Square Enix is porting many of its games from the Switch to the Switch 2, including the Octopath Traveler series. As expected, these ports offer no meaningful upgrades for existing owners, so don’t expect save transfers or upgrade paths.
I’ve been revisiting both titles on the Switch 2 to see how well they run, and unsurprisingly, they’re both great on the console, but it still stings that I can’t revisit my existing saves to play around.
The Octopath Traveler Series Is On Switch 2
Eight characters have distinct paths to choose from, and while the variety is welcome, not everyone is created equal. You can choose who you want, but you’re then stuck with that initial choice for four chapters, or roughly eight hours. Every character has a backstory, and they all start off strong; the developers give you the freedom to go your own way and branch out into the world however you want. Who you pick first matters, and while your choice doesn’t affect the narrative, you can still enjoy everyone’s story in its entirety.
Each character has separate arcs with beginnings, middles, and ends. There is no overarching plot here, so don’t go in expecting it. The sequel does a better job. That didn’t happen, and it left me weary but impressed that the developers wanted to keep their characters separate from one another. This feels more like an anthology or collection of short stories from the world of Osterra, with the player dictating small details on how things play out.
The sequel, Octopath Traveler 2, is a much better game. Compared to its predecessor, Octopath Traveler 2 has better-written characters you’ll want to use actively in battle, but party management is a mess. In the first Octopath Traveler, only four active party members gained experience, leaving the others to fall behind.
This trend continues in the sequel, which, paired with low starting levels, makes grinding necessary again if you want to keep the entire team evenly levelled. Archaic design decisions still show up today, and this one stands out more than others — I’d like to see games stop using this to inflate playtime, but it still persists.
Verdict
You can’t go wrong playing the Octopath Traveler series. I love these titles and what they’ve been able to do for RPGs and despite the first game being the weakest game in the series, the sequel is an impressive follow up with an equally impressive cast. My tune hasn’t changed even years later — you can’t go wrong with either game in your library. It just feels anti-consumer existing owners can’t have an upgrade path for their purchases.
[The publisher provided a copy of the game for review purposes.]
Reviewed on: Switch 2
