pros: The battle system is excellent, with an emphasis on tactics and a wide variety of different skills and weapons. Open-ended structure with some engaging storytelling. The HD-2D graphics are still impressive.
Cons: Almost no new ideas and having to second guess enemy weakness can be a chore. Not all the character plots are that interesting. No major gameplay elements beyond combat.
Score: 7/10
Formats: Nintendo Switch (reviewed), PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, and PC
Price: £49.99
Publisher: Square Enix
Developer: Square Enix and Acquire
Release Date: 24th February 2023
Age Rating: 12
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