by Bluie » Mar 03, 2021 7:20 am
I've heard that the game is OK, but could have used more time in the oven. It's old school with proper QoL improvements, but the story is apparently a tired cliché and it also forces you to grind a lot to progress, which is honestly bad game design by today's day and age (it's extra unneeded padding to artificially extend the game's length). Another thing a lot of people are noticing is that this title is lacking some effort the precious two entries had, especially with properly melding the 3D models with the 2D backgrounds, and the fact that there's no opening full CG cutscene. I'd say if you like old styled turn based JRPGs and want a 'nostalgic' experience, go for it.
I will say that I really enjoyed Octopath Traveler though, not only because it was made to look and feel like an HD version of an old JRPG, but because they went in a completely different direction with storytelling. Each of the 8 characters are their own protagonist and just happen to be traveling with the others, so they rarely talk to one another (there's like a party chat feature that pops up depending on who's active and where you are) and are each in their own story. Each character's narrative is connected to an overall plot point, but I personally really liked how it was stories about individuals on their own journey and not a full party dynamic. It also has some grinding, but I never felt like it was blocking my progress until mentioned overall (and honestly optional) plot.
Bravely Default II is a JRPG story with elemental crystals and world saving, Octopath Traveler is a collection of self contained stories that lead up to something else.
I've heard that the game is OK, but could have used more time in the oven. It's old school with proper QoL improvements, but the story is apparently a tired cliché and it also forces you to grind a lot to progress, which is honestly bad game design by today's day and age (it's extra unneeded padding to artificially extend the game's length). Another thing a lot of people are noticing is that this title is lacking some effort the precious two entries had, especially with properly melding the 3D models with the 2D backgrounds, and the fact that there's no opening full CG cutscene. I'd say if you like old styled turn based JRPGs and want a 'nostalgic' experience, go for it.
I will say that I really enjoyed Octopath Traveler though, not only because it was made to look and feel like an HD version of an old JRPG, but because they went in a completely different direction with storytelling. Each of the 8 characters are their own protagonist and just happen to be traveling with the others, so they rarely talk to one another (there's like a party chat feature that pops up depending on who's active and where you are) and are each in their own story. Each character's narrative is connected to an overall plot point, but I personally really liked how it was stories about individuals on their own journey and not a full party dynamic. It also has some grinding, but I never felt like it was blocking my progress until mentioned overall (and honestly optional) plot.
Bravely Default II is a JRPG story with elemental crystals and world saving, Octopath Traveler is a collection of self contained stories that lead up to something else.