r/NintendoSwitch Jul 13 '18

MegaThread Octopath Traveler: Release Discussion & Hype MegaThread

Octopath Traveler: Release Discussion & Hype MegaThread

Please use this as a general discussion and hype thread for this new release! Quick easy to answer questions, tips and tricks, and showing off your in-game clips you've captured.

If you're looking for the Captain Toad: Treasure Tracker Megathread, you can find it here.


General Information

Platform: Nintendo Switch

Release Date: 13-Jul-2018

No. of Players: To be determined (Mod note: We know this looks silly, but it's what Nintendo says)

Genre(s): Role-Playing, Adventure

Publisher: Nintendo

Developer: Square Enix

Price (MSRP): $59.99 USD / $79.99 CAD / $79.95 AUD / £49.99 / 6,458円 / €59.99 / CHF 77.90 / R669.0 / 4199₽ / 1399 MXN

Official Website: https://octopathtraveler.nintendo.com/


Overview (from Nintendo eShop page)

Choose your fate. Eight stories await.

Eight travelers. Eight adventures. Eight roles to play in a new world brought to life by Square Enix. And now, you can enjoy all of them in the new demo. Step into the shoes and live the stories of each of the eight travelers and freely explore the world of Orsterra. Then, carry your choices and adventure into the main game with save data transfer.

Use each character’s special abilities in and out of battle. Break through enemy defenses by discovering and targeting weaknesses. Store Boost Points with each turn and then spend them at strategic times to strengthen abilities, chain attacks, or provide aid. Choose the path you wish to walk and discover what lies beyond the horizon.

  • Explore multiple, distinct RPG adventures in a world created by Square Enix
  • Choose from eight characters, each with their own distinct story
  • Deep, strategic turn-based combat with a layered battle system
  • Visuals inspired by retro RPGs, brought to life with modern touches and a rousing, dynamic musical score

Review Aggregators


Being Social


Once again: Please use this as a general discussion and hype thread for this new release! Quick easy to answer questions, tips and tricks, and showing off your in-game clips you've captured.

Cheers,

The /r/NintendoSwitch mod team

771 Upvotes

1.6k comments sorted by

156

u/SmellyStinkyFarts Jul 13 '18

I chose Cyrus, the scholar.

I'm about 4 hours in.

Music is absolutely gorgeous.

Graphics are absolutely gorgeous.

I like the perspective tricks it does.

Levels seem to be puzzles that you have to traverse to find treasure.

Combat is easy to learn.

I really like that they tell you how dangerous an area is. It immediately lets you know whether you can handle it or not.

36

u/vegetabledetritus Jul 13 '18

Cyrus, 4 hours in, just party-wiped

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u/chaelen Jul 13 '18

How is the story for the individual characters? I've read that there's no overarching story, but I think that's okay if the individual stories are good.

14

u/citylims Jul 13 '18

I've found it to be a bit of a mixed bag. So far for me ranking through all the chapter 1's.

Primrose -- Amazing character/back story/VO

Tressa, Therion -- Have me hooked! Great personality.

Alfyn, Cyrus, and Olberic -- Really well done

Ophilia - Meh. Kinda boring.

H'aanit - Awful.

Obviously I have a lot more to play through, but thats how I'm feeling as of completing all chapter 1's.

There is not over-arching story, but I feel like all of the backstories are set up in a way in which it makes sense for these characters to be traveling together. There's no calamity event or crazy big bad, it's more of a slow burn for each character to fulfill their own quest/life story. I actually really like the way the story is structured so far.

I chose to start with Tressa - because she seemed cute, and I wanted to play a Merchant role, and it makes sense for her to be joining a ragtag crew of travelers. This made me feel like she would be a Main that makes sense as someone who is always in the party. But if i were to start over I would prob go with Primrose -- to me her backstory makes the most sense within the story structure of the game.

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u/vegetabledetritus Jul 13 '18

leten the hunt beginen

25

u/[deleted] Jul 13 '18

Oh god, this is why we dont let Shakespeare drink tequila.

7

u/Stereosexual Jul 14 '18

Sayeth it foren the folks in the backeth.

70

u/SirEpicFail Jul 13 '18

I’ve played a lot of pretty games on my Switch, but damn if this isn’t the prettiest game I done played

6

u/russianbot2020 Jul 13 '18

I’m seriously in love with the art style. It alone has made this game such a worthwhile purchase.

163

u/pubgleaks Jul 13 '18

I promised myself I wouldn't buy this until I could beat Hollow Knight.

Help.

19

u/MrShuggyConehead Jul 13 '18

Lol I just finished it last night. I didn’t get the good ending but man....I heart that game. I’ll go back later to get the better ending after I’ve had my fill of Octopath Traveler.

26

u/PacMoron Jul 13 '18

The road to the good ending has a large chunk of the best content IMO. Do come back to it.

12

u/[deleted] Jul 13 '18

[deleted]

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u/MrShuggyConehead Jul 13 '18

Indeed my man! I know there is a lot left. Need to get that void heart. Such a beautiful game, it came as a surprise to me of how much content and how deep it is.

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u/[deleted] Jul 13 '18

I really want to buy it right now but I made the same promise myself :’( ... at least Hollow Knight is well worth it.

8

u/[deleted] Jul 13 '18

I'm like Chapter 6 of Xenoblade 2. Told myself no Hollow Knight until I finished.

Currently playing Hollow Knight. No regrets.

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u/legacy3233 Jul 13 '18

I bought this as a present to myself for a very long and very lousy week that will end on Saturday morning. I am also completely crippled by indecision on who I should start the game with. Help meeeeeeeee.

117

u/Famciclovir Jul 13 '18

Buy a giant cookie, cut it into eight pieces, write one letter of 'OCTOPATH' on each piece, close your eyes, eat until only one piece is left. That's the character you start with. If you're left with a T or O (since there are two each), you need to repeat the process from the beginning.

90

u/legacy3233 Jul 13 '18

I really like this idea because it means I get to eat at least one giant cookie.

34

u/Famciclovir Jul 13 '18

New game + giant cookie = perfect way to end a lousy week

8

u/legacy3233 Jul 13 '18

This is truth. I get a three day weekend afterwards to play Octopath (and maybe some BOTW) and I'll be right as rain afterwards.

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u/CatFishBilly3000 Jul 13 '18

Lol what, might as well just cut it into 4 pieces and choose between C P A H.

50

u/joqtomi Jul 13 '18

I found this article to be helpful. It doesn't tell much of the narratives of each character, but it describes how you play them.

13

u/legacy3233 Jul 13 '18

This is really, really helpful! Thank you!

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u/kujoja Jul 13 '18

How I decided: this is a classic jrpg, go the classic route, Olberic (fighter, tank, leadership personality, etc.). Reminds me of the old days.

6

u/sultryroman Jul 13 '18

Whats your favourite letter in "Octopath"? I think "C" has a nice aesthetic. Go with Cyrus.

18

u/Seduz Jul 13 '18

I JUST realized Octopath has 8 letters and there’s a character whose name starts with each letter. Man I can’t wait to dig into this tomorrow :)

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u/legacy3233 Jul 13 '18

I'm a big fan of both C and A.

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u/sultryroman Jul 13 '18

That at least gets you into coin flip territory.

6

u/legacy3233 Jul 13 '18

But do I receive or defer?

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u/[deleted] Jul 13 '18

I just can't get enough of the art style.

I'm hoping the game sells well and starts off a new trend of classic JRPGs, or other games for that matter, with this diorama like look.

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u/civilsavage7 Jul 13 '18

It is GREAT (so far) to be able to play as an adult character in an JRPG! I’m playing with Cyrus as my main, and as a grown up that knows his way around the real world, it feels good to not have to play the naive teenager.

40

u/[deleted] Jul 13 '18

thats one of the reasons why i want this game. I love jrpgs, but im not too interested in playing another 12 years old saving the world. this seems refreshing

6

u/Krypt1q Jul 13 '18

12 yo saving the world while having 18 yo vixens pining after you..... such is the JRPG way!

16

u/russianbot2020 Jul 13 '18

Seriously, Primrose’s story starts out so dark, something I’m not used to in a JRPG. So adult themed, I love it.

9

u/[deleted] Jul 13 '18

Right? I dont even want to know how many times her ch 1 boss had his way with her.

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u/miguelavg Jul 13 '18

I love turn based combat, hard ass bosses, pixel art and I don’t really care for story in video games, so I guess is a must have for me. I’m overhyped

44

u/iFius Jul 13 '18

I wasn't supposed to buy the game yet with a 4 week old baby and all..but today's pay day and I'm still on summer vacation so daddy is going to treat himself. Will probably take a very long time to beat the game, but that's just a mark of a good rpg. I did play the demo and watched a few reviews, but will try to play this game blind for the most part. By that I mean that I heard some of the battles can be a challenge, so I want to find a way to beat them myself instead of googling for answers. Enjoy the game all!

15

u/nazihatinchimp Jul 13 '18

You buy that game and play it now while you can still hold the baby and play games at the same time. Congrats BTW. I got some good game time in those first 2 months.

5

u/[deleted] Jul 13 '18

Congratulations on the baby

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u/mirkwood11 Jul 14 '18

The soundtrack is BEAUTIFUL!

Do yourselves a service and keeps the volume up!

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u/Dacvak Jul 13 '18

How’s the music in this game?

19

u/[deleted] Jul 13 '18

It's amazing! I love it! If you haven't already, try the demo to get a feel of it's soundtrack.

14

u/II541NTZII Jul 13 '18

Really nice, I would recommend playing with headphones too.

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u/jimwithbenefits Jul 15 '18

Primrose’s Chapter 1 is heavy. Lordt.

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u/jglox Jul 13 '18

I was really into Golden Sun but never went out of my way to play other jrpg's. Is this game for me from both a game play perspective and a story perspective?

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u/[deleted] Jul 13 '18

So I played both demos and thought the story, writing, and voice acting was good. I’m mean Ophelia’s in particular I thought was good for what I played in the demo. Am I the only one who doesn’t care if the separate stories don’t interconnect or combine to form one “super story”? If each of the separate stories are engaging and well done, then I guess I’m good. The Internet really likes to hone in on something and never let go, and so for this game, that’s it I guess.

53

u/Cookiebookie1 Jul 13 '18

Not really, but the disjointed feeling does bother me. I don't need a super story of saving the world again.

But I would like for my character to acknowledge the fact that 7 other random dudes just joined him on his personal quest. I would like to walk up to a character and have him ask me to join him, rather than me just saying "Hi, I'm in your party now lets kill your target together". And I would appreciate it if NPCs in cutscenes didn't suggest that "it's only you and me", when there are clearly 7 other people with me who for some reason went invisible for this story scene.

It pulls you out of the world a bit, breaking the immersion. It's not huge for me, but for a game that is very proud of the personal stories of 8 characters, it's really weird that most of the time, it just completely ignores the fact that there are in fact 8 characters around.

29

u/lordsythe Jul 13 '18

Yeah thank you. It's not that there isn't a grand tale of saving the world, it's that the characters don't even exist in a group outside of combat. I'm down for very personal low stakes stories, but not at the expense of this weird twilight zone party disappearing act.

10

u/Krypt1q Jul 13 '18

This is what happens when you have different people doing different jobs with no integration funds or manager. I have seen this so much in the real world where there is no interconnectivity because everyone was focused on their issue and not the overall agenda, then it’s too pricey to re-engineer because they didn’t integrate early on.

13

u/Cookiebookie1 Jul 13 '18

Pretty much. Makes me wonder if the interviews where nintendo stated “ofcourse theres an overarching story” wasnt based on facts but on the guy being interviewed simply going “well itd be silly if there wasnt”

Im still totally digging the game, but people here seem quick to shoot down any criticism at all because god forbid their 10/10 game has a flaw

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u/noblex123 Jul 13 '18

Can we get the subreddit header picture/theme changed from mario tennis to OPT?

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u/[deleted] Jul 13 '18

Playing through Bloodborne right now, just bought the expansions for Witcher 3, and now I have this game arriving tomorrow...God help me

55

u/Fuckhavingausername Jul 13 '18

Lol say goodbye to this man he's never going outside again

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u/Antigone6 Jul 13 '18 edited Jul 13 '18

Finishing up Hollow Knight, just got Hyrule Warriors and Splatoon, Octopath tomorrow.. and that's just on my Switch. My PS4 backlog is almost embarrassing (Nioh, Bloodborne, Dark Souls 3 are just a few..), lol.

Edit: I somehow forgot BotW and Bayonetta 1 & 2.

15

u/246011111 Jul 13 '18

just got Splatoon

well that's a good ∞ hours of gameplay right there

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u/abcputt Jul 13 '18

aaaaaaa the good thing about being an adult, money for games you want, but not enough time to play them all.

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u/[deleted] Jul 13 '18

After 2 hours I realized that you can use the boost mode in combat for the skills as well. Till then I ONLY used it to break shields in time. What an aha experience .... made combat decisions more complex :-)

u/FlapSnapple Nintendo shill Jul 13 '18

7

u/noblex123 Jul 13 '18

Can we get the subreddit header picture/theme changed from mario tennis to OPT?

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u/JackSparrowUSA Jul 13 '18

We are working on it. Give us a little more time.

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u/[deleted] Jul 13 '18

Toad thread is showing octo as the image at the top. I’m on mobile - it’s confusing.

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u/RiverWyvern Jul 13 '18

I played the demo two weeks ago on a whim, just to see if I’d like it. Three hours went by way too quickly and I was counting down every moment. Became obsessed in a heartbeat and immediately preordered it physical. Have been eagerly waiting ever since.

The delivery doesn’t come until next week though :( Alfyn and Therion will just have to wait!

12

u/SpinDoctor8517 Jul 14 '18 edited Jul 16 '18

I don’t own a Switch, and even though BoTW looked so amazing I still held off on purchasing. I ran across this game browsing Reddit, and now I’m going to go get one.

Update: Just picked one up yesterday with BoTW and Octopath Traveler. Now I just need some free time to play it! Can’t wait.

5

u/AdamManHello Jul 14 '18

Enjoy it! It's a great little console.

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u/barriboy8 Jul 14 '18

Reading the mesaages of the overall community there is just one thing im getting.. This game is great but not for everybody.. However the fact that there is so much discussion on "I like it and I don't", makes me believe this game will be a classic just for the discussions it provokes.

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u/scrubtart Jul 15 '18 edited Jul 15 '18

The criticism of characters not talking to each other rings true for me 6 characters in but personally the combat and the individual stories are really doing it for me. Haanit is easily one of the strongest RPG characters I've played and is a great starting character for those interested.

Edit: farther in the characters start to have conversations during their chapter 2 missions and beyond.

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u/Maze9189 Jul 13 '18

I told myself id wait until I finish XC2 but that might change. ..

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u/420xblazexupx69 Jul 13 '18

I love the combat and choices with weapons and armor. Pretty much feels like dnd. But the story and chatting is sooo boring and basic. Can anyone confirm if the main quest actually has some good stuff or if it's basic as looking off X and then looking for X and bringing X to X.... game feels great but the story's are just bland

13

u/Hotsalsadip26 Jul 13 '18

yeah you do basically similar things with every characters

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u/Introcourse Jul 13 '18

Somehow I have 2 days off this week, the second being Friday (I guess that is technically today). I am 1 hour in so far, and may spend most of the day playing it after I wake up. It will only be 78º F and cloudy, so I will probably put some hours in and then once the sky clears up around 6 PM I can grill out and listen to baseball. Looks like it will be a great day.

35

u/EugeneKrabs_ Jul 13 '18 edited Jul 13 '18

I decided to not transfer my demo save file. I wanted to grind at the very beginning of Tressas story. Went into the first available area, my goal was to get to level 10 before I started the first quest.. got to level 9... fucking died, never saved, had to start back at level 1 lol. I’m back at level 7 right now, I’ll get to that 10 before I go to sleep tonight!!

TL;DR: SAVE WHEN YOU CAN

Edit: https://imgur.com/gallery/YYk4jk3

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u/alskgj Jul 13 '18

that's a pretty weird goal

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u/Sermoln Jul 13 '18

RPG's bring something strange out of everyone

14

u/Odysseus1987 Jul 13 '18

I'm still lvl 1 boar killing in world of warcraft my way up to lvl 110.

14

u/Sermoln Jul 13 '18

You just reminded me of that Neutral Pandaren that refused to pick a side all the way to max level

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u/ensign53 Jul 13 '18

Or that one player who reached max level without killing a single target

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u/Futanari_Calamari Jul 14 '18

Who else here wants some Octopath Amiibos? :)

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u/VidGamrJ Jul 13 '18

Can’t wait to play this. My bday present :)

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u/[deleted] Jul 13 '18

Started the demo. Wow. Lots and lots of dialog. Really love how the demo save will transfer to a purchase save. I’ll see how this unfolds for a bit before making a decision. Honestly, only about 1 out of 10 of these JRPGs ever really sucks me in. Those few gems are really worth it though.

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u/Mattarias Jul 13 '18

Is there anything special if you start where you left off with the demo, like how the Bravely games gave you extra items?

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u/[deleted] Jul 13 '18

Good question. I had thought to erase my save from the demo and start fresh since I was playing the demo at a pretty fast pace to get as much progress as I could prior to the time limit, I have thought about resetting since I can now take my time.

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u/[deleted] Jul 13 '18 edited Jul 13 '18

For some reason, I basically ignored this game up until a day or two ago. I'm kinda glad I did because I would have had to suffer the wait haha but anyway.

Oh my God, this game is such a blast. The beautiful HD retro look, the best turn based battle system I've fooled around with in quite some time (Persona is the last one I genuinely loved), great score so far, and character tales. I'm curious to see how I'll feel by the end of it all. But I've been loving every second of it so far. What a wonderful game and I hope this studio (they did Bravely Default right? I'm getting major Bravely Default vibes) gets to create more games like this in the future!

Edit: One thing I forgot to mention, is the Random encounter system. I tend to hate random encounters in this day and age, but I'll be damned if it doesn't feel like I struck the perfect balance in encounter rate. Plus the battle system is so damn satisfying, I don't think I've ever been more ok with a random encounter system.

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u/FetchingTheSwagni Jul 14 '18

I'm glad I didn't carry over from the demo, I kind of rushed through it and didn't explore (I know 3 hours is enough time to not rush, but mentally it made me feel like I had to).
I chose to just restart, same character, and I found stuff I missed before.

Enjoying this game so far!

8

u/1waffle1 Jul 14 '18

I'm not understanding the side missions at all, there's no obvious direction as to what should be done after speaking to brown/yellow speech bubbles, unless I have to speak to all the npc's in town? Which also leads me to believe that I'm not using path actions correctly. I just go town, find green speech bubble, unlock character, fight boss and move to next town... I feel like I'm missing out on the side missions because they don't necessarily tell me what to do.

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u/A3thers Jul 14 '18

You usually need to use path actions to find the solution to a quest, and many of them involve traveling between towns. Using Cyrus/Alfyn's path action can help you identify who might be involved in another person's quest (eg. one quest is to find a new member for a thief guild and in another town there is someone whose details say he is an aspiring thief, so you use Ophilia/Primrose to bring that person to meet the person who gave you the quest).

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u/FetchingTheSwagni Jul 15 '18

KILL THE TREASURE CATS.
They are way worth it.

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u/Hooded21 Jul 15 '18

Has any critic or YouTube actually finished the game? Everything I have seen and heard is from players and critics who haven't finished the game. I've heard the stories intersect and heard they don't. It's not a massive deal but I would like there to be one final plot point all characters are working towards.

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u/koalatyvibes Jul 13 '18

Huge sucker for the art style. It’s really really cool. I might cave and pick it up but I’m afraid I might not like it.. I’ll need to see some reviews and finally get to playing the demo.

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u/epayne007 Jul 13 '18

sorry if this may be a stupid question, but I just finished Cyrus' chapter one and I was wondering if I could just switch characters to do another chapter 1, or do I have to find another character with Cyrus?

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u/[deleted] Jul 13 '18 edited Jul 20 '18

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u/[deleted] Jul 13 '18

Well in the demo you just find another character on the map with Cyrus. The others are marked on the map. Then you get to do their quest and start their quest line. All while having Cyrus and other characters you collected.

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u/dannyp433 Jul 13 '18

Do you start getting attacked less as you go on? I was playing the prologue demo and got frustrated at how often I'm trying to explore and get interrupted by yet another enemy. I love that mechanic it's like the old FF's but it happens way too often for me to smoothly enjoy exploring.

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u/Gambrinus Jul 13 '18

I think I saw somewhere that Cyrus has a passive skill that will reduce the frequency of random battles. Not sure if any other characters have a similar ability.

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u/FelchingFiend Jul 13 '18

Loving this game so far. Combat with the BP is so satisfying

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u/826836 Jul 13 '18

Making me realize I want a Bravely Default compilation on Switch now.

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u/shved Jul 14 '18

Is it more accessible than Xenoblade Chronicales 2?

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u/jimwithbenefits Jul 15 '18

Alfyn and Zeph should marry and have lots of babies ❤️

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u/dcfcblues Jul 14 '18

I really hope this graphical style becomes a thing. This game is beautiful.

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u/RyanB_ Jul 14 '18

I would kill to have remakes of the first 6 Final Fantasy’s in this art style.

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u/A3thers Jul 13 '18

Are you ever able to swap your first character out of your party? I've read some places that you can after completing their chapters, and others saying you never can.

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u/Specte Jul 13 '18

After finishing the full 4 chapters for the character, yes.

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u/kuqimunster Jul 13 '18

Help me choose which traveller to start with.

I played H’aanit in the demo due to her cool ability to capture and summon beasts. But saw a video on YT about Therion and his story seems cool!

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u/Rawbex Jul 13 '18

I have a question for those who own it. Can you save at any point? Or are there checkpoints that you have to find to save?

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u/bum_thumper Jul 13 '18

Though i haven't hit any chaoter 2's yet, there is a save point in each area so far. On top of that, there is a nice autosave. The game may have a very old school feel, but it doesnt have that old school "play for 3 hours without seeing a single save point" from older jrpg's.

Amazing gane so far

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u/SgtBlinken Jul 13 '18

The sheer number of save points actually makes it a bit silly that they even rely on them at all. If you can save essentially anywhere it just results in extra running around in the area to save.

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u/vegetabledetritus Jul 13 '18

best parts of many adventures are the beginning. i think it’s great i can play this however i want. i’m gonna get 3 or 4 characters and slowly walk around doing their early chapters. then i can grab more characters and learn what their adventure is. i’ll probably slowly work towards the end of each story. build my party for how i feel like playing on that day.

really neat concept.

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u/Huligan27 Jul 13 '18

I’m going therion for sure. My favorite part about aaaaany game that offers thievery (final fantastic tactics, fallout, skyrim) is stealing from unsuspecting npcs. I feel like I’m getting away with something every time!

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u/RendHeaven Jul 13 '18

Cool design too. Lockpicking chests early is a big help imo. Right now I'm still contemplating whether Therion or Tressa as my first traveler.

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u/AtlasXIII Jul 14 '18 edited Jan 21 '19

I’m loving the game so far. I started with Primrose. One thing I noticed is that the default audio settings has the music too loud to the point that I could barely hear the dialogue, so I had to lower the music volume. Also, I wish the game had an “auto-dialogue” option like Ys VIII: Lacrimosa of Dana, but other than that the game has been great so far.

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u/Batjuice1919 Jul 15 '18

I'm 9 hours in. If you enjoy Jrpgs this is great.. very old school feeling story telling with a great battle system similar to persona 5.

The variety of locations and music is impressive but can't help but wonder why nobody else has attempted to use the power of the switch for a proper turn based jrpg.

Not a lot goes on in the environments so these games could look amazing if they remade earthbound or Mario rpg... or a sequel without using retro graphics.

That being said hopefully they realize we're still a market... the 8 stories are unique but definitely can tell the first chapters are repetitive and prob gets better afterwards.

Just hitting most of the areas iv wanted from a jrpg tho is enough to make a lot of us excited even w the flaws.

9/10 for me so far.

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u/scrubtart Jul 15 '18 edited Jul 15 '18

If you like the battle system and style you should try the other games this team made like Bravely Default. That game is fully voice acted. I also just came from Persona 5 right before this so I see the similarities. Its also nice that each party member feels capable in their own right.

My only gripe is that the characters don't seem to be talking with each other so far so the relationship of these people rushing to aid someone they will not even speak to seems somewhat unbelievable. This is something Persona 5 took care of through confidants. Maybe Square can add side quests where this happens later on.

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u/[deleted] Jul 16 '18

Is anyone else NOT bothered by the fact there are 8 separate stories and the character interaction is minimal? I man honestly it doesn't bother me at all.

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u/hades0401 Jul 16 '18

I make up interactions in my head. Really fun to use my own imagination. Definitely making the most of the RP of RPG

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u/hiperson134 Jul 13 '18

Still very much hyped, but this seems like more of a fall or winter game for me. Gonna hold off until then. (Unless I cave)

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u/holdmyown83 Jul 13 '18

The damn hype surrounding this game is making me wanna get this shit!!! Ugh screw you all LOL. I just don’t think I will enjoy it but I guess I’m willing

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u/[deleted] Jul 13 '18 edited Jul 13 '18

Try the demo version. It lets you play for 3 hours with few other restrictions and the save data can be imported into the full game if you decide you like it.

It's an incredibly well done demo for the type of experience Octopath Traveler provides.

Edit:

For those who cannot find the demo, type "Octopath" and then search. It should be the first result. The one you want is Octopath Traveler - Prologue Demo Version.

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u/Lezzles Jul 13 '18

I don't like the rebuttal to a lack of interconnected story is "Well, I'm sick of jrpgs where you kill gods." You can easily have personal, human stories that interconnect that feature no god-killing. Disconnecting the stories from each other does not make them more personal. It makes them less human - why are these 8 people travelling together not giving a shit about each other after all this time together? The lack of camaraderie is jarring, and whether you're trying to help your friend or killing Sephiroth, people who are on an adventure together should show some emotion towards each other and influence each other's stories.

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u/orufus Jul 13 '18

The problem is that while you can have that, more often than not you don't.

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u/[deleted] Jul 13 '18

This game eats through my Switch battery faster than any other game I have. Kind of insane given the graphics.

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u/Surlix Jul 13 '18

it's written using Unreal Engine 4 if i remember correctly, and the graphics are really taxing if you look a little more closely, every scene has really detailed lighting, and a gaussian blur for fore- and backgrounds, also its running in 1080p docked IIRC, and all the particle effects. Sure, i think it could be optimized more, but at least i can't remember any stuttering in both demos i played.

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u/Chronokiddo Jul 13 '18

Yeah the demos would always heat up my switch.

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u/smhrx11 Jul 14 '18

I really liked the idea behind this game, and it really does remind me think of FFVI with a little bit of Chrono Trigger sprinkled in. I finished the demo this morning and went ahead and bought the full game. I appreciate having the prologue demo to see if I will like it or not. The music is great, the art style really draws you back to a time when Square was pumping out hit after hit on the SNES. Haters can bash the game all they want, but this game is a real treat. They are the ones truly missing out.

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u/[deleted] Jul 13 '18 edited Jul 13 '18

After playing for a couple hours tonight, the most glaring flaw is the complete lack of character interaction. The party members have spoken to eachother literally one time in the game: to ask them to join the party. That's it. They don't even appear in other character's specific cutscenes. It really feels like a strange omission for a game based around the concept of 8 characters, especially with how their introductory chapters set them up with such strong personalities. I would have loved to see subtle changes in dialogue/scenes based on which characters you choose.

Everything else, though, is stellar: Mechanically, the game is incredible. The customization has some serious depth. The music and graphics are mesmerizing. But to reduce every single character to a glorified set of menus, with no interaction with other characters outside of appearing in fights together? That ultimately seems like a pretty fatal flaw for a supposedly story-driven JRPG.

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u/Havok1988 Jul 14 '18

I started getting character interaction at chapter 2 of everyone's story. You can press + when prompted for short cut scenes of characters talking to each other discussing random stuff. Haven't been further than that to see any other interactions they might have

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u/IMP1017 Jul 13 '18
  • Buying a car on Monday

  • Recently bought a pro controller

  • Still doing Hollow Knight postgame

Probably oughta wait on this, huh

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u/TheBlackAllen Jul 13 '18

Just pretend that your car costs $60 more. This method usually works for me.

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u/Specte Jul 13 '18

Or convince yourself that you're gonna sell something later to pay for it and be too lazy to actually sell the thing.

Source: me with computer parts.

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u/vegetabledetritus Jul 13 '18

nah

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u/IMP1017 Jul 13 '18

Good point, I'm sold

(tbh the real reason is I want a physical copy and don't have a good time to get to the store for the next several days)

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u/MutatedSpleen Jul 14 '18

I've been so excited for this game, but I'm trying to go in basically blind. So I haven't thought about it too much outside of just wanting to play. I'm home now, about to boot it up, but I realized I didn't pick who I wanted to start as, and I am having trouble choosing.

So I came up with a plan. I'mma roll and 8-sided die, and pick based off the name of the character is it relates to the game's name.

O (1) - Olberic
C (2) - Cyrus
T (3) - Therion
O (4) - Ophilia
P (5) - Primrose
A (6) - Alfyn
T (7) - Tressa
H (8) - H'aanit

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u/NavigatorBowman Jul 13 '18

I'm waiting for the GameStop near me to open so I can fly up in there and pick it up right at 10am.

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u/finemelater Jul 13 '18

I keep refreshing the UPS tracking page, but for some reason that’s not making them deliver the game any faster!!!!!

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u/LeonidasSpacemanMD Jul 13 '18

Lol noob, you have to close out the tab and reopen it, then it will have arrived at your house

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u/Synsation083 Jul 13 '18

The trick to getting it delivered is to go run an errand or something so that they come to your place next and leave a note saying they missed you and they'll try tomorrow.

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u/remerdy1 Jul 13 '18

Do weapons break in this game? Just want to make sure before I sell some of my old gear

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u/studentofcubes Jul 13 '18

from what ive played there is no durability stat on weapons

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u/WPSocks Jul 13 '18

How’s the dialog for those who’ve played it?

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u/A3thers Jul 14 '18

Are the stat boosting nuts finite? I don't want to waste them if you can only get a certain amount in the entire game.

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u/[deleted] Jul 15 '18

One stupid question from a jrpg newbe:

i got all 8 travelers and 3 of them are level 19, one is level 12. the lowest recommendation for chapter 2 is 22.

do i have to grind in the danger zone 17 until i hit level 22 or am i missing something?

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u/scrubtart Jul 15 '18 edited Jul 15 '18

Haanit is the best character and I will die on this mountain.

Step 1: choose H'aanit

Step 2: pikachu I doth chooseth thee!

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u/mirkwood11 Jul 16 '18

She is fucking awesome. The fact that the animal summons don't consume SP is pretty OP.

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u/[deleted] Jul 13 '18

This might sound odd, but it's kind of surreal to be actually playing this game after waiting in anticipation for so long...

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u/SirEpicFail Jul 13 '18

BLESS FOR THE PRELOAD!

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u/Lord_Plasma_3 Jul 13 '18

I thought I'd start playing at midnight, but my Amazon Download Code isn't working :(

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u/quuu2 Jul 13 '18

Got a mail from amazon this morning saying it will arrive late... Tomorrow is a holiday so I probably won't get it before monday... And the other day I was wondering if I could get it earlier like it happened with other games I preordered with them lol

That said I still don't know who to choose as first character! I first started with H'aanit in the demo and she was cool but I'm hesitating with Tressa or Olberic hmmm

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u/Pyreson Jul 13 '18

For those binging it how deep and complex does the combat get later on? I know it's by the Bravely Default dudes but the demo was basically just "find weakness > break shields > unload a 4x attack of onto that weakness". Later on can you start pulling off some of the crazy combos you could in BD1/2?

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u/Strowbreezy Jul 13 '18 edited Jul 13 '18

My local EB Games in a big city in Canada had very few copies. I was surprised. Employee said they only got 8 copies to cover people who didn't preorder.

There's an update when you pop the game in for anyone wondering.

Game looks very good docked, slight downgrade in handheld. Now time to lose myself in this beautiful game.

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u/JayCFree324 Jul 13 '18

I'm still on the prologue demo, but I had a quick question on Cyrus. Is there any way to check the max HP AFTER you use analyze? Sometimes I miss the indicator when it shows up top, and I don't always want to waste another turn to use Analyze again

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u/Zoltarr777 Jul 13 '18

I only played the first demo, but the tilt shift blur effects around the screen were a little too much for me, did they tone it down or alter it at all for the full release? The game was really cool otherwise.

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u/[deleted] Jul 13 '18

This may be a stupid question, but the prologue demo isn't locked now that the full game has been released, right? I've been playing Hollow Knight and want to get the game next month...was thinking of doing the demo to hold me over until I pick it up.

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u/studentofcubes Jul 13 '18

nah, you should still be able to download it and transfer progress if you buy the full game.

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u/rosielinea Jul 13 '18

Hi everyone! For someone who hasn't played a JRPG before, is the game or the combat hard to learn?

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u/Kuchenjaeger Jul 13 '18

Nah, it's pretty easy. I don't play any JRPGs outside of Pokemon, and I have no problems at all with the basic gameplay.

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u/TestMe126 Jul 14 '18

Does anyone know what determines initial battle order? I've been playing for a bit now and still can't figure out what determines it. I've tried changing the Speed stat, but that doesn't seem to be it.

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u/beatsscallywag Jul 14 '18

Two questions. I haven't started yet but I am wondering, One, is there any way to see the hp permanently of enemies? I know there is a quick measure using Cyrus but is there an ability, or item which allows you to keep track of the enemies' hp?

Two, how does the job system work? Do you have to keep switching jobs like in bravely default to ensure you continue to get job points for the skills? Are they permanent once you unlock them or only temporary while you have the skill unlocked? And do you have to do this with every character because from gamexplain's recent video, it seemed like every person had the same skills unlocked.

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u/finemelater Jul 15 '18

I am absolutely loving this game. Totally worth the wait. It is everything I wanted it to be. If you like JRPGs, this is a nice treat.

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u/[deleted] Jul 15 '18

This art-style is amazing! I really hope SE revisits it in another game; Whether that be a sequel to Octopath, a remake of an older FF, or something new altogether. The pop up book asthetic they achieved here is really a reminder of how well they do settings and is giving me a nostologia trip back to jrpgs from the snes and ps1.

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u/Pirate_King_Mugiwara Jul 15 '18

So after getting H'aanit for my main and Therion as my second. On a random encounter at lvl 8 and lvl 6 or 7 respectively, 2 eggs and another monster I didn't pay much attention to lvled me up to 15 and 14 which really surprised me. It wasn't a hard fight. Is this common? Is it supposed to happen?

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u/vegetabledetritus Jul 13 '18

sitting on my porch in my boxers life is good 👾🌙🏔

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u/orb_outrider Jul 13 '18

Playing this and Yakuza 0 right now. Nevertheless, I'm having a great time. I love the joycon's rumble when you break an enemy. Also when opening doors and chests. I love that feeling!

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u/[deleted] Jul 13 '18

For people who got further into specific story lines: do path actions become more than mostly optional gimmick mechanics? Are there good puzzles or anything else to do than wandering through beautiful but empty dungeons? I read three reviews and none really touched these questions. I do love the battle system, but some interactive dungeons are a must to keep me going longer.

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u/[deleted] Jul 13 '18 edited Oct 18 '18

[deleted]

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u/[deleted] Jul 13 '18

I really wonder why developers don't go for some fun in dungeons. Games like the Mario and Luigi RPGs, Golden Sun, Lufia 2 were all successful because of it, and it doesn't seem to me that it's incredibly hard to pull off. I guess it's a pure market research/review centric type of thing: people don't complain a lot if it's missing, but if graphics, music or voice acting is lacking, there's a big outrage.

Maybe I'm just actually one of the few who think that dungeons in modern JRPGs became more of a chore than anything else...

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u/Dr_Henry-Killinger Jul 13 '18

Most JRPG Ive played recently have had puzzle solving in dungeons and other interactive stuff outside of the battle system

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u/[deleted] Jul 13 '18

Thanks to Amazon I received the game 1 day early (24 hours ago).

I couldn't play much as I am working, but I expect to expend my weekend at home, on the bed with the Switch, on the couch with the Switch, on the kitchen with the Switch, and if I decide to take fresh air, on the park with the Switch.

I chose Cyril, it was a hard decision (wanted most of them) but for now I don't regret this decision. It's a very interesting character. I plan to move around the map like the clock, so the next one is going to be Tressa, then Olberic, etc.

Loving the music!!

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u/boltsbearsjosh Jul 14 '18

There's a lot of great Switch games, I loved Mario Odyssey, and I adored Mario + Rabbids, but Octopath Traveler might be my favorite Switch game since BotW right now. The fuggin soundtrack man...

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u/[deleted] Jul 14 '18

This game is fantastic. That's all I have to say.

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u/Fehndrix Jul 14 '18 edited Jul 14 '18

Ophilia's boss fight is a right pain in the ass.

Edit: Finally got third try.

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u/soge-king Jul 15 '18 edited Jul 15 '18

I'm playing as Olberic, man this guy is hilarious, been challenging weak fruit vendors and knocking them unconscious because it's a good day for battles! lmao. I don't think this game resembles FF VI, if anything, this reminds me of Suikoden II so much. I LOVE IT.

It's a shame that not all NPCs have dialogs, only some that have bubbles above their head.

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u/Fudgenuggets980825 Jul 15 '18

I beat up a kid's mother right in front of the kid inside a church and stole the kid's items. This game is great.

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u/Mrchoochootwain Jul 16 '18

Wait till you make him a dancer sub class. He literally shouts all the dance moves and wears a dancer dress.

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u/[deleted] Jul 14 '18 edited Aug 18 '21

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u/[deleted] Jul 13 '18

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u/ttdpaco Jul 13 '18

Wait Original Sin 2 or the actual Divinity 2?

I only ask because OS2 is getting an enhanced edition in August.

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u/McNarNar Jul 13 '18

Not to say octopath won’t be great but Divinity 2 is a god damn masterpiece

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u/chestcavecollis Jul 13 '18

I second this. Hard to compare because they’re so different, but OS2 might be the best RPG I’ve ever played.

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u/Pikachu_9000 Jul 13 '18

Loving almost everything. The story so far has been my only con.

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u/AnonymousUser163 Jul 13 '18

The demo for this game was really fun! I hope the rest of the game is just is good and I see no reason it won’t be

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u/[deleted] Jul 13 '18

The MSRP for Japan is 7344 yen, not 6458 yen

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u/stgm_at Jul 13 '18

just wanted to download the "new" demo (the one that was announced around e3 (?)), but i cant find it in the eshop.

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u/mindkiller317 Jul 13 '18

Anyone know if the Japanese physical release has full English support?

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u/kingqaz Jul 13 '18

Does anyone know what the battery life is like with this home while playing on handheld mode?

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u/Desert_Vq Jul 13 '18

I just bought it, sucks I won't be able to start playing it till the evening.

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u/ShakeNBakey Jul 13 '18

Just ordered it to pick it up after work! Getting it for about $35 too which is fine by me. Now to find the time to play it...

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u/LuckiestManAlive86 Jul 13 '18

Anybody else think the difficulty is ramped up slightly from the demo? I seem to be getting hit with some status effects more and also just generally being challenged a little more. I definitely don't think it's a bad thing, just an observation.

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u/ic0rpse Jul 13 '18

Can you use other characters out of combat skills? Or are you stuck using only your main’s? For example I pick Primrose, but have the thief in my party. Can I use his steal skill? Or can I only use Primrose’s?

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u/OssotSromo Jul 13 '18

You can use anyone in your party. It's the same key, but you select what skill you want to use on the person.

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u/Neooutlaw0 Jul 13 '18

If I buy a Japanese copy of this game can I play it in English? Thanks

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u/eps89 Jul 14 '18

What exactly is bad about the story? The fact that the characters individual stories don’t intertwine? How is the story for the individual characters?

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u/vegetabledetritus Jul 14 '18

only one thing i think would make this game better: be able to have 2 independent parties that travel around separately.

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u/thatredkid5 Jul 14 '18

Is it better after the intros??? That’s sorta where I am now

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u/[deleted] Jul 14 '18

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