It's certainly better than what I've seen in other genres such as strategy games like the "Men of War" series(decent games if a bit wonky, but horrible title for the franchise in my opinion. It's two words, and very to the point to the nature of the game itself. ![]() "Octopath Traveller" is not that much worst than "Final Fantasy" or "Dragon Quest" for example. to be honest, I personally feel different about it. ![]() Name-wise I know some people would dislike it but. I could stare at this game's water effects for hours. I imagine the game could make a profit without even hitting a million copies sold. ![]() And with what development costs for this title must have been. This said, the game -is- said to be aimed at the crowd of 30s-40s years old players who originally enjoyed the likes of FFVI back in the SNES era so this "upgraded 16bits 2D-HD" is very aimed at this very specific crowd. If anything, still screenshots does not render the style justice I feel. Fri 6th Jul It was a bit rough for me art-style wiseat first, but seeing the shaders with clouds passing over the land and other lighting effects from sun/torches/etc that add motion really adds a lot to it I feel.What’s more impressive is how this excellence is consistent, appearing even in the tracks that dabble in other genres, like jazz or rock. Just about every track on here manages to capture an exhilarating feeling of splendor and adventure, and the usage of a full orchestra lends the music that extra bit of gravitas to really drive the emotion of it all home. To match the looks, Square has also produced one of the most emotional and excellent soundtracks that we’ve heard in a JRPG yet. Seeing the simple sprites juxtaposed against the realistic sunbeams filtering through trees or reflecting off the rushing water of a river makes for many striking and picturesque moments that rarely fail to astound that capture button has been getting a lot of use lately. Detailed 16-bit sprites that look straight of the mid-'90s are utilised, but combined with a 3D world and a lighting and effects engine that instills the retro visuals with a crisp modern flair. The visual style has been dubbed by the developers as 'HD-2D', which is quite a fitting term for what’s on display. We’d be remiss not to mention the incredible presentation, too Square has absolutely knocked it out of the park with this one. Choosing which enemies to break, and when to break them, quickly becomes an important aspect to consider in battle, and keeps things feeling dynamic and exciting. Once the enemy has been hit enough times by their weakness, they’re ‘broken’, which removes their ability to act in the current or next turn and allows you to do double damage. Combat is handled in a standard turn-based affair, but things are deepened by each enemy being weak to certain attacks, be it knives, swords, bows, lightning, etc. Similarly, the combat is a delight to experience, keeping things simple and straightforward, while sprinkling in elements of deeper strategy that’ll keep you from going on autopilot too easily. This episodic and laidback approach to storytelling is quite refreshing, and we can’t wait to see how things further develop as storylines begin to crossover. There’s no central protagonist here, no dark lord or other big bad that you’re directly working to resist, just a group of unique people with varying goals who happen upon each other by chance. You simply wander the land, exploring dungeons and leveling characters, until you eventually stumble upon a town with the next party character and you choose to help them with whatever their immediate goal is. The interesting thing about all of this is that there’s no contrived plotline like many JRPGs tend to do. Though you have to pick one of the characters to start with, each of the others can be obtained in time and you can experience their origin stories, too, in a flashback sequence. ![]() The bizarre name of the game stems from how there are eight characters you can play as, each with distinct storylines, motivations, and supporting characters. One of the immediately striking things about Octopath Traveler, and something that doesn’t seem to be talked about enough, is the non-linear and unconventional approach to storytelling. With Octopath Traveler, the company is aiming to go back to its roots, offering an experience that manages to mix the best parts of the great JRPGs of yore with new gameplay standards that keep things from feeling too archaic. Still, if there were ever a company that could pull it off, it would be Square Enix. In 2018, it can be rather difficult for a JRPG to set itself apart from the crowd, even more so if it attempts to emulate the style or look of the grand adventures of the 8-bit and 16-bit eras.
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