For those of you who have gotten Octopath Traveler II and have continued to play it, you’ve likely been enjoying it for almost a month. The title was one of the most-anticipated games of the year, thanks to the success and acclaim the original title got back in 2018. Square Enix had its team work hard to create an experience that would look and feel like a reference to old-school RPGs and yet change them in a way no one expected. The team did an interview with Push Square, and they revealed that one of their goals for the title was to do more than the original.
That revelation came from producer Masashi Takahashi, who said:
“When we released the original Octopath Traveler, I said that it was “a battle against people’s memories of pixel games they had played in the past”, but this time round it was very much a battle against the first game that we created. We aimed to evolve the formula rather than change it, keeping as much of what people liked from the first game as possible and trying to fully realise all the things that we were unable to do in it”
One of the new things they did in the sequel is letting you get a ship you can sail around in. Or in the battle system, having a “latent power” ability that can drastically change the flow of the fight. Those that have played the game know that the sequel doesn’t connect to the original game story-wise, as it’s in an entirely new land with new characters, cultures, etc.
That was part of the plan, according to Takahashi:
“We felt that it was essential to set the game in a completely new world in order to give the player that feeling of excitement and anticipation when exploring it, wondering what lies down the next path or who could be living in the next town.”
By doing that, they ensured that if you were new to the franchise, you didn’t have to play the first title to enjoy the second.
The team also teased that players shouldn’t just go down the expected path but wander around the world and see all the people they can meet. Some characters can bring extra people into their party, and they have “hidden powers” that can do significant damage or heal others.
That’s why many players have said they’ve put well over 100 hours into Octopath Traveler II.
