OCTOPATH TRAVELER™

At best this is a mediocre game. Poor story, basically several individual small stories that are loosely connected at the end. This game only has good rating because of Steams rating system, which only allows "yes" or "not" recommend, Fighting is very monotonous and even assets are often re-used. Not saying that this is a bad game, but also not a good one. Considering the good ratings I decided to provide a different view as well. I really tried loving this game and I love RPGs but this is so cheap Square...buy it only at least with 50% discount and if there is nothing else available to play.

At the point of this review, I have 5 chapters left to complete (each character has 4 chapters in their story arc). I spent 90% of that time on the Steam Deck.

I would only recommend this game to 3 types of players.

1: Players who are not completionists
2:Players who enjoy grindy RPGS
3: Players who don't mind using cheat tables to bypass the grind

Art Direction

I was drawn to this game for its breathtaking visuals. The pixel art is absolutely beautiful. The macro lens effect paired with the god rays makes the game feel like its taking place in a diorama. It's presentation gives the impression that you are a deity observing the individuals as they go on their quest. The music and sound design is also wonderful.

The Story

The story is very linear, simple, and kind of cliche. The dialogue can also be a little cheesy at times. The stories are fine, but there is not much to sink your teeth into to justify the grind in my opinion. All the story events feel like disconnected solo events as the rest of your party vanishes. There are many instances in the later chapters that you get yourself in situations that feel like they would have been easily avoided with your party. If the story was written slightly differently to give a reason for you to be separated in that instance or if they vaguely mentioned their companions then the stories would feel a lot more unified.

Honestly, I enjoyed the inner-party dialogues that you can occasionally listen to after a major story event or when visiting a pub more than most of the main stories. It adds some of that comradery that is missing from all the main stories. Tressa had some of my favorite interactions with the other party members.

In terms of linearity, there was only one instance where I had any agency on how to approach a task in a story. So don't expect any meaningful choices. However, I feel that this works given the art style. As I mentioned earlier, you feel like a passive deity looking down on the little mortals going about their lives. You are not making any choices, simply observing.

If you are a completionist, save the final chapter of Cyrus' story for last. Especially if you plan on going for the "true" ending. It's not necessary to do it last, but the story has a better flow if you do.

Gameplay

The gameplay is much more of a mixed bag depending on your preferences.

For casual players, I'd recommend only playing as the four characters you like the most then set the game aside for awhile. Party members only level up if they are actively in your party. If you want, you can come back and play the other characters later, but you will be starting all your leveling from scratch. Playing this way feels the most comfortable as your party is always leveled appropriately and you won't have to do as much grinding and backtracking if you are only focusing on 4 characters. There is no fast travel in this game so the backtracking does feel like a big chore if you are playing all 8 characters simultaneously.

I personally played this game first on the Switch. I am very much a completionist who wants to get all the story out of the way in a single playthrough. I am also impatient and don't care for grindy mechanics that slow down the plot. I feel its a disservice to unnecessarily waste a player's time with menial brain-dead tasks. So naturally, I did not get very far in the 20-30 hours I put into it on the Switch.

But I did the art and decided to give it another go. This time through the power of Steam and community tables for Cheat Engine! The experience was so much better. I could focus on leveling my main party member and then periodically boost other members who had been sidelined for ages to the same level to skip the tedious grind. Or I could turn off random encounters so that backtracking halfway across the continent would not take hours. Steam Cloud Saves came in clutch for this. I would casually play on my Deck and whenever I needed to do one of these tasks I could just close the game and open it up at my desktop to use the tables then switch back. However, the backtracking for all 8 characters without fast travel points is still rough. I am at the point now where playing feels a bit like a chore since everything is so far away even with random encounters turned off. I hear there is a secret questline after you finish all the quests. I don't think I will be playing it mostly because it requires some side quests to unlock.

Side Quests

Side quests are often obtuse and vague. You are given almost no direction. I was only completing them when I came across items by chance or if I remembered a specific NPC saying something earlier. I did not feel inclined to go out of my way for them. They did not engage with me at all. Maybe if they had a little more direction I would have been more inclined to do them out of habit rather than actual enjoyment.

Other weird design decisions

- The PC controls and UI are clearly an afterthought and are not intuitive to the platform.
- For how grindy this game is, I am surprised by how many save points there are in the game
- There is no way to my knowlege to see what the ailment symbols mean mid-combat so good luck figuring out what cure to use. The cures are not greyed out like health and SP items.

In Conclusion

The game is beautiful, but very tedious and grindy especially if you plan on playing all the characters

Game play? unsure, looks good though
Controls? Absolutely wretched, upon opening: no cursor, too annoying
awaiting to see if STEAM refunds

Chill, pleasant, and fun. I love the atmosphere, and the stories charmed me.

I liked most of this game, however there are a few issues which are dealbreakers for me.

First off: the story is incredibly repetitive (there are 8 characters, with 4 chapters each. Basically you watch some story cutscenes, you go through a dungeon, and you beat a boss. Almost all chapters had this same progression).

There is barely a cohesive narrative between the stories. When I finished my first 2 stories, I was exited because they both talked about a specific character that was obviously going to be the final boss (Ophilia and Cyrus' stories). I thought the chapter 4s of each story would bring the narrative together around that final boss. But the chapter 4s themselves don't do that. When you eventually get to the final boss, there are 8 descriptions which basically tell you how it is that each story relates to the final boss. But those descriptions are just telling us stuff, instead of actually showing it as part of the gameplay or relevant cutscenes.

Also the Final Boss! If you are going to play this game, please keep in mind that you HAVE to use ALL 8 characters in the final boss fight. One party of 4 fights the first phase, and the second party of 4 fights the second phase. If either party gets wiped out, then you lose. And then you have to go through a like 30-45 minute boss rush before being able to attempt the final boss again. I only had one party well leveled up (at about 65 each). I beat the first phase and thought that was it. But then the screen moved to another section of the final boss. My second party (around level 40 each) was instantly wiped out... I will have to grind a lot if I want to eventually actually defeat that final boss. But I don't feel like doing that right now

As far as I understand, Octopath Traveler 2 does not have the story issues I mentioned in this review. But I just looked it up and all 8 characters are also used in the final boss. I guess its better to know it from now so when I eventually play that game I am blindsided by the same final boss mechanic.

게임 그래픽 감성은 좋은데 8명 다 제대로 스토리 밀어주려고 하면 시간 소모가 너무 심합니다. 레벨이 중요한데 경험치, 스킬포인트를 무조건 전투로 얻어야 하다 보니(퀘스트보상으로 경험치를 안줌) 레벨업을 위한 일정 시간의 사냥이 지속적으로 강제됩니다. 그렇게 심한건 아닌데 풀 파티가 4명이라 나머지 4명을 따로 케어를 해줘야하는 구조라 더욱 지루하네요. 전투가 다이나믹해서 사냥이 재미있냐 하면 그건 또 아니고.. 굳이 따지자면 스토리가 메인인것 같은데 일단 챕터 2까지는 각 캐릭터의 스토리들도 상당히 전형적이라 시간 들여서 플레이하기엔 애매한 느낌이네요.

the early game feels quite boring, with a repetitive gameplay loop until you’ve put in about 15 to 20 hours. Unlike Octopath Traveler 2, you can't speed up battles, which makes it more time-consuming. If someone were to ask me whether to play OT1 or OT2, I would definitely recommend the second one.

Story is good, Pacing is awesome and it is very fun to play

Overall, do I recommend this game? Yes. But be aware of what this entails, it is a bunch of short sprints with interconnecting stories in between each leg of the sprints

Octopath traveler is an old school jrpg built in the modern day. For better and worse. Down to the pixelated art style, to the combat system and having a wonderfully chunky feel. The music is orchestral and has such a wonderful arrangement. Soon as the title card opens the energy is set, a bass string instrument (cello), Then a whimsical flute waiting to guide you forward on your adventure. Slowly each instrument added as if people are joining your journey
Each town has its own tune and each character feels represented by an instrument.

The gameplay is pretty solid. There is a stun system based off weapon/element types and a number. You hit said number by using any of the 2-5 different elements/weapon types it shows. It shows nothing until ya hit it with said attack type or an optional passive skill is equipped reveals it.

The game remembers if you hit a creature with said attacks. So as you fight them more you become more and more able to stun them quickly, which emulates expertise fairly well. The variety of enemy types are solid. They're not just color swaps, Their state swaps that happen throughout.

A great example is an evil salamander, slowly becoming more and more demented looking as their levels increase, scaling levels to match the point you are in the character's story, in that particular area. Each character has their own job and can have sub jobs added. But this isn't something that's explained to you outright. You need to go to a shrine in order to unlock them. All of the standard jobs you can get without a fight/test.
The advanced jobs require you to pass a test. Their fairly tough fights. There are also 4 passive abilities you can learn and equip from each class, augmenting them.These advanced jobs are very strong classes to have that make the base story trivial for completion.

The story is well written and quite enjoyable with good moral messages as a whole surrounding them. Their simple/classical retellings, Plenty of sidequest in between them. There is a main story for each character and they are interlocked in some obscure way later.
Each character's quest is a twist on a classical story.
The betrayed knight, The devoted sister, The traveling apothecary , the lost tome and the scholar. etc. Their engaging stories with endearing character arch-types. Fairly believable motivations and hang ups for each character. Each character's story is told in 4 parts, most wrap up well and have a satisfying conclusion to each one.


You can finish the chapters for each character in any order. The sidequest can range from single jaunts to sprawling interconnected stories. Some of the sidequests are what people call joint side quests as well. Though they are mostly arbitrary requirements for the most part.. This is where you find the meat of the challenging fights, through sidequest. One of the areas with the highest levels mobs is only unlocked via a sidequest. Which Is a great area for grinding levels, But these side quests don't give you the best equipment.
You unlock the ability to grab the best equipment by completing each character's main storyline. So the rewards can fall a bit short in comparison to the challenge you face for both story and sidequest. I get why you would want to effectively level gate the equipment, but there's a long history of sidequest being where you get the best equipment in games and the toughest fights because of it. The same history that leads to tough sidequest.


I finished the game and all chapters for each character and almost all the side quest. It left me feeling a bit hollow at some points after completing each story. “That's it?” but i get it, its about the journey, Not the destination. Some of the story beats for characters' stories feel like they're more connected than others. You can end up missing that entirely due to the freeform they afford you. I wish there was at least a light order to it.

There's even scenes where companions in your party will interject with their say on the matter or their support. The voice acting for cutscenes is great, but sometimes it feels like this should have one and it doesnt while others do. It definitely was still a great call and wonderfully performed.

The true endgame is done via one of those sprawling sidequests. Unfortunately this is one of the negative aspects of being an old school jrpg in a modern day.
You have to refight 8 of the characters' chapters bosses, then fight the final boss in 3 phases…. That would be fine. But if you die, you have to do the whole thing all over again, no saving.
It makes it so you have to be a perfectionist in order to beat it or look it up. Over and over again I tried for 20-30 hours without looking anything up. After that I tried for another 10 with a guide. It gets to the point of rng being the defining charter for success.

SOOOO I ended up watching the endgame cutscene. The morale of the story is as I summarized earlier, the story ends here. But their journey they call life continues onward and upward. While I appreciate it and I enjoy the game as it is…. IT can feel hollow to a degree if you miss the point I highlighted earlier.It's the journey we enjoy, not the destination.

Ophilia main theme plays in the background*

- May the Sacred Flame guide your path.

banger game

This is my favourite game ever. PLEASE BUY THE SECOND GAME TOO!!!! its so fantastic and you will fall in love with the quirkiness of the new 8 companions.
I blindly preordered the Wayfarers edition when it initially came out for the Switch, it was one of the most satisfying games not only to play, but to unbox and display. I have over 300 hours on my switch for this game. It brings me so much joy to get immersed into the stories, grinding is SO satisfying. I might be a sucker for JRPGS, but holy wow you will not regret buying this game full price, I have a very high opinion on the second game as well and I highly encourage everyone to go check that out too. There was SO MUCH love put into this game it warms my soul.

if you like JRPG games its really fun has a bunch of unique aspects you don't see in these types of games that make it different then you're regular experience. Not to mention that the story is killer and there is 8 different story's going on that all grab at you're heart sting's in different ways, highly recommend!!!

This review comes after I played chapter 1 for all characters (just under 15 hours)

Writing = 2/10
Story = 2/10
Graphics = 5/10
Quests = 1/10
Music = 3/10
Combat = 1/10
Bore Factor = 10/10
Wasting Your Time = 10/10

Only 42.4% of players fought 200 battles
Only 51.8% of players even made it 10 hours

Most people did not enjoy this game, so I'm curious as to why it has such high ratings and reviews. I bought this when it was on sale for 50% off ($30) and even that was too much for this steaming pile of dogwater. When a single person can make a better game than a multinational holding company, there is a problem. Chained Echoes is only $25 and it's 1000% times better than this turd.

One of the most intriguing game that I played. Though, you do have to endure the first ten hours learning the game, and somewhat cliche story. However, if you managed to get past that, oh man.

This game started a new era of JRPGs, we're eternally grateful.

The description speaks for itself-- Absolutely stunning JRPG with beautiful story-lines for each individual traveler. The attention to detail on every aspect revolving this game was enough to have me thoroughly impressed. I'll admit, I had some sleepless nights attempting to marathon this game. When I heard Octopath Traveler II was in motion, It peaked me to see what the Developers had in store for improvement; A display of a Health Bar instead of a Color Indicator for the Enemy's Health would be appreciated heavily. Nonetheless, this game is quite breathtaking-- I highly recommend it if you're into Turn-Based RPG's.

If you are a fan of JRPGs, this is one to play! I actually played the series backwards (started with Octopath Traveler II) and after I finished it, I purchased Octopath Traveler to understand how the series got started. Very fun so far, and I while I do miss some of the features that the 2nd game provided, it showed me what substantial improvements they made from the 1st game.

Truly amazing JRPG, the story can be a bit goofy at times, but combat and the systems are so simple but elegant, fun and well-balanced. The visuals and the "ideas and themes" of the stories and narrative does ring true. I'm a bit of a RPG veteran, and this one is not to be missed out on. I'm currently playing the sequel, and man is it amazing as well.

Love these games, adoration!

When it made me grind 30 minutes into the game I gave it another chance since I bought it some time ago and couldn't refund it anymore.
Mistake.

Almost every boss I encountered had some overpowered attacks, which become less of an issue if you grind beforehand.

Strategy itself is quite limited - use attacks the opponent is weak to in order to break shields, then attack with boosts for maximum damage.
There are other games of this sort which have a much more interesting combat system.

As a result, boss fights often feel frustrating, while regular foes are plain boring to fight.

Story wise, other reviewers have already pointed out how disconnected the story feels, since the game pretends that the current main character is traveling alone, even when that is not the case - meaning that the characters basically never interact in spite of traveling together all the time.

Also: Why do I have to agree to some weird EULA to play this? Most games don't require that.

TL;DR:
Grindfest, basic combat system, disconnected story. There are better games out there.

I started game and guess what? Screen resolution is for 14" screens, no mouse support. I changed screen resolution in options with keyboard input but mouse still not working. Some ppl say that use gamepad etc. I can use gamepad but what if I want to use mouse? How come some game developers still making games with terrible input options in this age! This game is in my library for long time so I can't ask for a refund and I don't want to bother myself with crapy game settings right now. I regret buying this game and i am very disappointed.

Good looking game, basic but fun combat mechanics which require some forethought and strategic planning. Progressing all 8 stories can be a bit much when the storylines are fairly basic, but the characters are distinct enough to make the stories memorable, if a bit tropey.

The cut-scenes can get very long, especially when hitting a sequence without full voice acting and with no fast option (only skip, it would be nice to be able to follow the scene without it taking up so much time).

Around 30 hours in and still going, levelling up and job system keeps it interesting.

Can I understand why this game is so hyped? None of the story's characters connect you just walk into a town and bang, and the disconnected story starts. Just feels lazy and boring.