Platform: Nintendo Switch
Release date: July 13 2018 (Worldwide)
Developer: Square-Enix/Acquire
Publisher: Square-Enix (JP), Nintendo (Rest of the World)
Season pass: No
Demo: Yes
Eight travelers. Eight adventures. Eight roles to play in this new magical adventure from the producers of Bravely Default. Choose your hero and lead him/her on a personal quest around the world while gathering information and meeting new allies to join you. Against you are hordes of monsters, but with your bravery and a new turn-based Boost Battle System. The world, it's rich cast of characters and vicious monsters are all presented in a hand-drawn pixelart style called 2D-HD, bringing you back to the golden age of Role-Playing games. So choose your favorite hero, and step into a brand new adventure full of magic and mystery.
Olberic Eisenberg
Job:
Warrior
Path Action:
Challenge - allows Olberic to challenge townspeople to a duel.
Talent:
Bolster Defense - allows Olberic to boost while defending to protect against the mighty blows of formidable enemies.
Cyrus Albright
Job:
Scholar
Path Action:
Scrutinize - allows Cyrus to glean new knowledge from the townspeople.
Talent:
Study Foe - allows Cyrus to gain insight into an unfamiliar foe's weaknesses.
Tressa Colozone
Job:
Merchant
Path Action:
Purchase - allows Tressa to purchase items from townspeople.
Talent:
Eye for Money - allows Tressa to collect money left behind by fallen adventurers, merchants, and the like.
Ophilia Clement
Job:
Cleric
Path Action:
Guide - allows Ophilia to guide townspeople, who will follow wherever she goes.
Talent:
Summon - allows Ophilia to summon a townsperson under her guidance to aid in battle.
Primrose Azelhart
Job:
Dancer
Path Action:
Allure - allows Primrose to allure townspeople into following her.
Talent:
Summon - allows Primrose to summon a townsperson she has charmed to aid in battle.
Alfyn Greengrass
Job:
Apothecary
Path Action:
Inquire - allows Alfyn to learn all sorts of information from people.
Talent:
Concoct - allows Alfyn to create potions and substances from various ingredients to aid allies or harm foes in battle.
Therion
Job:
Thief
Path Action:
Steal - allows Therion to steal the belongings of townspeople.
Talent:
Pick Lock - allows Therion to open locked treasure chests he encounters in his travels.
H'aanit
Job:
Hunter
Path Action:
Provoke - allows H'aanit to use beasts to provoke people into battle.
Talent:
Capture - allows H'aanit to capture monsters and beasts in battle and train them to fight by her side.
Standard
Special Edition
Name: Wayfarer's Edition (US), Traveler's Compendium Edition (EU)
Includes:
Game Card in a normal box
Double-sided map
Pop-up Book
Coin Replica
Octopath Traveler Sound Selections CD
Cost: 90€
Metacritic:
85
Opencritic:
84
IGN: 9,3/10
Octopath Traveler is a JRPG dream come true. Both its battle system and aesthetic pay loving tribute to the Super NES era while moving the formula forward in exciting and novel ways. This isn’t merely a modern retread of past classics, but a phenomenal homage with genuinely fresh ideas in a fantastically charming wrapper of old-school meets new. While the eight different character stories could’ve used a little more connection between them, I’m looking forward to going back to complete them all, explore the many side areas, battle optional bosses, and unlock the final job classes.
Nintendo World Report: 9/10
It’s an elegant game packed with serene melodies, a simple yet deep combat system, and a stunning world to explore. The end result might not be the modern classic so many hoped for, but Octopath Traveler is an excellent RPG that’s only major sin is a loose story structure.
Nintendo Life: 9/10
Octopath Traveler is a special RPG, the kind of game that keeps an eye on the past while walking bravely into the future. Indeed, we’d even go so far as to say this is the best RPG you can find on the Switch to date, all elements of this game link together perfectly to make for a harmonious and immersing experience that you’ll find difficult to put down. We’d recommend Octopath Traveler to both fans and newcomers of RPGs; the game does a fantastic job of straddling that line of accessibility and depth, satisfying both camps with its dizzying amount of content. Classic-inspired gameplay, an orchestrated soundtrack, and a unique approach to storytelling make this a game that you won’t want to miss. This is an absolute must buy.
GameSpot: 8/10
Despite the lackluster stories that pull you through the world, Octopath thrives on its character progression and the temptations of high-level challenges and rewards. The promise of new jobs, exciting boss fights, and powerful gear will inspire you to poke around every corner, and there are no shortage of discoveries to strive for. And all the while, you're treated to one of the most interesting and effective re-imaginings of a retro aesthetic around. Octopath will likely be a divisive game due to its fractured storytelling, but it's one worth playing despite its lesser qualities. Its high points are simply too good to ignore.
Eurogamer
Octopath Traveler is the kind of game that gets hand-waved aside as being for "the old school", but that's to overlook its charismatic innovations in battle and the strange, detached, even austere construction of its narrative. For good and a little for ill, it's a lot more eccentric than it seems. JRPG detractors will bounce off the hoarier elements - changeless villages, that well-thumbed handbook of classes and abilities, those sparsely animated sprites - and so, miss the peculiarities those devices hide. Genre aficionados may take umbrage at being forced by the levelling curve to alternate characters, and never quite seeing those stories entwine as fully as in, say, the Mass Effect games. Give the game time to bed in, however, and you'll find it a bold contribution to a genre that has always been a little too in love with its past and the past in general. There's much here to inspire nostalgia for the classics, but Octopath Traveler is at its best when following its own nose through a history of its own creation.
