Octopath Traveler

Octopath Traveler
Packaging artwork, featuring the game's eight main-characters
Developer(s)	Square Enix Business Division 11 [1] Acquire
Publisher(s)	Square Enix [lower-alpha 1]
Director(s)	Keisuke Miyauchi
Producer(s)	Tomoya Asano Masashi Takahashi
Designer(s)	Kota Oosaki
Programmer(s)	Satoshi Hasegawa Yutaka Watanbe
Artist(s)	Naoki Ikushima Mika Iizuka
Writer(s)	Kakunoshin Futsuzawa
Composer(s)	Yasunori Nishiki
Engine	Unreal Engine 4
Platform(s)	Nintendo Switch Windows Stadia Xbox One
Release	Nintendo Switch July 13, 2018 Windows June 7, 2019 Stadia April 28, 2020 Xbox One March 25, 2021
Genre(s)	Role-playing
Mode(s)	Single-player

Octopath Traveler ^{[lower-alpha 2]} is a role-playing video game developed by Square Enix, in collaboration with Acquire. The game was released for the Nintendo Switch in July 2018, for Windows in June 2019, for Stadia in April 2020, and for Xbox One in March 2021. It received generally favorable reviews, with praise for its presentation, music, and battle system, while its story received more mixed responses. The game had sold over 3 million copies worldwide by September 2022.

A prequel, Octopath Traveler: Champions of the Continent , launched for Android and iOS in 2020 in Japan, followed by a worldwide release in 2022. A sequel, Octopath Traveler II , was released worldwide for Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, and Windows on February 24, 2023. ^[2]

Gameplay

Octopath Traveler features an aesthetic termed "HD-2D" by the developers.

Octopath Traveler features a graphical aesthetic known as "HD-2D", defined by the developers as combining retro Super NES-style character sprites and textures with polygonal environments and high-definition effects.

Players start the game by choosing a protagonist from one of eight adventurers, each of whom begins their journey in different parts of the world. Once a protagonist character is chosen, they cannot be removed from the active party until their story arc, which consists of four chapters, is concluded. Characters not chosen as the protagonist may be recruited at their starting locations.

Each character is paired with a distinct character class ("job"). It cannot be altered through gameplay. However, players can unlock the ability to assign a different character's class as a "subjob," which can be changed at any time but can only be assigned to one character at a time.

Each player character has a unique "Path Action" command that can be used when interacting with NPCs: The Warrior Olberic and the Hunter H'aanit can challenge characters; the Apothecary Alfyn and the Scholar Cyrus can inquire about certain bits of information that can be used for completion of quests or in the form of hidden items; the Merchant Tressa and the Thief Therion can acquire items directly from NPCs, one via commerce and the other via pickpocketing; and the Cleric Ophilia and the Dancer Primrose can guide NPCs and use them as guest summons. In all cases, the first action is a "Noble" Path Action: the ability's effectiveness dependent by the character's level or amount of in-game currency. The others are "Rogue" actions, which can be used on anyone but carries a risk of its user losing credibility with other NPCs. When the player loses enough reputation in a given town, they can no longer use any Path Actions in that town until a fee has been paid to restore the party's reputation.

The game features a turn-based battle system. All characters can attack with weapons, use abilities, use consumable items, and flee. The battle system is oriented around two features, "Break and Boost".

• Every foe comes with a set number of "Shield Points" and a series of weaknesses, which are unrevealed when the party first encounters that foe. Weaknesses correspond to one of the six different kinds of weapons, or six elemental attacks, in the game. If an enemy is struck, using something it is vulnerable to, an equal or greater number of times than it has Shield Points, the enemy is "Broken;" it loses its next turn and takes increased damage. However, once it gets a turn, it is guaranteed to act before the player does, preventing the player from locking it
• Each party member receives a Boost Point at the beginning of every turn, and may store up to five at a time. During their turn, a player can use up to three Boost Points to either strike with their weapons multiple times or increase the potency of an ability. A Boost Point is not gained the turn after using them. ^[3]

Synopsis

Octopath Traveler is set in the land of Orsterra, which was created by thirteen deities. One of them, the fallen god Galdera, was sealed away within the afterworld by the other deities after he refused to relinquish what they created. The Order of the Sacred Flame, the continent's dominant church, formed to worship the leader of the non-fallen gods, which continue to preside over Orsterra.

The player follows the stories of eight heroes as they journey through Orsterra.

• Ophilia Clement, a priestess of the Sacred Flame, undertakes a religious pilgrimage to keep the Sacred Flame burning. She is opposed by Mattias, who attempts to steal the Sacred Flame for his own ends. Ophilia's character class, Cleric, allows her to heal and defend the party.
• Cyrus Albright, a teacher at the Royal Academy, attempts to recover a stolen tome of dark arts called From the Far Reaches of Hell. Cyrus is a Scholar and wields magical attack spells.
• Tressa Colzione, a merchant, is inspired to go see the world after acquiring a journal detailing someone's past travels throughout the continent. Tressa's character class, Merchant, allows her to maximize the gaining of money.
• Olberic Eisenberg, a former knight of the Kingdom of Hornburg, seeks renewed purpose after his kingdom was destroyed in an attack by a sellsword named Werner. A Warrior, Olberic excels at defending his allies from physical attacks.
• Primrose Azelhart, a dispossessed noblewoman, seeks revenge against the Obsidians, a criminal organization that murdered her father. A Dancer, Primrose has the ability to temporarily strengthen her allies with magical dances.
• Alfyn Greengrass is a traveling healer who was inspired to take up the trade after a stranger, whose name he does not know, saved him from a terminal disease as a child. An Apothecary, Alfyn can "Concoct" by combining reagents for various offensive and defensive purposes.
• Therion, a criminal, is tasked by a noble family to recover a set of dragonstones belonging to them. Therion, a Thief, can Steal items from enemies and NPCs, and also temporarily weaken them.
• H'aanit, a huntress, is tracking her mentor after he left their village to hunt a beast called Redeye. The Hunter class allows H'aanit a limited ability to snare and slow enemies. She can also "Capture" beasts for later use as helpers.

After progressing through all the characters' various stories, the heroes' quests become intermingled as Ophilia's enemy Mattias, Cyrus' enemy Lucia, the Obsidians, and Olberic’s enemy Werner are all revealed to have been under the employ of the immortal witch Lyblac. Revealed to be Galdera's daughter, Lyblac orchestrated the acquisition of From the Far Reaches of Hell and the dragonstones to unseal the Gate of Finis in order to access the afterworld; she also orchestrated the fall of Hornburg, as it stands atop the Gate. Using the Obsidians as her personal army to eliminate threats like Primrose's father, Lyblac also attempted to use Graham Crossford, the man who wrote Tressa's journal and saved Alfyn as a boy, as a vessel for Galdera to gain corporeal form due to his bloodline's ties to the god. Graham escaped from her clutches, but was mutated into H’aanit’s enemy Redeye. This forced Lyblac to seek out Graham's only living son Kit to complete the ritual.

At the Gate of Hornburg, Lyblac fully resurrects Galdera and is absorbed into him. The eight heroes fight a vicious battle against Galdera, sealing him back into the afterworld and saving Kit, who receives closure with his father's spirit.

Development and release

Octopath Traveler was announced on January 13, 2017, under the working title of Project Octopath Traveler. ^[4] The project was started by producers Masashi Takahashi and Tomoya Asano, ^[5] who previously headed the Nintendo 3DS titles Bravely Default and Bravely Second: End Layer . Acquire was chosen as development partner for the game based on their previous work on the What Did I Do to Deserve This, My Lord? series. ^[6] During the development process, various graphics options such as the depth, resolution, saturation, as well as other features such as whether water should be pixel or photorealistic are taken into consideration to perfect the "HD-2D" look. The eight main characters, four male and four female, are chosen to provide different party variations. All characters have different classes, and the character design, as well as the field commands, are based on different occupations in Medieval Europe. Each playable character is accompanied by unique themes during specifics sections of their story arcs. For example, Primrose's theme is intended to project a femininity that exudes sadness and melancholy. According to sound producer Yasunori Nishiki, the developers wanted to create a sense of wistfulness as well for her music theme even though her story is driven by revenge against her father's killers. Metallic sounds were incorporated into the theme to evoke a desert setting to reflect the beginning of Primrose's journey in the desert city of Sunshade. ^[7]

The game's first public demo was released on the Nintendo eShop on September 13, 2017, ^[8] For the demo, Olberic and Primrose were chosen to be the protagonists due to the relative proximity of their stories' starting points, and the developers wanted people to be able to recruit the other character after beating the story. Consideration was also given towards presenting the appeal of the game's mechanics through these characters. ^[9] The second demo was released on June 14, 2018 and included various tweaks and improvements gathered from surveying players, along with all eight playable characters and save data transfer to the full game. The second demo consisted of the first chapters of each character's story, with certain areas blocked off to the player, and also had a three-hour play time limit. ^[10]

Octopath Traveler was released worldwide on July 13, 2018. A special edition that includes the game's soundtrack, a replica of the game's in-game currency, a pop-up book, and a replica map of Orsterra was also released the same day. ^[11] The game was released for Windows on June 7, 2019. ^[12] A prequel for Android and iOS, titled Octopath Traveler: Conquerors of the Continent, was originally scheduled to be released in Japan in 2019, but was delayed to 2020. ^{[13] [14]} A Stadia version released on April 28, 2020. ^[15] The game was released for Xbox One on March 25, 2021, and added to the Xbox Game Pass service on the same day. ^[16] According to Takahashi, no downloadable content or other large post-release content updates are planned for the game. ^[17]

The game’s publishing rights on Nintendo Switch reverted to Square Enix as early as December 2023. Likely because of this, the game was temporarily unavailable for purchase on the Nintendo eShop in March 2024. ^[18]

Reception

Reception

Aggregate score

Aggregator	Score
Metacritic	NS: 83/100 [19] PC: 80/100 [20]

Review scores

Publication	Score
Destructoid	7.5/10 [21]
Famitsu	36/40 [22]
Game Informer	8/10 [23]
GameSpot	8/10 [24]
IGN	9.3/10 [25]
Nintendo Life	[26]
Nintendo World Report	9/10 [27]
VideoGamer.com	8/10 [28]

Octopath Traveler received "generally favorable" reception, according to review aggregator Metacritic. ^[19] Polygon's Jeremy Parish hailed the game as "the magical RPG the Nintendo Switch needed". ^[29] GameSpot 's Peter Brown praised the game for its "innovative battle system", character progression and presentation but found that the main drawbacks were the stories of the eight playable characters, which he described as "lackluster" and "repetitive". ^[24]

The depiction of female characters in Octopath Traveler was met with a mixed response from critics. ^{[30] [31]} While some commentators singled out Primrose's story arc as a highlight of the game, ^{[32] [33] [34] [35] [36]} others felt that it was cliched or mishandled due to its reliance on sexist tropes. ^{[37] [38] [39] [40]} Edwin Evans-Thirlwell of Eurogamer found Primrose's gameplay mechanic of seducing people to help her in battle to be problematic due to Primrose's backstory of misogyny and sex trafficking. ^[41] Jess Joho criticized the writers for exploiting the trauma experienced by its female characters like Primrose and Ophelia to give their thin characterization "some semblance of personality or depth". ^[37]

Sales

Square Enix issued two apologies after many in Japan were unable to purchase a physical copy due to stock shortages the week, and the following week, of its release. ^[42] The game sold 188,238 physical copies within its first two months on sale in Japan, and placed at number one on the all-format sales chart. ^[43] By August 2018, the game had sold over a million copies worldwide. ^[44] As of March 2019, the combined physical and digital sales of the game have exceeded 1.5 million copies worldwide. ^{[45] [46]} The PC version was among the best-selling new releases of the month on Steam. ^{[47] [lower-alpha 3]} Square Enix wrote in March 2020 that combined retail and digital sales of Octopath Traveler had surpassed two million copies. ^{[49] [50]} As of February 2021, the combined physical and digital sales of the game have exceeded 2.5 million copies worldwide. ^[51] By September 2022, it was announced that the game had sold more than 3 million copies worldwide. ^[52]

Awards

Year	Award	Category	Result	Ref
2018	Game Critics Awards	Best RPG	Nominated	[53]
	Golden Joystick Awards	Best Storytelling	Nominated	[54]
		Nintendo Game of the Year	Won
	The Game Awards 2018	Best Art Direction	Nominated	[55]
		Best Score/Music	Nominated
		Best Role-Playing Game	Nominated
	Gamers' Choice Awards	Fan Favorite Role Playing Game	Nominated	[56]
2019	SXSW Gaming Awards	Excellence in Art	Won	[57]
		Excellence in Musical Score	Nominated
		Most Promising New Intellectual Property	Nominated
	Famitsu Awards	Excellence Prize	Won	[58]
		Rookie Award	Won
		Best Game Music Award	Won

Sequel

A prequel for Android and iOS, Octopath Traveler: Champions of the Continent , was released in Japan in 2020 and worldwide in 2022. ^[59] A sequel, Octopath Traveler II , was released for Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, and Windows on February 24, 2023. ^[60]

Legacy

Square Enix has subsequently developed other games which follow the "HD-2D" style introduced with Octopath Traveler. These include Triangle Strategy and a remake of Live A Live , both of which released in 2022, as well as an upcoming remake of Dragon Quest III . ^{[61] [62] [63]}

Additionally, Primrose and Olberic appear in Final Fantasy Record Keeper as part of a September 2018 crossover event. ^[64]

Notes

1. Nintendo published the Nintendo Switch version outside of Japan
2. オクトパス トラベラー (Okutopasu Toraberā)
3. Based on total revenue for the first two weeks on sale. ^[48]

References

1. Jenni (August 6, 2018). "Square Enix Teasing A New Bravely Game On Twitter". Siliconera . Retrieved August 31, 2018.
2. Romano, Sal (September 13, 2022). "Octopath Traveler II announced for PS5, PS4, Switch, and PC". Gematsu. Retrieved September 14, 2022.
3. Schreier, Jason (September 13, 2017). "Yes, Please Inject Nintendo Switch RPG Octopath Traveler Directly Into My Veins". Kotaku. Archived from the original on November 22, 2017. Retrieved January 26, 2018.
4. Schwartz, Terri (January 12, 2017). "Square Enix's Project Octopath Traveler Announced for Nintendo Switch". IGN. Archived from the original on February 15, 2018. Retrieved January 26, 2018.
5. "Project Octopath Traveler Developers Answer How The Project Started, And The Troubles In Developing HD-2D - Siliconera". Siliconera. February 4, 2018. Retrieved July 16, 2018.
6. "A note from the developers of Octopath Traveler". Nintendo.com. July 13, 2018. Archived from the original on July 13, 2018.
7. Octopath Traveler soundtrack interview. Square Enix. April 25, 2018.
8. Pereira, Chris (September 15, 2017). "Switch-Exclusive RPG From Square Enix, Project Octopath Traveler, Now Has A Free Demo". GameSpot. Archived from the original on November 1, 2017. Retrieved January 26, 2018.
9. "Project Octopath Traveler Developers Answer How The Project Started, And The Troubles In Developing HD-2D - Siliconera". Siliconera. February 4, 2018. Archived from the original on February 5, 2018. Retrieved February 5, 2018.
10. "New Octopath Traveler demo coming to Switch June 14". Polygon. June 12, 2018. Archived from the original on June 27, 2018. Retrieved June 27, 2018.
11. Makuch, Eddie. "Nintendo Switch's Octopath Traveler Release Date And Special Edition Announced". GameSpot. Archived from the original on March 9, 2018. Retrieved March 8, 2018.
12. Romano, Sal. "Octopath Traveler coming to PC on June 7". Gematsu. Retrieved April 11, 2019.
13. Wong, Alistair (March 16, 2019). "Octopath Traveler: Conquerors of the Continent Introduces Its Three Big Villains". Siliconera. Retrieved March 17, 2019.
14. "Octopath Traveler: Conquerors of the Continent Delayed From 2019 To 2020 In Japan". Siliconera. November 21, 2019. Retrieved December 16, 2019.
15. Knezevic, Kevin (April 28, 2020). "Google Stadia Adding Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order, Octopath Traveler, And More Games". GameSpot . Retrieved April 28, 2020.
16. Spurr, Megan (March 16, 2021). "Coming Soon to Xbox Game Pass: Outriders, Octopath Traveler, Yakuza 6: The Song of Life, and More". Xbox Wire.
17. "Octopath Traveler Won't Receive DLC According To The Game's Producer". Nintendo Life. June 17, 2018. Archived from the original on June 17, 2018. Retrieved June 17, 2018.
18. "Octopath Traveler has been delisted on the Nintendo eShop". Video Games Chronicle. March 2, 2024. Retrieved March 2, 2024.
19. "Octopath Traveler for Switch Reviews". Metacritic . CBS Interactive. Archived from the original on July 14, 2018. Retrieved July 12, 2018.
20. "Octopath Traveler for PC Reviews". Metacritic . CBS Interactive . Retrieved June 26, 2019.
21. Carter, Chris (July 12, 2018). "Review: Octopath Traveler". Destructoid . Archived from the original on July 14, 2018. Retrieved July 12, 2018.
22. "Famitsu review scores (7/3/18) - Octopath Traveler". Nintendo Everything. July 3, 2018.
23. Juba, Joe (July 18, 2018). "Octopath Traveler - An Arduous But Rewarding Journey - Nintendo Switch". Game Informer . Retrieved April 12, 2019.
24. Brown, Peter (July 12, 2018). "Octopath Traveler Review: Divide And Conquer". GameSpot . Archived from the original on July 13, 2018. Retrieved July 12, 2018.
25. Macy, Seth (July 12, 2018). "Octopath Traveler Review". IGN. Archived from the original on July 12, 2018. Retrieved July 12, 2018.
26. Vogel, Mitch (July 12, 2018). "Octopath Traveler Review (Switch)". NintendoLife . Archived from the original on July 12, 2018. Retrieved July 12, 2018.
27. Ronaghan, Neal (July 12, 2018). "Octopath Traveler Review". Nintendo World Report. Archived from the original on July 12, 2018. Retrieved July 12, 2018.
28. Cook, Adam (July 12, 2018). "Octopath Traveler review". VideoGamer.com. Archived from the original on July 12, 2018. Retrieved July 12, 2018.
29. Parish, Jeremy (July 12, 2018). "Octopath Traveler is the magical RPG the Nintendo Switch needed". Polygon. Archived from the original on July 12, 2018. Retrieved July 12, 2018.
30. Nishikawa-kun (July 9, 2018). "【『オクトパストラべラー』主人公レビュー】町人を誘惑して戦わせる踊子プリムロゼ。". Famitsu . Retrieved July 15, 2021.
31. Jenni Lada (July 30, 2018). "Octopath Traveler's Ophilia And Primrose Are Complementary Characters". Siliconera. Retrieved January 29, 2022.
32. Vincent, Brittany (July 19, 2018). "Video Game Heroine of the Month: Primrose Azelhart, Octopath Traveler". SyFy Wire. Archived from the original on October 1, 2019. Retrieved October 4, 2019.
33. Smith, Mat (July 12, 2018). "Switch RPG 'Octopath Traveler' gives you too many roles to play". Engadget . Archived from the original on June 6, 2019. Retrieved October 4, 2019.
34. Gilbert, Brian (July 18, 2018). "How to choose the least annoying Octopath Traveler". Polygon . Archived from the original on May 29, 2019. Retrieved October 10, 2019.
35. Ronaghan, Neal (July 12, 2018). "Octopath Traveler (Switch) Review". Nintendo World Report. Archived from the original on July 12, 2018. Retrieved October 10, 2019.
36. Clay, Scott. "RPGFan Games of the Year 2018 Editors' Awards". RPGFan. Archived from the original on May 29, 2019. Retrieved October 4, 2019.
37. Joho, Jess (August 10, 2018). "We need to talk about the sexist garbage in 'Octopath Traveler'". Mashable . Archived from the original on October 4, 2019. Retrieved October 4, 2019.
38. Wilkerson, Zach. "RPGFan Games of the Year 2018 Editors' Awards". RPGFan. Archived from the original on May 29, 2019. Retrieved October 4, 2019.
39. Castle, Katharine (June 7, 2019). "Wot I Think: Octopath Traveler". Rock, Paper, Shotgun . Archived from the original on October 2, 2019. Retrieved October 10, 2019.
40. Hamilton, Kirk (June 22, 2018). "Help, I Can't Decide Which Octopath Traveler Character To Start With". Kotaku . Archived from the original on October 1, 2019. Retrieved October 10, 2019.
41. Evans-Thirlwell, Edwin (July 13, 2018). "Octopath Traveler review - a slow but stately and compelling JRPG throwback". Eurogamer . Archived from the original on October 12, 2019. Retrieved October 4, 2019.
42. Craddock, Ryan (July 16, 2018). "Square Enix Issues Apology After Underestimating Huge Octopath Traveler Demand". Nintendo Life. Retrieved July 16, 2018.
43. Romano, Sal (August 29, 2018). "Media Create Sales: 8/20/18 – 8/26/18". Gematsu. Retrieved August 29, 2018.
44. Kent, Emma (August 3, 2018). "Octopath Traveler sells 1m copies worldwide". Eurogamer . Retrieved August 3, 2018.
45. オクトパストラベラー公式 (March 7, 2019). "RT
    併せて情報を
    載せていただいたのですが、
    
    1月にSwitch版の全世界出荷＋DL数が、
    150万本を突破いたしました！
    
    遊んでいただいた、
    遊んでいただいている、
    世界中の皆さんに、改めて感謝です！！
    
    引き続き、オクトパストラベラーに
    お付き合いいただけますと幸いです。". @OCTOPATH_PR (in Japanese). Retrieved March 8, 2019.
46. "【事前登録】『オクトパストラベラー』最新作がスマホで登場！『オクトパストラベラー 大陸の覇者』3/12より先行版の募集も [ファミ通App]". ファミ通App (in Japanese). Retrieved March 8, 2019.
47. "Best of 2019: New Releases". Steam . Valve. December 26, 2019. Archived from the original on December 28, 2019. Retrieved December 28, 2019.
48. "A Look Back - The Best of 2019". Steam . Valve. December 26, 2019. Archived from the original on December 28, 2019. Retrieved December 28, 2019.
49. Romano, Sal (March 18, 2020). "Octopath Traveler shipments and digital sales top two million". Gematsu. Retrieved March 23, 2020.
50. 『オクトパストラベラー』世界累計出荷・ダウンロード販売本数200万本突破！ 50%OFFで購入できる記念セールが開催 | ゲーム・エンタメ最新情報のファミ通.com
51. "Octopath Traveler Sales Pass 2.5 Million". February 25, 2021.
52. "OCTOPATH TRAVELER II will release on 24 February 2023 on Nintendo Switch, Steam, PS5, and PS4!". Square Enix. September 13, 2022. Retrieved March 23, 2023.
53. Watts, Steve (July 5, 2018). "Resident Evil 2 Top Honor In E3 Game Critics Awards". GameSpot. Retrieved July 3, 2018.
54. Sheridan, Connor (November 16, 2018). "Golden Joystick Awards 2018 winners: God of War wins big but Fortnite gets Victory Royale". GamesRadar+ . Retrieved November 17, 2018.
55. "Awards - The Game Awards 2018". The Game Awards. November 13, 2018. Archived from the original on December 21, 2018. Retrieved November 13, 2018.
56. Glyer, Mike (November 19, 2018). "2018 Gamers' Choice Awards Nominees". File 770. Retrieved January 4, 2019.
57. Khan, Zarmena (March 17, 2019). "God of War Takes Home 'Game of the Year' at SXSW 2019 Gaming Awards". PlayStation LifeStyle. Retrieved March 17, 2019.
58. Brian (April 5, 2019). "Famitsu Award 2018 winners announced - Smash Bros. wins Game of the Year, Sakurai named MVP, more". Nintendo Everything. Retrieved May 26, 2019.
59. "Octopath Traveler: Champions of the Continent, the Prequel Story to 'Octopath Traveler' Finally Has a Confirmed Release Date for Japan – TouchArcade". September 18, 2020.
60. Skrebels, Joe (September 13, 2022). "Octopath Traveler Is Officially Getting a Sequel". IGN . Retrieved September 13, 2022.
61. "Triangle Strategy got 'fine-tuned' based on demo feedback". Polygon . September 23, 2021.
62. "Square Enix reveals Dragon Quest 12, Dragon Quest 3 'HD-2D' remake". Polygon . May 27, 2021.
63. Bailey, Kat (February 11, 2022). "Lost Square RPG Live a Live Headed to North America for First Time". IGN .
64. Minotti, Mike (September 17, 2018). "Final Fantasy: Record Keeper gets an Octopath Traveler event". Venture Beat . Archived from the original on October 1, 2019. Retrieved October 4, 2019.

External links

• Official website