Octopath Traveler 0 is repurposed from the gacha mobile game Champions of the Continent, although it removes the gacha mechanics and builds upon it. I was curious to see how Octopath Traveler 0 takes forward the series after the excellent Octopath Traveler II and how it compares to the first game given its mobile game roots. At its best, Octopath Traveler 0 is a great entry and prequel to the series with a more cohesive narrative and engaging combat. At worst, it feels like an episodic title that plays it safe. In any case, JRPG fans will appreciate this high-quality offering that surpasses the first game in the series, although doesn’t reach the heights of Octopath Traveler II.
Wealth, Fame, and Power
In true Octopath fashion, Octopath Traveler 0 features a hefty story of about 70-80 hours in length. A completionist will reach close to 100 hours of enjoyment. The story focuses on a customizable hero and his quest against three main villains in possession of divine rings within the land of Orsterra. The narrative structure falls within a prologue followed by three main acts called “Wealth, Fame, and Power” that each symbolises the villains and their themes. Unlike previous Octopath games that focused on eight separate personal quests, Octopath Traveler 0 has a more central narrative because of this, with linked quests that you can also approach in different order without sacrificing the overall plot. This gave me more freedom to approach quests, and in fact I started with Fame as my first arc without feeling that I missed anything.
The narrative is compelling and the villains are the highlight. It is a darker tale compared to its predecessors, hitting players with emotional beats from the get-go. Without spoiling anything, it is a story about loss, revenge, and rebuilding set in motion by the villains — rich noble Herminia (Wealth), deranged playwright Auguste (Fame), and false hero Tytos (Power). All of these are vying for control of Osterra in their own way. They are not one dimensional villains. Rather, the game explores the morality and consequences behind their lust. Some villains are purposefully over-the-top, but Octopath Traveler 0 does great at keeping them grounded in relevant themes of greed, political manipulation, exploitation, and more.
Along your journey you can recruit over 30 playable companions, including childhood friends, allies, and some familiar faces from the first Octopath game. Most of them bring their own compelling motivations and emotional storytelling. Unfortunately, this is where the previous gacha/mobile roots rear their head. There is a sense of quantity over quality when it comes to companions. We rarely get to engage with them on a deeper level, making the companion system under-developed and more of a collect-a-thon for combat rather than narrative reasons. This is an issue that the first Octopath game especially struggled with, whereas Octopath Traveler II was proactive in developing more satisfying character arcs and companion interactions. I hope Square Enix will learn to develop more engaging companion interactions for future titles than what Octopath Traveler 0 is able to offer.
Unfortunately, the pacing drags due to its long overarching story coupled with grindy leveling and companion collect-a-thons. The narrative is affected as a result. I often struggled to push the story forward in my aim to achieve a decent level for progression. The pacing is also hindered by the uneven length of the acts. Nonetheless, if you are fine with a slow burn story, then Octopath Traveler 0 will treat you to the most compelling and highest stake narrative in the series.
If it ain’t broke…
The combat system is the usual combination of deep and strategic Octopath gameplay that builds on the Break and Boost system. Through the Break system, enemies are vulnerable to specific attacks and weapons, which deplete and break their shield, leaving them vulnerable and unable to attack for a turn. Boost Points can be used to power up attacks, stack multiple hits, and charge spells. This is the bread and butter of the Octopath series and Octopath Traveler 0 largely plays it safe by sticking to this.
Nonetheless, there is some development of the core mechanics. We can now bring in eight characters into battles, across two rows — the front row actively participates in combat, while the back row recovers HP, Boost Points, and more by standing ready to be swapped mid-battle. This offers a satisfying dynamic where you have to strategize multiple moves ahead, while more difficult bosses will really make you think about how best you can use your party composition to its full potential.
This versatility ties in nicely with the job classes. Your main character can choose between eight different jobs that you can freely switch between as you unlock jobs by spending Job Points earned in battles. These jobs range from warrior to thief, merchant, and more, each offering different weapons, support skills, and playstyles. As you’d expect, having a well-rounded party comprising a tank, healer, damage dealer, and support will yield the best results for breaking shields. However, there are several jobs that I found to be weaker, specifically some support jobs. I found out that I could brute force my way through most encounters using an attack-oriented party.
This brings me to the issue of difficulty imbalance. Most normal enemy encounters are straightforward and easy. I rarely used both of my rows during normal combat, especially in the early to mid-game. There is nonetheless a difficulty spike that is abrupt in the mid-game which will test everything you learned about the Octopath combat mechanics and jobs. I would have preferred a gradual step into this. Boss fights especially become more complex. You will have to use both rows of your party and adapt to layered mechanics, such as multiple enemy shield types and status effects. Making combat more complex is a good idea, it’s just that the implementation could have been better.
On the other hand, town-building is a pleasant surprise. After a certain event in the story, you will be faced with rebuilding a town. It is more than a side-activity because you can recruit NPCs and house them. The more you rebuild your town and recruit more characters, the more they can help you with resources, materials, and quest items. The building takes place on a grid and while the town-building mechanic is not as developed as what you’d find in cozy games like Animal Crossing, it still feels satisfying to catch a breather as you watch your town develop before your eyes.
Marvelous!
The series popularised the HD-2D art style, and Octopath Traveler 0 certainly does not disappoint. The game features beautiful depth-of-field and bloom effects that grace the varied 3D environments, be they snowy landscapes, glistening seas, gloomy caves, and much more. While Octopath Traveler 0 often outshines the first game in the series, it falls short of the gorgeous visuals of Octopath Traveller II. This is likely due to the limitations of being a repurposed mobile game.
In terms of audio, the soundtrack is absolutely beautiful, expertly composed by series veteran Yasunori Nishiki, who composed the previous Octopath entries. Yasunori has a deep understanding of what makes Octopath tick and this is best exemplified by his reuse of several themes from the first game to create a sense of nostalgia and continuity. The voice acting is great for the most part, although I encountered audio compression issues where voices and effects were muffled. Fortunately, Square Enix announced they are working on fixing this audio issue.
Octopath Traveler 0 runs great on the Xbox Series X at up to 4K resolution and 120 FPS (if your monitor supports 120 Hz, otherwise the target is 60 FPS). In my playthrough, I have not encountered any major or game-breaking issues. However, the game lacks HDR to really make the colors look more vibrant. This is still a beautiful looking and playing Octopath even if it does not match the presentation of Octopath Traveler II.
Summary
Octopath Traveler 0 is a great entry in the series. While it may not reach the heights of Octopath Traveler II in terms of presentation and character arcs, it surpasses the first game on all accounts. Octopath Traveler 0 still shows signs of its mobile game roots through the quantity over quality approach to questing and companions, pacing issues, and presentation. Nonetheless, the game benefits from a coherent and compelling narrative featuring the highest stakes in the series, while playing it safe on the tactical gameplay front. If you are an Octopath or JRPG fan in general, I highly recommend Octopath Traveler 0. For those who are new or just curious about the series, then this is your best introduction to Osterra.
Octopath Traveler 0 is out now on Xbox Series X|S, PC, PS4, PS5, Nintendo Switch, and Nintendo Switch 2.
The Review
Great
