Octopath Traveler 2 review: gorgeous JRPG, huge storytelling void

Lots of Octopath Traveler 2’s most memorable moments are about human connection. Castti, the amnesiac apothecary, studying about her misplaced previous from her earlier sufferers; Hikari, the exiled prince, monitoring down and reconnecting together with his allies; Agnea, the dancer, desirous to carry pleasure to individuals by placing on reveals in her mom’s reminiscence.

There’s much more to the eight characters and their adventures, however it’s these moments of interpersonal care that stand out, as a result of they solid an unavoidable query on the sport: Why aren’t any of those protagonists really pals?

For dozens of hours, some mixture of 4 out of the eight can be collectively. Whereas exploring the beautiful, meticulously drawn 2.5D world, they run collectively in a neat little row. When preventing, contemplating their strengths and weaknesses and utilizing their skills in live performance throughout turn-based battles is essential. However come to a predominant story scene, and everybody however the single particular person immediately concerned will abruptly disappear.

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The occasional immediate to see “journey banter,” whereby two characters abruptly stand in a foggy nowhere world overlaid on their earlier place and awkwardly chat as in the event that they’ve only in the near past met, does nothing to alleviate this downside. Neither do the occasional, shallow aspect tales that see characters’ paths cross. In truth, these really feel extra jarring than having all people disappear, as a result of they neither develop nor showcase any plausible connections.

The identical separation apparently existed within the unique Octopath Traveler (which I haven’t performed), and I ponder whether it, too, felt so at odds with the story the broader recreation was telling. Each one of many eight narratives weaves in aspect characters so skillfully that their relationships with the respective protagonists really feel just like the core of the sport. In contrast to the journey banter, their brief time on display is put to good use constructing histories and personalities for the protagonists. The sprites are additionally value highlighting right here, with unimaginable expressivity packed into the tiny figures: mannerisms, gestures, even actions like smoking all add up shortly.

However whereas the liveliness of the aspect solid is improbable, it solely additional exacerbates the isolation of the primary crew from each other. When, for instance, characters from an earlier chapter seem to cheer on Agnea at her large dance, the absence of any of her touring companions feels stark. Conversely, when somebody threatens the apothecary Castti and tells her to go to a shady constructing alone, seeing three different protagonists abruptly seem alongside her undermines the strain.

Picture: Purchase, Sq. Enix/Sq. Enix by way of Polygon

It’s a disgrace, as a result of this odd sense of disconnect apart, Octopath Traveler 2 is compelling. You journey throughout an expansive world, recruiting new characters and diving into their quests, fixing large and small issues for varied cities and teams as you go.

The eight tales vary from satisfactory (Partitio the service provider’s need to carry pleasant capitalism all over the place he goes might be essentially the most uneven) to tacky however pleasant (Ochette the beastling hunter may not have a lot of a personality arc, however she’s cute and enjoyable), to cleverly transferring (there’s a boss combat in scholar Osvald’s route that makes use of mechanical storytelling to unimaginable impact). Taken collectively, they’ve an anchoring thematic core about separating private ambition from damaging greed, whereas their selection creates a world stuffed with historic, magical, societal, and non secular element.

That world can also be gorgeous to take a look at, and if it’s generally convoluted to navigate due to the winding paths, obscure world map, and even vaguer radar, that’s not a lot an issue as it’s an excuse: to spend extra time wanting on the sun-dappled bushes, marveling on the moonlit snow, or listening to the stellar soundtrack. It additionally doesn’t matter if touring takes a bit longer and runs you into extra enemies, since you’re going to want to grind anyway. The primary chapters’ really useful ranges take a giant bounce in each the mid- and endgame, in order that additional XP picked up via backtracking continues to be going to good use.

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Though this interstitial grinding wears skinny towards the tip of the sport — you cease unlocking attention-grabbing skills at a sure level — the pacing of the chapters themselves is snappy. Most final an hour or two and contain catching up with the multifarious solid of aspect characters, maybe utilizing a number of the protagonists’ particular expertise to progress, after which tackling a grand boss combat.

Puzzling your approach via these encounters begins effectively earlier than you get into the combat itself: workforce composition, tools, and expertise are all essential. For instance, Osvald’s mage powers deal totally different sorts of elemental harm, however bashing somebody together with his workers isn’t going to do a lot bodily hurt. Hikari, then again, can do large harm with a single swing, so long as he has a powerful sufficient sword, and maybe a buff from Castti. Balancing these parts all through the combat may be very satisfying when it really works, though shedding focus close to the tip of those lengthy battles can shortly snowball into one thing devastating. That is particularly an issue towards the tip of the sport, when problem spikes grow to be extra prevalent and the fights grow to be even longer. (It additionally didn’t assist that I bumped into a couple of UI bugs that prevented necessary textual content from telling me what sure skills and objects did.)

Picture: Purchase, Sq. Enix/Sq. Enix by way of Polygon

Quibbles apart, these boss fights are usually satisfying conclusions to their chapters, notably as a result of most bosses’ skills mirror their characterization within the story. A comically evil medic may concentrate on debuffing and poisoning the occasion, whereas an enemy basic skilled in swordplay might be simply going to hit very arduous and fairly often.

However at the same time as I benefit from the thought put into every combat’s design, I discover myself coming again to the dearth of connection between the protagonists. When one protagonist has to combat a childhood buddy, their similarities in assaults and technique is emotionally efficient; and there are a number of related examples of this consideration to mechanical trigger and narrative impact. However these poignant moments stay muffled by the gulf between the group — their momentum halted by the silence between the principal actors.

Anybody who’s spent any time in fandom circles is aware of how a bit of goes a great distance in terms of filling within the gaps in character relationships. A hand on a shoulder, a passing praise, a bit of joke — something could be gas for the creativeness. There was loads of time in Octopath Traveler 2, throughout exploration and fight, when my thoughts was free to wander and would have achieved many of the work — if there was any basis for me to construct from. However I can’t assist feeling that imaginative gas wasn’t put into the script to start with. With out it, Octopath Traveler 2 is fantastically realized, however there’s a gap at its middle.

Octopath Traveler 2 can be launched on Feb. 24 on PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Nintendo Swap, and Home windows PC. The sport was reviewed on Swap utilizing a pre-release obtain code offered by Sq. Enix. Vox Media has affiliate partnerships. These don’t affect editorial content material, although Vox Media might earn commissions for merchandise bought by way of affiliate hyperlinks. You will discover extra details about Polygon’s ethics coverage right here.