Octopath Traveler II

Octopath Traveler II is a role-playing video game developed by Square Enix and Acquire and published by Square Enix. It is a sequel to Octopath Traveler (2018), and the third entry in the series after the prequel mobile game Octopath Traveler: Champions of the Continent (2020), though it features a new cast of characters and setting separate from prior games. It was released worldwide in February 2023, for Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5 and Windows; it is the first Octopath game released on PlayStation platforms. Xbox One and Xbox Series X/S versions were released in June 2024. Octopath Traveler II received positive reviews from critics.

Gameplay
Similar to the first Octopath Traveler, the game plays as a traditional JRPG. The player moves between eight separate characters, each with their own purpose for traversing the game world. Once again, each character has their own "path action" - a particular means for the player to have the respective character interact with non-player characters in the game world, often with the goal of getting reward items or characters to fight in support of their cause. New to the sequel is there being distinct "daytime" and nighttime" segments of gameplay, with path actions being different depending on the time of day. For example, the player can choose to make the character Hikari duel characters in the daytime, in hopes of learning new skills for battle, but at night, there is the separate option to instead spend in-game currency to bribe characters for information or items.

The game retains the turn-based battle system of the first game as well, including the "break" and "boost" systems. Every enemy has a number of hidden "weakness" attributes related to being weak to particular weapons or elements. Once discovered, an indicator is shown onscreen, and if it is exploited enough times, a "break" occurs, temporarily weakening the enemy. Every turn, "boost points" are accumulated, which can be used for extra moves in future turns. New to the battle system are "Latent Powers", special abilities unique to a given character which recharge when taking damage or breaking the enemy.

When the player starts the game, they'll have to choose one of the 8 characters to start their journey. The chosen character will then become the protagonist of the story. Said character can't be removed from the active party until their story is completed. The character will also take the lead role in events that do not specify a certain character.

Unlike the first game, all 8 characters will play through their first chapter entirely on their own, and may be joined by the others on the following chapters. However, except for the protagonist, players can choose to skip the first chapter of the other 7 travelers.

Story
While Octopath Traveler II retains the same structure of following eight separate character's stories throughout the game, it follows eight new characters in a new setting separate from the prior games. It takes place in the world of Solistia, a setting that is more modern than the prior game's medieval setting, which is presented more like something from the nineteenth or twentieth centuries. For instance, the steam engine is pioneered during the game's events.

The game's main cast includes:


 * Ochette, a hunter, who needs to capture three legendary beasts to stop a prophesised calamity.


 * Castti Florenz, an apothecary with retrograde amnesia trying to discover her past.


 * Throné Anguis, a thief trying to leave her assassins' guild by taking keys from its leaders.


 * Osvald V. Vanstein, a scholar who escapes from prison to kill the man who framed him for murdering his family.


 * Partitio Yellowil, a merchant who seeks to end poverty.


 * Agnea Bristarni, a dancer who sets out to follow in her mother's footsteps and become a star.


 * Temenos Mistral, a cleric attempting to solve the mystery of his archbishop's murder.


 * Hikari Ku, a warrior prince who sets out to reclaim the throne of his kingdom and usher in an age of peace.

Each character has between four and five story chapters focused solely on themselves, and two "Crossed Paths" chapters, a new feature in which two travelers collaborate on a goal.

In the course of each character's story, players become aware of a shadowy organisation called the Moonshade Order, which worships the dark god Vide the Wicked, and is attempting to bring about eternal night based on Vide's teachings. After all travelers' stories have been completed, an epilogue becomes available in which the Order's plans come to fruition and Vide is resurrected, only to be thwarted by the travelers. If an optional side story is completed, players can also fight Galdera the Fallen, the final boss of the original Octopath Traveler, as a superboss.

Development
The game was first announced during a Nintendo Direct broadcast on September 13, 2022, with first live gameplay footage being shown a few days later at the Tokyo Game Show. Like the prior 2 entries in the series, Octopath Traveler and Octopath Traveler: Champions of the Continent, the game uses a graphical style dubbed as "HD-2D" - an approach that recreates the 2D pixel-based graphics style of the 16-bit era of video games, and portrays it in a high-definition, 3D diorama style. At the time of announcement, the game was already estimated to be approximately 90% complete. The game was released on February 24, 2023, for the Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, and Windows platforms. A limited edition of the game with figurines of all eight main characters and an art book was also offered. A demo of the game was made available on Nintendo Switch, PlayStation and Steam prior its release. Xbox One and Xbox Series X/S versions were announced during Tokyo Game Show 2023. The Xbox versions released on June 5, 2024; the June 5 release included a patch for all platforms that included various difficult superbosses to fight in the postgame after clearing the main story.

Critical reception
Octopath Traveler II received "generally favorable" reviews, according to review aggregator Metacritic.

While enjoying the visuals, Polygon criticized the narrative of the main party, "When fighting, considering their strengths and weaknesses and using their abilities in concert during turn-based battles is crucial. But come to a main story scene, and everyone but the single person directly involved will suddenly disappear."

Others were more positive, with RPGFan asserting that the game improves on its predecessor, "Octopath Traveler II takes everything good about the first game, turns it up to 11, adds a few quality-of-life updates, and is, in fact, the superior game overall."

Sales
The Nintendo Switch version of Octopath Traveler II was the second bestselling retail game during its first week of release in Japan, with 53,995 physical copies being sold across the country. The PlayStation 5 version was the eighth bestselling retail game in Japan throughout the same week, with 14,422 physical copies being sold, while the PlayStation 4 version sold 7,269 physical copies in the country, making it the eleventh bestselling retail game of the week in the country.

The game sold 1 million units by June 2023.